Reports by Edwin Park
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Fourteen States Face SCHIP Shortfalls This Year Totaling Over $700 Million
December 11, 2006
New estimates, based on the latest available data, show that 14 states face federal funding shortfalls this year in the State Children’s Health Insurance Program. These states lack sufficient federal funding to maintain current enrollment levels through the end of fiscal year 2007. The shortfalls in these states total more than … -
Last-Minute Addition To Tax Package Would Make Health Savings Accounts More Attractive As Tax Shelters For High-Income Individuals
Revised December 7, 2006
As part of the last-minute deal making today on the “tax extenders” package, House and Senate negotiators have agreed to include an expansion of Health Savings Accounts that would make these accounts more lucrative as tax shelters for high-income individuals. The HSA expansion is identical to legislation (H.R. 6134) … -
Medicaid Commission Recommendations Raise Serious Concerns
November 16, 2006
On November 8, the Medicaid commission created by the Administration last year released a “chairman’s mark” setting forth broad recommendations designed to “promote Medicaid’s long-term fiscal sustainability, while also emphasizing quality of care.” The commission will consider these recommendations at its final meeting on November 16 and 17. In … -
GAO Study Confirms Health Savings Accounts Primarily Benefit High-Income Individuals
September 20, 2006
A groundbreaking new study by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) demonstrates that Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) — tax-favored savings accounts attached to high-deductible health insurance plans established under the 2003 Medicare drug law — are heavily skewed toward affluent individuals. The GAO findings also … -
Senate Budget Process Legislation Embraces "Misguided 45 Percent Trigger"
June 26, 2006
Executive Summary Major budget-process legislation approved by the Senate Budget Committee on June 20 seeks to limit the share of Medicare expenditures that are financed by general revenues. The legislation (S. 3521), crafted by Senate Budget Committee Chairman Judd Gregg (R-NH), would establish a new Senate … -
Informing The Debate About Health Savings Accounts
June 13, 2006
Click on the text of the questions below to go directly to the corresponding answer. Are there now 3.2 million HSAs in use? Do employers offering high-deductible health insurance plans and HSAs to their employees contribute to the HSAs to help their employees cover the higher out-of-pocket costs related to the high … -
Health Savings Accounts Unlikely To Significantly Reduce Health Care Spending
June 12, 2006
Proponents of Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) — tax-favored savings accounts attached to high-deductible health insurance plans — have long argued that widespread adoption of HSAs will contain health care costs substantially over time. The theory is that the high deductibles required under HSAs (at least $1,050 for … -
SCHIP Financing Update
June 5, 2006
The State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), jointly financed by states and the federal government, provides comprehensive health insurance coverage to more than four million low-income children, most of whom would otherwise be uninsured.[1] In a prior analysis, we estimated that under current law, a number of states … -
Trustees’ Report Focuses Attention On Misguided Medicare “45-Percent Trigger”
Revised May 1, 2006
The Social Security and Medicare Trustees report issued May 1 includes an estimate that the portion of Medicare funding that comes from general revenues will exceed 45 percent in 2012. This estimate is likely to be cited by some as an indication of Medicare’s growing problems, with the implication being that Medicare’s … -
Lessons From New Hampshire: Senate Health Bill Could Drive Up Health Insurance Premiums for Many Small Businesses
April 26, 2006
In early May, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist is expected to bring to the Senate floor the “Health Insurance Marketplace Modernization and Affordability Act of 2005” (S. 1955), introduced by Senator Enzi (R-WY) and reported out of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee on March 15. While the intent … -
President and Senate Budget Committee Embrace Misguided “45-Percent Trigger”
March 13, 2006
Both the President and the Senate Budget Committee have embraced the notion that increases in the share of Medicare expenditures that are funded by general revenues are problematic and should be limited. The President’s fiscal year 2007 budget calls for Medicare to be subject to automatic cuts in any year in which more than … -
Administration Defense of Health Savings Accounts Rests on Misleading Use of Statistics
February 16, 2006
To encourage wider use of Health Savings Accounts (HSAs), tax-free individual accounts for health-related expenses that must be coupled with a high-deductible insurance policy, the Administration is proposing significant new HSA-related tax breaks that it estimates would cost $156 billion over ten years. Several important concerns … -
President's Health Care Tax Cut Proposals Are Likely To Weaken Employer-Based Health Insurance, Primarily Benefit High-Income People, and Worsen Deficits
January 31, 2006
In tonight’s State of the Union address and as part of the upcoming fiscal year 2007 budget, President Bush is expected to propose major new tax cuts related to health care.[1] Chief among them could be major expansions of Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) and a new income tax deduction for out-of-pocket medical costs. These … -
New Congressional Budget Office Estimates Indicate Millions of Low-Income Beneficiaries Would Be Harmed by Medicaid Provisions in Budget Bill
January 29, 2006
On January 27, the Congressional Budget Office issued a new analysis of the Medicaid provisions of the budget reconciliation conference agreement,[1] on which the House of Representatives is expected to vote February 1. The conference agreement, which the Senate passed 51-50 in late December with Vice President Cheney breaking the … -
Assessing the Effects of the Budget Conference Agreement on Low-Income Families and Individuals
Revised January 9, 2006
Some Congressional leaders are claiming that the low-income provisions in the conference agreement on the budget reconciliation bill are modest and will not harm vulnerable families. Many of the legislation’s key provisions were altered behind closed doors in weekend negotiations, and the legislation was not released until after 1:00 the morning of December 19, just hours before …
