And instead of assuming more direct control of the inspection system, the government seems likely to remain heavily dependent on growers, food processors and others in the industry to police themselves and the food supply.
Durbin and others on Capitol Hill nonetheless plan to push ahead with legislation to try to strengthen the FDA, the much maligned agency responsible for overseeing about 80 percent of the food Americans eat. While most meat and Read the rest of this entry »

President Barack Obama hasn’t yet presented his official health care reform plan to Congress. But already, new health spending is spinning out of control. Obama and congressional Democrats included more than $150 billion for health care in the $787 billion stimulus package.
About $90 billion is intended to help states with budget deficits fund Medicaid, the government health insurance plan for the poor. Another $21 billion is earmarked for Read the rest of this entry »

During 2008 Rep. David Clark co-chaired a legislative task force on Utah’s health system, the second time in recent history that he has taken on the thankless task of examining health-system problems.
Rep. Clark, R-Santa Clara, who is the new speaker of Utah’s House of Representatives, has taken the unusual step of personally sponsoring the flagship bill among the several which emerged from the task force because, as he wrote in
on Feb. 15, he Read the rest of this entry »

WASHINGTON – President-elect Barack Obama and his team have signaled that they plan to work jointly with Congress to overhaul the healthcare system, rather than produce a separate White House bill that would be sent to Capitol Hill, according to people involved in healthcare strategy discussions.
The Obama team is determined to avoid the mistakes of the early 1990s, when the Clinton White House created a healthcare policy team that had more than Read the rest of this entry »

From his post as New York’s attorney general, Andrew Cuomo has become a one-man health-reform show.
WellPoint, the nation’s largest health insurer, today became the latest to
it’s abandoning a database used for years to determine how much insurers pay out-of-network doctors. Cuomo has accused insurers of underpaying doctors based on the “defective” data. WellPoint will pay $10 million to help fund an independent, Read the rest of this entry »

“Health reform is so important we have to have a profound sense of urgency — we cannot wait,” said Len Nichols, Ph.D., director of the health policy program for New America Foundation during a Dec. 11
here announcing formation of the coalition. “We cannot reform our health care system unless we change business as usual.”
The coalition, known as Health CEOs for Health Reform, comprises the heads of six major health providers from across the country, Read the rest of this entry »

and was reprinted with its permission.
The current worldwide financial crisis is transforming the problem of rising U.S. healthcare costs into a dire threat to our entire economy, making healthcare reform an increasingly urgent priority. Any potential approach to restructuring healthcare must include universal electronic medical records so that both patient care and policy decisions are fully informed. In his weekly address to the nation on Dec. Read the rest of this entry »

HUNTINGTON — Sometimes just offering your two cents worth can be empowering.
That’s what a dozen local residents did Saturday at the Cabell County Public Library, spending about two hours discussing health care reform as part of President-elect Barack Obama’s plan to incorporate the public in the process.
Thousands of forums have been taking place throughout the nation since Dec. 15, and reports are being uploaded to
. According to the Web Read the rest of this entry »

IntraHealth International has served the public health needs of developing countries for nearly 30 years. The non-profit company’s primary mission is to create sustainable, accessible health care by mobilizing local resources such as physicians, nurses and medical supplies. IntraHealth began with a focus on reproductive health and family planning, and has since expanded to address broader health and social issues internationally, including HIV/AIDS, Read the rest of this entry »

If You are Worried about the Economy, Agitate for Health Care Reform
I’ve just read a piece by a labor union leader and the Chairman and CEO of Pfizer begging for this reform– a rare combined response of labor and management.
“The evaporation of nearly 600,000 jobs in January alone makes the need for healthcare reform more urgent than ever,” they write. “Each one percent rise in the national unemployment rate strands a million more Read the rest of this entry »