Doctors For America Rejoice Following Passage Of Health Care Reform

By Laurel Brishel Prichard University of New Mexico/ Talk Radio News Service

Advocacy group Doctors For America expressed their excitement Monday over the passage of sweeping health care reform legislation the previous day. The doctors joined together from across the country in D.C. for a march and rally to congratulate the Senate and House for their work on health care reform.

“This legislation will go further and do more to fix the problems of the health care delivery system in my state then anything that I have seen proposed in the 27 years I’ve been here in the Senate,” said Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) during a news conference for the association. “This is a great day for our country.”

The doctors, who wore patient identification bands to help associate themselves with their patients that are struggling with the cost of health care, will continue to urge the Senate to pass the reconciliation, which Bingaman says will be passed this week.

Rep. Jim McDermott (D-WA) warned that many new programs will have kinks in the beginning, but that health care reform is a monumental achievement for the nation.

“What you are seeing happen here is the beginning of an enormous change, it is not a change that is all done,’ said McDermott “We have to keep coming back and working on it just like we did with Medicare.”

The new reform should be treated like Medicare, according to McDermott, which has been amended every year since its enactment in 1965. One of the amendments that McDermott and Doctors For America pressed hope to create is a program to help future doctors, dentists and nurses with the ever rising cost of school for those fields.

“This bill tells all Americans who are suffering with chronic conditions, whose insurance companies set a lifetime or annual cap on their benefits, that those days are over this year,” Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL.) said.

Doctors, Senators Push For Cure To Health Care System

By Courtney Ann Jackson-Talk Radio News Service

Doctors from around the country visited the U.S. Capitol Thursday to promote health care reform and to present their diagnoses on the current health care system.

“We are too close to achieving health care reform to stop now,” said Dr. Jim King, a family physician. “Family physicians cannot understand why we would ever want to continue a health care system that reduces productivity, accelerates costs increases and promotes inefficiency. Why would this status quo be acceptable to anyone?”

King said health care in this country will deteriorate greatly if Congress doesn't produce a system that works for everybody.

Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) issued a diagnosis of his own, saying, “Our health care system is chronically ill. It cannot survive as it currently exists.”

Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) said both the doctors and the American public know that the nation needs reform. Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y) agreed, but noted that Congress can’t be expected to snap its fingers and have it done. Rather, real change will take time, he said.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said he believed the media had created a false deadline for getting legislation passed before the August recess. Reid said he wants the bill passed before the end of the year.

Reid added that his focus is working on coming up with enough votes in the Senate to override a filibuster.

“I’m pretty good at arithmetic. I know how to count to 60,” he quipped.

GOP Senators: Let’s Start Over On Health Care

By Courtney Ann Jackson- Talk Radio News Service

Republican Senators reiterated Wednesday their desire to let the public to see the health care bill before Congress considers passing it, adding that if a bipartisan bill couldn’t be created that included the key elements of their proposals such as cutting costs and coverage for everyone, they should just start over.

Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) argued that attempting to pass a health care bill before the August recess creates a “false deadline.”

“My recommendation to the President is to back off on that [deadline]. He’s going to find plenty of us to work with on a common sense proposal,” said Coburn. “Back off...and take us at our word that we truly want to work to solve this problem and I think that’s reflective of the vast majority of our conference.”

Coburn was joined by Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) and Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) to discuss the Republican health care agenda. Both Coburn and Barrasso are the Senate’s only two doctors.

Barrasso said physicians know we need health care reform. He also noted that we must get the costs under control and improve patient care.

“We’re here as two doctors to say we want to make this system better for all Americans,” said Barraso.

Coburn highlighted the need for Republicans to continue working and not slow down or lose focus as they continually push for their proposals to be seriously considered.

Health Care Marketplace: Cut Costs And Create Competition

By Courtney Ann Jackson-Talk Radio News Service

The issue of promoting competition and preventing rising health care costs was discussed by the Consumer, Product Safety, and Insurance Subcommittee during a hearing Thursday morning.

“For too long, too many health care decisions have been made behind closed doors with industry profits, not the patient’s best interests in mind,” said Chairman Jay Rockefeller (D-W.V.). “It is no surprise that without any transparency or the force of competition to keep them honest, industry profits soared, as have consumer costs and the barriers to necessary medical care.”

Representatives from various organizations including the Federal Trade Commission, New America Foundation, Center for American Progress, Arkansas Pharmacists Association and Galen Institute testified at the hearing.

Richard Feinstein, Director of the Bureau of Competition at the Federal Trade Commisssion (FTC), highlighted the need to prevent or stop anticompetitive agreements that raise health care prices. He said anitrust enforcement saves money that consumers, employers, and governments could spend on health care. All the panelists agreed that reform is needed, and more should be done to create more health care incentives for the public.

Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) also held a health care discussion of his own Thursday. Barrasso and Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) are hosting a new online show entitled “The Senate Doctors Show.” Barrasso and Coburn are the only doctors in the Senate and their new show will feature them answering questions from the public about health care proposals under debate in Congress.

“I think you ought to take the bill home, read it, talk to people about it. The best ideas don’t come from Washington...I think the American people have a right to expect to see the bill, read the bill, think about the bill, and come up with some suggestions,” said Barrasso.

"The Senate Doctors Show" is streamed live at http://republican.senate.gov/doctors every Tuesday and Thursday at 4:00 p.m. EDT.

Democrats’ Proposed Health Care Model Stresses Access, Affordability And Choice

By Courtney Ann Jackson-Talk Radio News Service

Health care access and better choice of doctors may be the new norm if Senate Democrats have their way. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid was accompanied today by Assistant Senate Majority Leader Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Democratic Conference Vice Chairman Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Democratic Conference Secretary Patty Murray (D-Wash.), for a discussion on health care reform plans. Reid said if reform was easy, it would have been done a long time ago.

Reid mentioned the health care related bills the Democrats have been working on, saying “It gives opportunity for the Republicans to add insight and ensure them an opportunity to be able to help negotiate a good deal. [We] always save the Republicans a seat at the negotiating table and we’ll continue to do that. All they need is to do is sit down and talk to us and I’m hopeful and very confident they will do that at the final time of getting a health care bill and all brought up.”

Proposed legislation covers health issues such as children’s health care, better access, affordability and the choice of what doctors and hospitals people can go to. Reid said he believes his colleagues have done an excellent job in creating legislation that reflects the core principals of the American people.

Despite the senators’ aforementioned reach across the aisle, Durbin said that it has become clear to him that, at least in the highest leadership, the Senate Republicans are going to oppose whatever is proposed. He said, “They are the ones who are motivating this opposition to change because they’re cashing in on this broken system.”

Sen. Schumer believes that there are some things that have to be worked out but that it seems the parties are beginning to agree on at least a basic structure. He said the top priorities are providing a public option and ensuring affordable health care for all Americans.