I live in Austria, a country that has been ruled by socialists with only a few periods in opposition since 1945. Let me assure you all, the U.S. is not becoming Europe. In Austria, health care is totally universal, financed by employers, workers and taxes. Seeing a physician is never a problem, as they recognize […]
affordable care act
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What liberals really want
I don’t know of any liberals who wanted the Affordable Care Act. I know a number of liberals who, like me, wanted health care reform legislation that would provide medical care for those who lack the funds to purchase health insurance or pay for their own medical care. The Obama administration was unable to pass […]
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Oklahoma needs the Affordable Care Act
Sound familiar? Under the Affordable Care Act, states will be given an opportunity to opt into an expanded provision of Medicaid, effective 2014. This provision in the ACA is of vital interest for Oklahoma. It means 200,000 more Oklahomans will be eligible, if they enroll, to receive health insurance (about 29 percent of Oklahomans are […]
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Don’t tread on us
Credit: Brad Gregg A July 29 Post article focused on Oklahoma’s conservatism “with an independent streak and a disdain for the strong arm of government,” noting that “the state cannot even get residents to comply with car insurance laws.” As the story noted, around a quarter of all Oklahoma drivers don’t carry car insurance, while […]
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Disaster is ahead for Obamacare
It will cost more than predicted. Despite 20 new taxes totaling $575 billion, the Congressional Budget Office has now projected total Obamacare costs through 2022 at $1.76 trillion, about twice the initial 10-year estimate. And that is still an optimistic figure. Medicare is instructive here: In 1965 when it was first passed, Medicare hospital insurance […]
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Medicaid expansion vital
According to Mike Fogarty, CEO of the Oklahoma Health Care Authority, the uncompensated cost of treating the uninsured in Oklahoma exceeds $1 billion annually, most of it paid for by shifting the cost to insured families, while bad debt and charity care costs hospitals $365 million a year. Fogarty estimates that the $1 billion in […]
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State of health
Perhaps not coincidentally, it is among the bottom tier of states for health coverage. Families USA, a health care consumer advocacy group, lists Oklahoma as among the top 10 states “dying for health coverage.” According to Gallup, about 22 percent of all Oklahomans are uninsured, making it the 47th worst state in the nation, in […]
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Hyperbolic overdrive
Gov. Mary Fallin said, “Today’s decision highlights the importance of electing leaders who will work to repeal the federal health care law and replace it with meaningful reform focused on commonsense, market-based changes.” So what exactly is a “market-based” change? It’s as though Mary strung a bunch of big words together without any intention of […]
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Oklahoma and Medicaid expansion
Based on the court’s ruling, Oklahoma now could choose not to expand Medicaid to cover more people without insurance living below the poverty line. But such a choice would squander the chance for as many as 180,000 struggling Oklahomans to get health insurance coverage while leaving hospitals and other health care providers on the hook […]
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Exchanging control
Among the most immediate concerns is the state’s requirement to have a health care exchange. Under ACA, all states must have an electronic database that connects people buying insurance coverage to insurance providers, as well as information about what federal subsidies are available to them. Failure to create an exchange by Jan. 1, 2014, would […]