Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report Rounds Up Editorial Response To State Of The Union Address
Des Moines Register: "Unfortunately, President Bush dedicated only a few sentences" to health care in his speech, and "[e]ven more unfortunate was his emphasis on expansion of health savings accounts," a Register editorial states. The editorial says that making U.S. residents "true consumers" in health care is a "reasonable idea," but it is "impossible" in the current system to "comparison shop for quality and costs" because health care providers "aren't required to disclose infection rates or other quality measures." The editorial concludes that a "better approach would be a uniform, tax-financed health care program that covers everyone and saves money by reducing administrative waste" (Des Moines Register, 2/1).
Detroit Free Press: "The cornerstone of the president's health care plan" -- an expansion of HSAs -- would be, as the "Center for Budget and Policy Priorities put it, ... a fine idea for the 'healthy, wealthy and wise' but won't do much for the low-income folks who have no health care coverage," a Free Press editorial states (Detroit Free Press, 2/1).
Las Vegas Sun: Bush's vision for health care reform "focuses on wealthy people and businesses, with middle-class and poor people seen only peripherally," a Sun editorial states, adding that workers with average or low incomes "would likely not be able to afford high payroll deductions and would be hard pressed to pay the deductible" under an HSA. The editorial concludes that a plan is needed "to cover more of the 46 million Americans who lack health insurance -- not a plan to pass the buck" (Las Vegas Sun, 1/31).
Long Island Newsday: Bush's speech "offered only small-bore initiatives that would nip around the edges of big problems," such as an expansion of HSAs to reduce health care costs, a Newsday editorial states. "This was a speech long on problems but short on solutions," Newsday concludes (Long Island Newsday, 2/1).
Minneapolis Star Tribune: The principle behind Bush's proposed expansion of HSAs "doesn't seem much different from the flawed new Medicare drug benefit -- that is, throw responsibility onto individuals, and then throw them into a baffling and undependable marketplace," a Star Tribune editorial states (Minneapolis Star Tribune, 1/31).
New York Daily News: Bush in his speech "tackled" the "mega-issue of spiraling health care costs ... with microsolutions," a Daily News editorial states (New York Daily News, 2/1).
Newark Star-Ledger: There is "not a lot of data to determine the impact" of HSAs, a Star-Ledger editorial states. It continues, "We're concerned that those savings accounts will benefit people who are healthy by lowering their costs, in effect providing another tax haven for the wealthy," while "the less affluent and those with chronic health problems will be forced to pay more" (Newark Star-Ledger, 2/1).
Orlando Sentinel: "It's too bad that Mr. Bush didn't propose policies that would directly address the availability of health insurance," such as the possibility of "offering Americans the same private insurance options as federal employees," a Sentinel editorial states. The editorial also notes that most U.S. citizens "don't earn enough to set aside much money for health care" under HSAs (Orlando Sentinel, 2/1).
Philadelphia Inquirer: President Bush in his address did not "tackle head-on the national disgrace of nearly 46 million people going without health insurance," an Inquirer editorial states. In addition, the Bush administration's HSA initiative appeals primarily to a "limited subset of people -- mostly young and healthy," the editorial says. It also states that HSAs, "as outlined by the President, simply aren't a satisfactory replacement for old-fashioned workplace coverage," and what is needed is "a fresh approach that goes beyond tinkering" (Philadelphia Inquirer, 2/1).
Rochester Democrat & Chronicle: The State of the Union address, "in a way, was unbalanced," a Democrat & Chronicle editorial states, adding that foreign policy was the main focus at the expense of domestic issues such as health care (Rochester Democrat & Chronicle, 2/1).
St. Petersburg Times: "Health care ranks as the top priority of most Americans. ... Yet Bush had little to offer on that issue except tax incentives for individual medical savings accounts that would be beyond the means of many of the 46 million" uninsured U.S. residents, a Times editorial states, adding that "[t]here is no money for big second-term initiatives" because "an expensive Medicare drug benefit" and other big expenditures have "left the government drowning in red ink and the president and the Congress with little room to maneuver on spending" (St. Petersburg Times, 2/1).
USA Today: "Anyone expecting a grand plan to overhaul the nation's health care system surely was disappointed with President Bush's State of the Union address," a USA Today editorial states, adding that Bush only "chip[ped] at the edges of the problems while avoiding the biggest issues." The editorial says that Bush's proposals "don't provide universal coverage" and "aren't much help to people who pay little or no federal income taxes" (USA Today, 2/1).
Wall Street Journal: Bush "made health care a big part of his State of the Union address last night," the Journal states. It notes that HSAs "are already a step in the right direction" toward reform, adding that "[m]arket-based health care reform could be a big political winner for Mr. Bush and the GOP" (Wall Street Journal, 2/1).
Washington Post: Bush "served up a sensible proposal to limit doctors' liability that has so far failed in Congress. He invoked the potential of medical information technology -- again reasonable, again not new," the Post states. It continues that Bush's only "semi-fresh" new idea for health care reform was to expand the use of HSAs, which "would drain money from the budget, ... be regressive, and ... constrain health spending far less than the administration hopes" (Washington Post, 2/1).
"Reprinted with permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.
Kaiser Raport zilnic de sãnãtate politica editorialã runde de rãspuns de pânã la membru al Uniunii adresa - Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report Rounds Up Editorial Response To State Of The Union Address - articole medicale engleza - startsanatate