Tag Archives: Topic: Insurance

The Hill: “GOP senator tells Democratic centrists he was there for them when Republicans tried to force judges through in 2005.”

AP: “House Democrats opposed to abortion, as well as their counterparts who support abortion rights, are resisting funding restrictions on the procedure spelled out in the Senate health care overhaul bill.”

North Carolina Family Policy Council: “By the afternoon of March 3—the date D.C.’s same-sex ‘marriage’ law went into effect—more than 50 same-sex couples had completed applications for marriage licenses at the District’s marriage bureau, while at least that many continued to wait in line . . . Bishop Harry Jackson, with the legal support of Stand4MarriageDC and the Alliance Defense Fund, had appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court to delay implementation of the law until the D.C. Court of Appeals issues a ruling on whether the citizens of D.C. have a right to vote on the bill’s passage via referendum. The Supreme Court denied that request. The lawsuit challenging the marriage redefinition law is awaiting a decision from the D.C. Court of Appeals.”

Charmain Yoest writes at the Wall Street Journal: “It’s now becoming clear that Barack Obama is willing to put everything on the table in order to be the president who passes health-care reform. Everything, that is, except a ban on federal funding for abortion . . . ”

AP on Yahoo: “A congressman who has played a key role in the long-running health care debate says he and 11 other Democrats will vote against the overhaul unless a provision subsidizing abortion is removed.”

Obama names brother of undecided House Dem to Appeals Court.

Breitbart: “President Barack Obama urged Congress Wednesday to vote “up or down” on sweeping health care legislation in the next few weeks, endorsing a plan that denies Senate Republicans the right to kill the bill by stalling with a filibuster.”

ABC News: “With the clock once again ticking on health care reform legislation, President Obama today will launch his final push to get a bill passed and will indicate that he is willing to work with Republicans on some issues. But the president will suggest that if it becomes necessary, Democrats will use the controversial “reconciliation” rules to send a bill to his desk.”

Washington Post: “Employees at Catholic Charities were told Monday that the social services organization is changing its health coverage to avoid offering benefits to same-sex partners of its workers — the latest fallout from a bitter debate between District officials trying to legalize same-sex marriage and the Catholic Archdiocese of Washington.”

The State Journal-Register: “A bill backed by Planned Parenthood in the Illinois General Assembly would remove restrictions on when low-income women could receive abortions paid for by the state’s Medicaid program. House Bill 6205, sponsored by House Majority Leader Barbara Flynn Currie, D-Chicago, is expected to be considered by a House committee later this month.”

California Catholic Daily: “Obama, Pelosi insist no federal funding for abortion in pending healthcare bill; pro-life groups disagree.”

NCPA Policy Digest: “Natural experiments are rare in politics, but few are as instructive as the prototype for ObamaCare that Massachusetts set in motion in 2006. The bills for ‘universal coverage’ are now coming due, and it appears the state political class is prepared to do lasting damage to one of America’s top-flight health care systems, says the Wall Street Journal. ”

Bowling Green Daily News: “In an 8-6 vote, the committee for the second time since last August voted down the proposal last week. Tony Glisson, director of WKU Department of Human Resources and a member of the Benefits Committee, said the committee’s decision is based largely on the fact that Kentucky does not legally recognize same-sex marriage.”

LifeNews: “It took almost the entire length of the debate at the White House health care summit for the issue of abortion to come up and, when it did, pro-life Rep. John Boehner told President Barack Obama that Americans don’t want abortion funding in the health care bill Congress is considering.”

The Canadian Press: “An unapologetic Danny Williams says he was aware his trip to the United States for heart surgery earlier this month would spark outcry, but he concluded his personal health trumped any public fallout over the controversial decision.”

LifeNews: “With the House barely passing the bill the first time, thanks to votes from Stupak and 10-12 pro-life Democrats who were pleased Stupak’s abortion-funding ban was a part of it, where the lawmaker stands is important . . . ”

The Hill: “Senate Republicans are claiming Democrats lack the votes to pass healthcare reform through reconciliation rules, but their math appears a bit fuzzy.”

Wall Street Journal (paid subscription only): “A backlash against ObamaCare is moving beyond the Tea Parties and has now arrived in state capitals. In more than 30 states, legislators are proceeding to pass statutes or ballot initiatives that would guarantee the right to choose medical services and insurance.”

LifeNews: “In a new interview, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid promised Democrats will attempt to railroad the pro-abortion health care bill through Congress. He promised Democrats will employ the controversial reconciliation process to push through the bill on a majority vote denying a filibuster.”

LifeSiteNews: “Canada will not include abortion and contraception in its maternal and child health care initiative, confirmed International Cooperation Minister Bev Oda, who oversees Canada’s international development program.”

LifeNews: “Democrats in Washington are continuing to push for the controversial reconciliation strategy to railroad the pro-abortion government-run health care bill through Congress.”

LifeNews: “Congressional Democrats are looking at the reconciliation process as a means of railroading the pro-abortion health care bill through Congress. However, a look at the members of the party who may not support reconciliation finds Democrats can’t lose any more than two of 11 lawmakers who are on the fence.”

El Paso Times: “In August, the City Council voted 7-1, with Rep. Carl L. Robinson dissenting, to give health benefits to the gay and unmarried heterosexual partners of city employees. Ever since, a group calling itself El Pasoans for Traditional Family Values has been trying to overturn that decision. The group is now circulating a petition that seeks to force a citywide vote on the issue on Nov. 2.”

LifeNews: “Senate Democrats are confirming comments last week from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and a top aide and saying that the reconciliation idea to railroad the pro-abortion government-run health care bill through the Senate is on the table even with the upcoming White House health care summit.”

LifeNews: “A top Senate Democrat confirmed today that Democrats are going to push ahead with the plan to use the controversial reconciliation process to push through the pro-abortion health care bill.”

WRAL: “Wake County Manager David Cooke decided Wednesday to eliminate coverage of elective abortions from the health plan for county employees.”

ABC: “A legal tussle over abortion is developing in Wake County that could drag in cities and counties across North Carolina. Wake County Commission Chairman Tony Gurley says it’s illegal for the county’s health insurance plan to fund abortions for county employees – citing the 30-year-old NC State Supreme Court ruling Stam v. State . . . ”

State Rep. Virgil Peck, R-Tyro, said House Bill 2564 would require people who want health insurance that covers abortion to pay extra for that and get a separate rider for their policy.”

Asheville Citizen-Times: “The council voted 4-2 to have city staff report March 9 on how workers’ same-sex domestic partners could get the same benefits as heterosexual employees’ spouses, including health insurance, bereavement leave and prescription drug coverage. A majority of council members said they expect to vote for a final measure after the report.”

Newt Gingrich and John C. Goodman write at the Wall Street Journal: “‘If you have a better idea, show it to me.’ That was President Barack Obama’s challenge two weeks ago to House Republicans regarding health-care reform . . . If the president is serious about building a system that delivers more quality choices at lower cost for every American, here’s where he should start . . . ”

Beyond Politics: A Social and Cultural History of Federal Healthcare Conscience Protections
Kimberly A. Parr, 35 Am. J.L. & Med. 620 (2009)

“This Note will proceed in three parts. Part II will lay the conceptual framework for a substantive discussion of ‘conscience clauses,’ articulating a working definition of the term and introducing elements pertinent to the ongoing debate over their validity. Part III will provide the legal and social history of federal conscience protections in chronological order, beginning with the Church Amendment of 1973 and concluding with the Provider Conscience Regulation of 2009. This section will both describe the substance of the legislation (or administrative rule) and explore the relevant advancements in society or culture that underlie them. I will then conclude in Part IV, arguing that this historical analysis reveals a paradox in which various attempts to expand patients’ access to care triggers a perceived threat to provider conscience, with the federal government consistently resolving this tension in favor of the provider.”

Citizen-Times: “Councilman Gordon Smith is asking the council to move forward with the idea of giving same-sex domestic partners health insurance, bereavement leave and other benefits. If a majority votes yes, city staff would come back to the council at a later date with information including estimated costs and who would qualify. A final vote on the measure could then follow.”

AP: “Even as Republicans publicly welcome President Barack Obama’s call for a bipartisan confab on health care, some privately worry that he might be laying a trap to portray their ideas as flimsy . . . ”

Business Week (AP): “Five Democrats broke with their party Monday to endorse measures that would ban government health care mandates like the one being debated in Congress . . . ”

Philadelphia Gay News: “Employees of Pennsylvania’s court system who are in same-sex relationships will now be entitled to the same benefits as their heterosexual married counterparts.”

LifeNews: “‘I’ve been asked about whether I’d support using the process known as reconciliation now. So, I want to make it clear: If I support a bill, then I will vote for it regardless of whether it takes 50 votes to pass or 60 votes to pass. My position doesn’t change just because the House or Senate decides to change the process,’ Nelson said, according to Politico.”

Daniel Heninger writes at the Wall Street Journal: “The answer lies in the often-repeated phrase that they are trying to reform ’16% of the American economy.’ Why would anyone think it possible in 2010—as politics, economics or mere practical feasibility—to reorder 16% of a $14 trillion economy of 300 million people living in 50 separate states whose geography is 16 times larger than France? . . . this isn’t 1939. It’s not even 1994. American health care, whatever its defects, is today unimaginably complex. What the Democrats are trying to do isn’t just difficult. It’s impossible . . . ”

The Rocky Mountain Family Council provides this 2010 Colorado legislative update that includes coverage of these bills:

SB 89–Public Schools Religious Bill of Rights
SB 109- Physician- Patient Relationship for Medical Marijuana Patients
SB 113–First Degree Murder of a Fetus
HB 1004- Standardized Health Insurance Forms

The Hill: ” . . . Democrats such as Sens. Blanche Lincoln (Ark.), Bill Nelson (Fla.) and Max Baucus (Mont.) have approached Snowe within the past week to discuss her potential support for various healthcare proposals . . . ”

“But, the question is will there be enough Democrats willing to oppose the idea, which allows railroading the health care bill through the Senate with a majority instead of 60 votes . . . ”

CanadianBusiness.com: “Momentum is growing to pass the Senate bill with compromises agreed on by the president and congressional leaders, said Ron Pollack, executive director of Families USA, a liberal advocacy group. ‘Are they there yet? No,’ he said.”

“The growing strength of the pro-life position in Congress became apparent . . . when a group of 64 Democrats joined most Republicans in the House . . . The vote ‘shocked’ . . . Democratic leaders . . . ”

LifeNews: “The status of the pro-abortion health care bill in Congress is uncertain as House and Senate Democrats spent the weekend planning their next step in the wake of a key election loss in Massachusetts that leaves them without a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate . . . ”

Michael J. New writing at National Review Online: “It’s no secret that the pro-life movement lost significant ground during the 2008 elections. However, the events of 2009 have clearly demonstrated the movement’s resiliency and heft. Indeed, it is safe to say that pro-lifers have been the most effective opponents of Obamacare. Their efforts on this issue alone show unmistakably that the right-to-life movement is an indispensable part of the center-right coalition . . .”

AP: “A key legislative committee in California revived a bill Thursday to create a government-run health care system in the nation’s most populous state, two days after Massachusetts elected a senator who opposes the president’s national health care plan.”

“Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Thursday that she lacks the votes to quickly move the Senate’s sweeping health overhaul bill through the House, a potentially devastating blow to President Barack Obama’s signature issue.”

One News Now: “Republican State Senator Scott Rupp has introduced a bill that would protect his state from abortion mandates proposed in healthcare reform . . . ”

The Hill: “The Senate Budget Committee Chairman said Wednesday he’s willing to use special rules to force a final healthcare bill through with a simple majority vote . . . His comments lend weight to speculation that congressional Democratic leaders plan to have the House pass the Senate healthcare reform without changes, then pass a second bill with changes hashed out between the two chambers’ leaders and the White House . . . ”

The Hill: “Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said leaders would not make any attempt to pass a final healthcare reform bill through the Senate before state Sen. Scott Brown (R) is certified the winner of the special election.”

“Obama’s former campaign manger, David Plouffe, added on ABC’s ‘Good Morning America’: ‘I’m very confident we can pass health-care reform.’”

Washington Post: “The operations are covered by Cuba’s universal health care system, even though some have protested the decision to allow them – either because of general opposition to the procedure or due to its high costs for a developing country with economic problems.”

LifeNews: “Rep. Anh ‘Joseph’ Cao of Louisiana could support the House bill because it banned abortion funding but he opposes the Senate version because it forces tax-funded abortions.”

LifeNews: “‘Certainly the dynamic will change depending on what happens in Massachusetts,’ Pelosi told reporters yesterday. ‘Just the question of how we would proceed. But it doesn’t mean we won’t have a health care bill.’”

AP: “A top lawmaker has asked West Virginia to re-examine its estimate that federal health care legislation could cost the state hundreds of millions of dollars.”

Salt Lake Tribune: Trying to curb unintended pregnancies, a coalition of groups wants the state’s Medicaid program to offer expanded family planning services to some of the poorest women in the state . . . ‘If we can prevent the number of unintended pregnancies in Utah, we prevent the number of children living in poverty,’ said Melissa Bird, executive director of the Planned Parenthood Action Council. ‘We prevent the number of abortions in Utah (and) we improve pregnancy outcomes for women, which is super important.’”

The Hill: “Some House Democrats believe their states would get shortchanged in the overhaul of the nation’s healthcare system and the funding issue is fast becoming a major hurdle to getting a bill signed into law.”

Omaha World-Herald: “Nelson, who once enjoyed some of the highest job performance marks in the U.S. Senate, has now seen his approval rating dip below 50 percent in Nebraska, according to The World-Herald Poll.”

“. . . Obama and top Democrats are considering the alternative of having the House pass the Senate bill even though large segments of the Democratic caucus oppose various sections of the Senate bill — including its provisions allowing abortion funding . . . ”

The Hill: “Democrats are rushing to finalize healthcare legislation as their hold on the 60th vote in the Senate appears to be slipping.”

Stephen Moore writes at the Wall Street Journal: “The Senate bill contains steep “marriage penalty” taxes and provides an incentive to stay single.”

The Hill: “A Democratic National Committee (DNC) official said Thursday that the party is tracking signatures to the conservative Club for Growth’s healthcare repeal pledge the group released Thursday.”

KUOW.org: “Pharmacies have been at odds with the state over reimbursements for Medicaid prescriptions. Pharmacies have complained that Washington isn’t paying enough to cover the rising cost of drugs. Today, the Washington State Pharmacy Association will ask the court to compel the state to revert back to previous reimbursement rates.”

Reuters: “More than a dozen U.S. state attorneys general visited Washington on Wednesday threatening to sue the U.S. government if the so-called ‘Cornhusker Kickback,’ a special subsidy offered to Nebraska, is included in pen1ding healthcare reform legislation.”

Fox News: “State and local workers and union members are exempted until 2017.”

The Hill: “President Barack Obama sought to muscle House and Senate Democrats to reach an accord on healthcare reform during a daylong White House meeting Wednesday.”

Alicia R. Ouellette, Timothy Quill, Robert Swidler, Thaddeus Mason Pope, and Nancy Dubler, A Conversation About End-of-Life Decisionmaking (January 8, 2010). NYSBA Health Law Journal Vol. 14, No. 2, 2009; Widener Law School Legal Studies Research Paper No. 10-05. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1533517

“In July 2009, five scholars and practitioners engaged in a two-hour conversation about current end-of-life health issues in New York state. Thaddeus Pope (Widener Law), Alicia Ouellette (Albany Law), Timothy Quill (Rochester Medicine), Robert Swidler (Northeast Health), and Nancy Dubler (Albert Einstein College of Medicine) discussed the Family Healthcare Decisions Act, medical futility, palliative care, and bioethics mediation. This article, part of a symposium issue of health law ‘conversations,’ is a substantially-edited transcript of the July 2009 conversation.”

Massachusetts’s top election official says it could take weeks to certify the results of the upcoming U.S. Senate special election. That delay could let President Barack Obama preserve a key 60th vote for his health care overhaul . . . ”

Citizen Link: “State Sen. Scott Rupp filed a bill attempting to protect his state from abortion mandates in health care reform.”

Phyllis Schlafly writes at Townhall: “The House staffer told the Wall Street Journal reporter that the Democratics can’t make the subsidies neutral toward marriage because that would give a traditional one-breadwinner married couple a more generous subsidy than a single parent at the same income level. Horrors! The Democrats certainly are not going to allow traditional marriage to be preferred over couples who just shack up.”

Watertown Daily Times: “The Amish, as well as some other religious sects, are covered by a ‘religious conscience’ exemption, which allows people with religious objections to insurance to opt out of the mandate. It is in both the House and Senate versions of the bill, making its appearance in the final version routine unless there are last-minute objections.”

LifeSiteNews: “A local Planned Parenthood official has bluntly admitted why health insurance companies are increasingly comfortable with covering abortions: because the choice to kill an unborn child is cheaper than giving birth . . . a typical abortion in a physician’s office costing $397, while a vaginal delivery costs $5,992, and a caeserean section is $8,558 . . .”

LifeNews: “Everyone on Capitol Hill, from top Republicans to leading pro-life groups, knows the block of pro-life Democrats in the House could topple the health care bill if it funds abortions. But, new comments from Indiana Rep. Brad Ellsworth prompt concerns he may go along with the Senate’s abortion ‘compromise.’”

LifeNews: “Now, in a nationwide call to Catholics to prevent health care reform from being derailed by the abortion lobby, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has sent bulletin inserts and pulpit announcements to almost 19,000 parishes across the country.”

Washington Times editorial: “The original House health care bill passed by a slim margin of 220 to 215. But with the 11 Democratic members and Mr. Cao promising to vote against the bill if it includes abortion funding (which is included in the Senate bill), Democrats will have to persuade 10 of the 38 Democratic congressmen who voted against the original bill to change their vote to make up the 12 lost votes. ”

The Hill: “Republicans and allied groups say they will spend millions to oppose healthcare reform and other Democratic initiatives in the courts, which they see as a last line of defense against President Barack Obama’s agenda.”