Health Archive
Results per page: 50 | 100
Results by year: 2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 - 1991
-
New Medicaid Rules Would Limit Care for Children in Foster Care and People with Disabilities in Ways Congress Did Not Intend
Revised March 6, 2007
On December 4, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services published interim final rules governing case management services provided by state Medicaid programs.[1] CMS claims the new rules are necessary to implement changes Congress made in the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (DRA). In fact, the rules go well beyond what … -
Policy Points: Many Missed Opportunities for Congress and the President in 2007
Revised December 21, 2007
Over recent months, federal policymakers considered measures to expand children’s health coverage, strengthen Medicare, make new investments in areas like education and medical research, and extend tax relief — while maintaining fiscal discipline. Congress and the President … -
Statement by Robert Greenstein, Executive Director, in Response to President Bush’s Veto of The Children’s Health Insurance Bill
December 12, 2007
With today’s veto, the President again struck down legislation that would do precisely what he promised in his 2004 re-election campaign — “lead an aggressive effort to enroll millions of poor children who are eligible but not signed up for government health insurance programs.… -
Second Children's Health Bill Makes Significant Changes to Focus More Heavily on Poor Children
Revised December 8, 2007
On November 30, Congress sent the President a revised version of bipartisan legislation to strengthen children’s health coverage (H.R. 3963). The bill includes substantial changes from the bill the President vetoed in October (H.R. 976) that directly address a number of concerns raised by the earlier bill’s opponents. … -
Curbing Medicare Advantage Overpayments Would Strengthen Medicare
December 5, 2007
The Senate Finance Committee is planning to consider Medicare legislation averting a scheduled cut in Medicare physician payments. The legislation is also expected to modestly reduce the sizable overpayments now being made to private insurance plans that participate in the Medicare Advantage … -
New Children’s Health Legislation Would Not Allow Any Undocumented Immigrants to Enroll in SCHIP or Medicaid
December 4, 2007
President Bush has said he will veto the second bipartisan compromise bill passed by Congress (H.R. 3963) to reauthorize the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). The Administration claims, in part, that the bill “continues to allow SCHIP to cover ineligible individuals,” namely undocumented immigrants.[1] Some … -
Martinez Bill Would Weaken Children’s Health Coverage
November 5, 2007
Senator Mel Martinez (R-FL) has introduced legislation (S. 2193) intended to rally opponents of bipartisan children’s health legislation recently vetoed by President Bush, a revised version of which was passed by the House on October 25 and the Senate on November 1. The Martinez bill also has been introduced in the House, as H.R. 3888, … -
Statement by Robert Greenstein, Executive Director, on New SCHIP Legislation
October 25, 2007
Congressional negotiators have made significant changes in the SCHIP legislation President Bush vetoed in order to address key concerns raised by critics. Rather than welcome these changes, the Administration appears to be escalating its distortions of what the new bill … -
Poor Children First — or Last?
October 17, 2007
The Bush administration has recently argued that the President favors providing health insurance to “poor children first” and vetoed bipartisan children’s health legislation because it violates this principle. On “This Week” on October 7, Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt stated: “The … -
Expanding Children’s Health Insurance and Raising Federal Tobacco Taxes Helps Low-Income Families
October 16, 2007
This report was issued jointly with: In explaining President’s Bush’s veto of bipartisan legislation to strengthen the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) and pay for it by raising federal tobacco tax rates, White House Press Secretary Dana Perino claimed that the tobacco increase would … -
Senate Republican Leadership to Seek Reconsideration of SCHIP Plan That Would Fail to Make Progress in Covering Uninsured Children
October 10, 2007
Senator Mitch McConnell, the Senate Minority Leader, plans to ask for reconsideration of the SCHIP legislation that he and Senate Minority Whip Trent Lott offered as an alternative during Senate floor debate on SCHIP on August 1. The McConnell-Lott proposal was defeated at that time on a 61-35 vote.[1] In contrast to the bipartisan … -
“Crowd-Out” Is Not the Same as Voluntarily Dropping Private Health Insurance for Public Program Coverage
September 27, 2007
As leading health policy experts have explained, under the fragmented U.S. health insurance system, virtually any effort to cover more of the uninsured — including efforts that rely on tax deductions or credits for the purchase of health insurance in the private market, as well as public program expansions — will result in some … -
CBO Estimates Show SCHIP Agreement Would Provide Health Insurance to 3.8 Million Uninsured Children
Revised September 25, 2007
New Congressional Budget Office estimates show that by 2012, a total of 3.8 million children who otherwise would be uninsured would have health care coverage under the bipartisan agreement reauthorizing the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) developed by House and Senate negotiators. The House is expected to consider … -
Charge That Bipartisan SCHIP Compromise Bill Aids Undocumented Immigrants Is False
September 25, 2007
Some opponents of the bipartisan SCHIP compromise legislation are charging that the bill opens Medicaid and the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) to illegal immigrants. This charge is false. The Provision at Issue The charge revolves around a provision of the new legislation that is designed to remedy serious … -
Statement by Robert Greenstein, Executive Director, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, on New Congressional SCHIP Agreement
September 21, 2007
Today’s agreement would extend health coverage to several million low-income uninsured children, a major accomplishment. Contrary to White House rhetoric, the bulk of the children who would gain coverage are poor and near-poor children who are uninsured, not … -
The President's Comments on Congress' SCHIP Plan
September 20, 2007
In today’s press conference, President Bush repeated a number of incorrect or misleading statements the Administration has made in recent months regarding congressional efforts to strengthen children’s health coverage through the SCHIP program. The most significant of these is, as the President said today: “I want . . . the Congress to be … -
Administration Moves to Eviscerate Efforts to Enroll Uninsured Low-Income Children in Health Coverage through the Schools
September 17, 2007
While deep disagreements emerged between Congress and the Bush Administration last year in the debate over reauthorizing the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), all sides agreed that states should do all they can to enroll low-income children who are currently eligible for Medicaid and SCHIP. And while the Administration issued … -
Collateral Damage: Children Can Lose Coverage When Their Parents Lose Health Insurance
September 17, 2007
A substantial body of research indicates that providing public health insurance coverage to low-income parents is an effective means of improving the enrollment of eligible, but uninsured, low-income children in public programs like Medicaid or SCHIP.[1] A recent study by Dr. Jennifer DeVoe and her colleagues at Oregon Science and Health … -
More Americans, Including More Children, Now Lack Health Insurance
Revised August 31, 2007
The number of uninsured Americans rose for the sixth consecutive year in 2006, to 47.0 million,[1], [2] and the number of uninsured children rose for the second straight year, to 8.7 million, according to Census data released on August 28. Between 1998, the year the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) was implemented, and 2004, the number of uninsured children fell every … -
Number and Percentage of Americans Who Are Uninsured Climbs Again in 2006
Revised August 31, 2007
New Census data show that in 2006, both the number and the percentage of Americans who are uninsured hit their highest levels since 1999, the first year for which comparable data are available, with 2.2 million more Americans — and 600,000 more children — joining the ranks of the uninsured in 2006. The new Census figures also show that while the overall poverty rate declined slightly … -
Statement by Robert Greenstein on the 2006 Census Bureau Data on Poverty, Income, and Health Insurance
Revised August 31, 2007
The new Census figures are disappointing for the fifth year of an economic recovery —showing a significant decline in poverty for people over 65 but no significant decline in poverty for children or adults aged 18 to 64, and only a modest improvement in median income. In 2006, the poverty rate … -
House Health Legislation Would Curb Medicare Overpayments to Private Plans, While Aiding Medicare Beneficiaries Overall
Revised August 8, 2007
The House is considering major health legislation this week. The legislation would not only reauthorize the State Children’s Health Insurance Program and extend coverage to five million uninsured children but also would curb excessive payments now being made to private Medicare Advantage plans under the Medicare program and thereby … -
CBO Estimates Show Large Gains in Children's Health Coverage under Senate SCHIP Bill
Revised August 7, 2007
Congressional Budget Office estimates show that 4 million children who otherwise would be uninsured would have health care coverage by 2012 under the bipartisan children’s health legislation that the Senate Finance Committee approved on July 19 by a 17-4 vote. CBO estimates that 2.7 million of these children are uninsured children who … -
CBO Estimates Show House Bill Would Provide Health Insurance to 5 Million Uninsured Children
Revised August 1, 2007
Congressional Budget Office estimates show that by 2012, a total of 5 million children who otherwise would be uninsured would have health care coverage under children’s health legislation that the House is considering this week.[1] The coverage gains under this legislation are about 1 million higher than under the bipartisan bill … -
Lott-Mcconnell SCHIP Proposal Would Fail to Make Progress in Covering Uninsured Children
August 1, 2007
This week, the Senate is considering the “Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2007,” bipartisan children’s health legislation approved on July 19 by the Senate Finance Committee on a 17-4 vote. According to Congressional Budget Office estimates, this legislation would provide health … -
New Charges about How House Children's Health Bill Affects Undocumented Immigrants Are False
August 1, 2007
Rep. Nathan Deal has launched a new attack on House health insurance legislation that would cover about 5 million uninsured lower-income children, according to Congressional Budget Office estimates. Rep. Deal charged the bill opens Medicaid and the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) to illegal immigrants, encourages … -
Administration’s Proposed Tax Deduction for Health Insurance Seriously Flawed
July 31, 2007
In an attempt to revive its proposal to establish a new standard tax deduction for the purchase of health insurance, the Administration has injected the proposal into the congressional debate over renewing and strengthening the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). The Administration has threatened to veto the … -
Barton-Deal SCHIP Bill Would Not Provide States Sufficient Funding Even to Maintain Current Caseloads
July 31, 2007
This week, the House is scheduled to consider health legislation developed by the chairmen of the House Energy and Commerce and the House Ways and Means Committees to reauthorize and expand the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). This legislation, known as the “CHAMP Act,” [1] would provide health … -
Private Plans Continue to Use Misleading Arguments to Oppose Reforms of Medicare Overpayments
July 31, 2007
This week, the House is scheduled to consider health legislation developed by the chairmen of the House Energy and Commerce and the House Ways and Means Committees to reauthorize and expand the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). This legislation, known as the “CHAMP Act,”[1] would not only reauthorize … -
Would Tax Incentives Be an Effective Way to Expand Health Coverage for Low-Income Children and Families?
July 31, 2007
In recent weeks, the Administration has threatened to veto legislation in Congress that would reauthorize the SCHIP program and extend health coverage to several million uninsured children. As an alternative, the Administration has touted the virtues of the private insurance market and attempted to revive consideration of its proposal to … -
House SCHIP Legislation Would Repeal Dubious “45-Percent Threshold” Provision
July 30, 2007
Legislation to extend the State Children’s Health Insurance Program and make various changes in Medicare, which the House is scheduled to consider this week, would repeal a so-called “45-Percent Threshold” provision affecting Medicare that was slipped into the 2003 Medicare prescription drug bill. Some lawmakers argue … -
Congress to Consider Repeal of Medicare Demonstration Project Designed to Promote Privatization, Rather Than Yield Valid Results
July 23, 2007
Executive Summary The House Energy and Commerce Committee and the House Ways and Means Committee will begin work this week on major health care legislation. Among other proposals, they plan to consider repealing a provision of the 2003 Medicare drug law that requires a large-scale, six-year demonstration project under which private insurance … -
The Administration’s Dubious Claims about the Emerging Children’s Health Insurance Legislation
Revised July 20, 2007
Congress is considering legislation to reauthorize the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), a successful federal health program enjoying bipartisan support that, together with Medicaid, has reduced the proportion and the number of low-income children who are insured by about one third since 1997.… -
Informing the Debate about Curbing Medicare Advantage Overpayments
July 19, 2007
(Click on the questions below to go directly to the corresponding answer.) Do private plans cost more than it costs the regular Medicare program to cover the same beneficiaries? How do Medicare Advantage overpayments affect Medicare’s finances? How do Medicare Advantage overpayments affect beneficiary premiums? … -
Medicaid Documentation Requirement Disproportionately Harms Non-Hispanics, New State Data Show
July 10, 2007
Newly available data from three states show that white and African American children are much more likely than Hispanic children to have their Medicaid coverage delayed, denied, or terminated as a result of a citizenship documentation requirement that took effect last year. These data provide further evidence that the requirement, purportedly … -
The False "Public Versus Private" Choice for Children’s Health Coverage
June 21, 2007
As Congress considers the reauthorization of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), groups like the Heritage Foundation are making a strong push to change the way coverage is provided to eligible low-income children.[1] They claim Congress must choose between “government-run health care” and private … -
New Research Shows Simplifying Medicaid Can Reduce Children’s Hospitalizations
June 11, 2007
New research indicates that increasing the continuity of children’s Medicaid coverage reduces subsequent hospitalizations for chronic health conditions like asthma or diabetes. The research — a new study conducted by Dr. Andrew Bindman and his associates at the University of California at San Francisco, which was unveiled at a … -
Can Incentives for Healthy Behavior Improve Health and Hold Down Medicaid Costs?
June 1, 2007
The impact of individual behavior on the cost of health care is attracting a great deal of attention from policymakers. A number of state Medicaid programs are offering rewards for healthy behavior or considering this step, assuming that financial incentives will improve the health of Medicaid beneficiaries and help hold down health care … -
Comparing Public and Private Health Insurance for Children
May 11, 2007
In considering the pending reauthorization of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), some have recommended that Congress use federal funds to subsidize purchasing private health insurance rather than expanding public health insurance, like Medicaid or SCHIP.[1] Some may reflexively assume that private health insurance is … -
Statement by Robert Greenstein on CBO Report on SCHIP
May 10, 2007
The Congressional Budget Office today released a report analyzing the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), which must be reauthorized by Congress this year. Congress is now considering how to strengthen and improve the SCHIP and Medicaid programs and make further significant progress towards reducing the number of uninsured low-income children in the United States.… -
Testimony of Judith Solomon House Bill 700, The Pennsylvania Health Care Reform Act, House Insurance Committee
May 3, 2007
Thank you for the opportunity to testify before you today on House Bill 700, the Pennsylvania Health Care Reform Act. My name is Judith Solomon. I am a Senior Fellow at the Center and work primarily on state Medicaid policy issues. I commend the Committee for providing an opportunity for substantial public input on this … -
A Brief Analysis of the Social Security and Medicare Trustees’ Report
April 23, 2007
The new Trustees’ report shows that action will need to be taken to shore up Social Security’s and Medicare’s finances. In evaluating the new report, several points should be kept in mind. The most serious financing problems are in Medicare. They primarily stem not from the nature of the Medicare program … -
Statement by Robert Greenstein on the New Report from the Medicare Trustees
April 23, 2007
Today’s report shows why it is so important for Congress to stand up to the health insurance companies and eliminate the large overpayments Medicare is making to private health insurance companies. Those overpayments, which the insurance companies have launched a … -
Forthcoming Medicare Trustees’ Report May Contain Dubious "Medicare Funding Warning"
April 20, 2007
While Medicare faces a serious long-term financing problem that must be addressed, the annual report of the Social Security and Medicare trustees to be released on April 23 may contain a dubious “Medicare Funding Warning” that is based on a deeply misleading measure of the program’s health. Under a last-minute provision slipped … -
Private Plan Overpayments Weaken Medicare’s Financing and Hasten the Program’s Insolvency
April 20, 2007
Under the Medicare program, beneficiaries may elect coverage through private “Medicare Advantage” plans rather than through the traditional fee-for-service Medicare program. Although private plans were introduced into Medicare to spur competition and reduce program costs, both the … -
Reducing Disparities in Health Coverage for Legal Immigrant Children and Pregnant Women
Revised April 20, 2007
A key health policy success of the past decade is the substantial reduction in the number of uninsured children, primarily due to improvements in Medicaid and the creation of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP).[1] However, while there are fewer uninsured citizen children, the percentage of low-income immigrant children who lack … -
Low-Income and Minority Beneficiaries Do Not Rely Disproportionately on Medicare Advantage Plans
Revised April 12, 2007
The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC), Congress’ expert advisory body on Medicare payments, reported this month that Medicare is losing billions of dollars each year because of excessive payments to private insurance plans through the Medicare Advantage program. (Under that program, Medicare beneficiaries may elect … -
Options Exist for Offsetting the Cost of Extending Health Coverage to More Low-Income Children
Revised April 12, 2007
There is growing consensus that SCHIP reauthorization should make substantial progress toward covering all uninsured low-income children. SCHIP reauthorization legislation thus will require significant increases in federal funding, so states have sufficient federal SCHIP funds both to maintain their existing SCHIP programs and to enroll … -
Census Revises Estimates of the Number of Uninsured People
April 5, 2007
On March 23, the Census Bureau announced that it has revised estimates of the number of uninsured people for 2004 and 2005, after it detected an error in how data from its Current Population Survey have been tabulated. The number and percentage of people who were uninsured in 2005 changed from 46.6 million (15.9 percent of the population) to … -
President's "Affordable Choices" Initiative Provides Little Support for State Efforts to Expand Health Coverage
April 3, 2007
The large and growing number of Americans without health care coverage is increasingly a focus of attention, especially at the state level.[1] A number of states are now considering proposals to expand coverage, and several states have already adopted such plans. The federal government has an important role to play in these efforts.…
