Can’t see the audio participant? Click here to listen on SoundCloud.
The last debate for Democratic presidential candidates earlier than the Feb. three Iowa caucuses didn’t delve as deeply into well being care as some earlier debates. But it did embrace dialogue of a number of well being points which have obtained comparatively little consideration, together with prescription drug costs and long-term care.
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump is claiming credit score for having “saved” federal protections for preexisting well being situations, maybe the most well-liked piece of the Affordable Care Act, at the same time as his personal administration is in courtroom making an attempt to have the complete well being regulation declared unconstitutional.
And Kansas could quickly turn into the most recent state to increase the Medicaid program underneath the ACA, because the Democratic governor and GOP Senate majority chief strike a deal.
This week’s panelists are Julie Rovner from Kaiser Health News, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Tami Luhby of CNN and Shefali Luthra of Kaiser Health News.
Among the takeaways from this week’s podcast:
Some advocates have complained that the Democratic presidential candidates are usually not discussing threats to abortion rights in the course of the debates. But, typically, candidates look to speak about points that differentiate them from their major opponents, and the entire Democrats on stage are supportive of a lady’s proper to an abortion. Trump’s declare this week that he was defending the appropriate of customers with medical issues to get well being protection was extensively derided by ACA supporters. But his rivalry goes to the guts of the administration’s effort to buttress its well being care initiatives forward of the marketing campaign. At the identical time, the Trump administration has set a requirement for plans bought on Obamacare marketplaces to invoice customers individually for the portion of the plan that covers abortion, typically a minuscule quantity. That may confuse clients and create billing complications for insurers and immediate some to discontinue the protection. Recent motion by the Supreme Court could sign some adjustments coming in its view of abortion rights, now that the courtroom has a stronger conservative majority. The justices refused to take an appeals courtroom determination upholding a Kentucky regulation that requires docs to point out girls searching for an abortion an ultrasound picture of the fetus and describe the process to them.
Plus, for further credit score, the panelists suggest their favourite well being coverage tales of the week they assume it’s best to learn too:
Julie Rovner: The Deductible’s “Seven for the Twenties: A Futurist Looks at the Next Decade,” by Jeff Goldsmith
Alice Miranda Ollstein: The Wall Street Journal’s “Plan to Revamp Medicaid-Eligibility Checks Draws Criticism,” by Stephanie Armour
Tami Luhby: Vox.com’s “Everybody Covered,” by Dylan Scott, Ezra Klein and Tara Golshan
Shefali Luthra: Kaiser Health News’ “High-Deductible Plans Jeopardize Financial Health Of Patients And Rural Hospitals,” by Markian Hawryluk
To hear all our podcasts, click here.
And subscribe to What the Health? on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play, Spotify, or Pocket Casts.
Kaiser Health News (KHN) is a nationwide well being coverage information service. It is an editorially unbiased program of the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation which isn’t affiliated with Kaiser Permanente.
We encourage organizations to republish our content material, freed from cost. Here’s what we ask:
You should credit score us as the unique writer, with a hyperlink to our khn.org web site. If potential, please embrace the unique creator(s) and “Kaiser Health News” within the byline. Please protect the hyperlinks within the story.
It’s essential to notice, not the whole lot on khn.org is on the market for republishing. If a narrative is labeled “All Rights Reserved,” we can not grant permission to republish that merchandise.
Have questions? Let us know at [email protected]”>[email protected]
