CONGRESS PUSHES BACK ON CMS RULE-
More than half of House members and nearly half of the Senate are telling CMS to reconsider the coding offset in the inpatient prospective payment system proposed rule. The bipartisan opponents of the provision argue that the policy would drastically cut hospitals - to the tune of 6.05 percent, or $6.3 billion. Reps. Pete Sessions and Joe Crowley led the effort to get 219 House members on the letter and Sens. Debbie Stabenow and Lisa Murkowski got 45 senators on it. The letters http://bit.ly/nIueUa
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Birth control coverage proposed for most health insurance plans
Virtually all health insurance plans could soon be required to offer female patients free coverage of prescription birth control, breast-pump rentals, counseling for domestic violence, and annual wellness exams and HIV tests as a result of recommendations released Tuesday by an independent advisory panel of health experts.
The health-care law adopted last year directed the Obama administration to draw up a list of preventive services for women that all new health plans must cover without deductibles or co-payments. While the guidelines suggested Tuesday by a committee of the National Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Medicine are not binding, the panel conducted its year-long review at the request of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.
Analysis: Job Growth Was 10-Fold Higher Before the Democrats Passed Obamacare
The Obama administration’s Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that, since the official end of the recession over two years ago (in June 2009), the percentage of Americans who are employed has actually dropped, while most Americans who are employed are now making less money (in inflation-adjusted dollars) than they were during the recession. Why is our economy plainly failing to match the historical pattern of strong growth following a recession? New analysis suggests that Obamacare (signed into law — “With the strokes of 22 pens” — on March 23, 2010) could be a principal cause.
