SCHIP

The State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), jointly financed by the federal and state governments but administered by the states, should focus on transitioning eligible lower-income children into private, family coverage. Unfortunately, the current structure of SCHIP displaces private coverage instead of strengthening it. In the upcoming reauthorization of… Read more

The State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) is up for extension, and Congress threatens to more than double the program, to be financed in part by higher taxes. This would raises taxes even further above the modern historical average, add even more spending to the federal government's already unaffordable health care obligations, and take another… Read more

Congress is debating the future health care of millions of Americans, and its decisions will affect families and children, Medicare beneficiaries, and taxpayers for years to come. The 465-page bill favored by House leadership, The Children's Health and Medicare Protection Act (H.R. 3162), greatly expands dependency of millions of… Read more

The best way to ensure adequate, dependable health care for all children is to strengthen private insurance coverage and make it more affordable for lower-income working families. The reauthorization of the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) presents Congress with an opportunity to move in that direction. Unfortunately,… Read more

There is a deepening crisis in America's hospital emergency rooms. More and more patients are show­ing up for care without the ability to pay for it. The burden on taxpayers and private insurance policy holders is increasing, and doctors and nurses are often overworked… Read more

As President Ronald Reagan reminded the Ameri­can people in his 1981 inaugural address, the U.S. Constitution separates government powers so that the voters can hold government officials accountable. Gov­ernment power is separated both horizontally among the legislative, executive, and judicial branches and vertically among the federal, state, and local… Read more

Abstract: Despite the famed 1996 Welfare Reform Act and the more recent welfare adjustments in 2006, 60.8 million Americans remain dependent on the government for their daily housing, food, and health care. The number of taxpayers is shrinking--and the country may… Read more

The House of Representatives will soon vote on a massive overhaul of America's $2.4 trillion health care system. This amounts to one-sixth of American gross domestic product (GDP), a sector roughly equal to the size of the entire British economy. To accomplish this task, House Speaker … Read more

Medicaid is designed to be a partnership between the states and the federal government. In the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 and again in the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, states won additional flexibility to run Medicaid and its companion program, the… Read more

One issue in the Baucus health care bill has not received the attention it deserves: Half of the reduction in the uninsured will result from the enrollment of millions of Americans in Medicaid. Expanding Medicaid is not reform. Americans across the political spectrum who are being promised health reform will,… Read more

Abstract: "Federalism" is no outdated concept. The founding fathers of the American Republic are the authors of a brilliant design of the distribution of political power between the national government and the states. Under the Constitution, the federal government is responsible for the general concerns of the republic; the state governments are the custodians… Read more

Abstract: President Obama's budget will likely produce $13 trillion in deficit spending over the next 10 years--nearly $4 trillion more than forecast. The White House figures are based on unrealistic estimates of discretionary spending, interest payments, and interest rates. The White House also used budget gimmicks to hide the full cost of… Read more

Members of Congress, pursuing President Barack Obama's health policy agenda, want to create a national health insurance exchange as a platform for a public health care plan to compete against private health insurance. Variants of the exchange proposal are embodied in the America's Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009 (H.R. 3200), promoted by… Read more

Revised and updated: July 27, 2009 On July 16, the American Medical Association (AMA) voiced its support for H.R. 3200, the America's Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009. Letters of support from the American College of Surgeons, the American Academy of Family Practitioners, the… Read more

Congress is proposing a major expansion of Medicaid as a primary vehicle to reduce the number of people without health insurance. But this idea would balkanize families based on arbitrary income levels, history, and geography. While it might theoretically be a cheaper alternative, it would not necessarily serve the best interests of families inside… Read more

Executive Summary Budget issues are central to the ongoing debate over health care reform. Many policymakers want to expand insurance coverage, but boosting federal spending is a challenge given today's record deficits. At the same time, some policymakers want… Read more