Under Obamacare, Pennsylvania families have been forced to pay more for health care, and more than 800,000 Pennsylvania adults have received taxpayer-funded health coverage through a broken Medicaid system. Without Congressional action, states are unable to carry the full burden of Obamacare on their own. However, state policymakers can focus their own reform efforts on giving patients more control over health care and restoring Medicaid as a safety-net program. Access to health care should be measured, not by the number of those with insurance, but by the ability of individuals to independently secure the affordable, reliable care they deserve.

Health Care

New Mandates A Step Backwards in Health Care Reform

  • Nathan Benefield
  • July 2, 2008

State lawmakers claim to hear the cries of Pennsylvania residents about the escalating costs of health care. Unfortunately, instead of pushing reforms to help lower the costs of care, some…

Commentary

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Health Care

How much will an autism mandate cost?

  • Nathan Benefield
  • June 26, 2008

The PA Health Care Containment Council allegedly has a study (it hasn’t been released, but some media are reporting on it) claiming that a new mandate that insurance companies…

Media

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Health Care

Do Democrats want people to die?

  • Nathan Benefield
  • June 26, 2008

Yesterday, I got an email from a lobbying organization, which masquerades as a grassroots organization, led by Governor Rendell’s campaign manager with the subject, “As The Senate Delays, People…

Media

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Health Care

Address Health Care, Not Health Insurance

  • Nathan Benefield
  • June 24, 2008

Letter to the editor in The Daily Item focus on the Senate Republican’s health care reform plan, specifically their proposal to aid free clinics. While I agree with…

Media

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Health Care

Voters Send Mixed Messages on Health Care

  • Nathan Benefield
  • June 13, 2008

Michael Tanner on polls about health care and the divergent proposals , concluding, “as November approaches, voters will reach a fork in the road, and as Yogi Berra says,…

Media

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Health Care

An American Cure for Reforming Health Care

  • Nathan Benefield
  • June 7, 2008

Tom Coburn presents his proposal to reform our health care system at the Manhattan Institute. Here is the core of the argument: How do we create a real…

Media

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Health Care

More evidence on the failure of RomneyCare

  • Nathan Benefield
  • June 4, 2008

Michael Tanner blasts positive media coverage of a new report on Massachusetts health care, pointing out the many reasons why RomneyCare is a failure (from the same report). Tanner…

Media

Read More: More evidence on the failure of RomneyCare

Health Care

Fixing Health Care in the States

  • Nathan Benefield
  • May 29, 2008

The Wall Street Journal has two articles about health insurance reform in other states. First, from Florida, where the state has enacted a law that will allow low-cost, mandate…

Media

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Health Care

The New Big Dig

  • Nathan Benefield
  • May 21, 2008

Wall Street Journal on the pitfalls of RomneyCare.

Media

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Health Care

PA liability for state retiree health: $8.8 billion

  • Nathan Benefield
  • May 12, 2008

The PA Office of the Budget released their actuarial report on retiree health care liabilities, revealing that the estimated unfunded liablity as of July 1, 2008 is $8.8 billion…

Media

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Health Care

Address the Cost of Health Care

  • Nathan Benefield
  • May 11, 2008

Here is a letter to the editor I sent to the York Daily Record on health care reform: I am responding to a May 4 op-ed by Rep. Eugene…

Media

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Health Care

Health Care Reform (the right kind) in the states

  • Nathan Benefield
  • May 8, 2008

Georgia enacted a few of the health care reforms we have been touting. From the SPN Blog: Georgia eliminates a major tax inequity by allowing individuals to…

Media

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Health Care

Savings from McCain’s Health Care Tax Credit

  • Nathan Benefield
  • May 6, 2008

With the re-release of John McCain’s health care plan came a lot of criticism (along with praise) over who benefits from his tax credit. McCain would offer…

Media

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Health Care

High Risk Pools

  • Nathan Benefield
  • May 5, 2008

One of the key recommendations from Rick Dreyfuss’s health care testimony last week which received a number of questions was creating a state high risk pool. CAHI has…

Media

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Health Care

Healthcare Affordability

  • Richard Dreyfuss
  • May 1, 2008

Healthcare Reform Principles Every reform action should be tested against two criteria: • Does it take costs out of the system?• Does it price insurance in proportion to expected…

Testimony

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Health Care

Health Care Affordability Debated

  • Nathan Benefield
  • April 30, 2008

Today’s health care hearing, at which Commonwealth Foundation Senior Fellow Rick Dreyfuss testified, will be airing on PCN tonight; check here for future airings. The York Dispatch also did…

Media

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Health Care

Q& A on State Health Care Reform

  • Nathan Benefield
  • April 21, 2008

The NCPA has a new report on State Health Care Reform: Key Questions and Answers, highlighting many of the key policy questions, including “Does universal health coverage lower health…

Media

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Health Care

Health Savings Sabotage

  • Nathan Benefield
  • April 20, 2008

The Wall Street Journal has a column on a bill that passed the US House that would undermine Health Savings Accounts (also see the SPN blog on this…

Media

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Health Care

The Health Insurance Mafia

  • Nathan Benefield
  • April 18, 2008

Here is a great editorial in the Wall Street Journal on how the health insurance industry acts like the Mafia: Most discussions about the rising…

Media

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Health Care

“Stupid Hicks” Oppose Big Government

  • Nathan Benefield
  • April 15, 2008

I wasn’t going to post anything on Barack Obama’s comments about people “clinging” to guns and religion, until Philadelphia Daily News columnist John Baer offered his Obama can…

Media

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