On August 1, 2010, the U.S. District Court in Virginia ruled that the lawsuit against the Affordable Care Act (ACA) can proceed. Judge Hudson defined the issue as: “whether or not Congress has the power to regulate – and tax – a citizen’s decision not to participate in interstate commerce [by choosing not to buy health insurance.]” A summary judgment …

This past week, our Center released a report on the cost of chronic disease in Michigan. As we noted in that report, nationally, five percent of the U.S. population accounts for almost half of all health care spending and 20 percent accounts for 80 percent. In addition, according to the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, chronic disease accounts …

One of the provisions I particularly like in the Affordable Care Act is the section that provides $1.5 billion over five years to states for home visiting programs for new mothers. Under the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program, nurses, social workers, or other professionals are expected to meet with at-risk families in their homes, evaluate the families’ …

On July 13, 2010, HHS released final rules telling providers of care how to demonstrate the “meaningful use” of electronic medical records in order to be eligible for incentives starting in 2011. By 2015, most providers who don’t adopt electronic medical records will face penalties. The originally proposed rules were considered too rigid by many, and would have made it …

While my personal thoughts frequently center around issues such as “being,” on a professional level I have probably given more thought to the issue of physician employment than any other. I am old enough to recall when an employed physician was actually an oddity. During my many years working on the provider side of the business, I experienced the rush …

Early reviews are in and they are favorable! Public opinion polls show support for the Affordable Care Act (ACA) creeping up to 48 percent. All of that is good news, and a well-deserved commentary on health reform: States and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services have been moving quickly to put in place the most immediate requirements of the …

The confirmation process for Don Berwick as President Obama’s nominee to be director of the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services within the Department of Health and Human Services should be a most distressing sight to anyone who has spent their careers in health policy – or who even has a passing interest in the policies and politics of health …

Earlier in June, the New York Times ran an article by Adleson and Reed questioning the findings in the Dartmouth Atlas. Jack Wennberg and colleagues have been working in this field and documenting small area variation in health care since the 1970s. However, the work was not much recognized outside of academic and health care analytic circles until the start …

Today, we are releasing our 2010 report on health care coverage in Michigan. This report includes comprehensive data on the uninsured, publicly, privately insured and the safety net. In addition, we have included a final chapter on what could be the impact of health reform on coverage in Michigan. The 2010 report principally includes data from 2007/8, the most recently …

The recently passed “Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act” a/k/a “health care reform” is a monumental piece of legislation, both literally and figuratively. Despite its supposed intent to “reform” the health care system, however, it is quite tepid on reform and very aggressive on enhancing coverage. The legislation contains a virtual smorgasbord of programs, directives, initiatives, instructions, orders, regulations, requirements, …