Talking Health

The NYTimes has an op-ed today outlining discrepancies and gross abuse of Medicare Part D and Medicare. The author, a former presidential speechwriter (which means he’s a very clear writer, but not necessarily in a position of power in the health care reform movement), goes after the lack of caps on direct gov’t subsidies to insurers and the loopholes/flaws endemic to the 2003 drafting of legislation that allowed abuse.
It could serve as an intriguing and brief primer for common readers not versed on what exactly is wrong with Medicare’s current financing structure.

President Obama’s announcements regarding his budget plans and goals for health care reform over the next several years upended existing norms and attitudes towards the long term role of the health insurance industry in the United States.

Although Obama’s budget plan for fiscal year 2010 won’t go into effect until October 1st of this year, its stated cutbacks and other changes are already having an effect on the stock market. According to the Wall Street Journal’s health blog, health insurers’ stocks are being devalued today, with Humana, United and Coventry seeing the biggest losses.