TMA: Ready for Health Care Reform
Feb. 25, 2009
“Health system reform” is getting the kind of attention it hasn’t seen in this country since Bill Clinton’s first days in the White House. And for good reason. Everyone agrees there’s no way we have the money or the physician work force to continue to care for an aging population afflicted with chronic disease brought on by unhealthy lifestyles.
President Obama received a standing ovation from Congress last night when he said, "The cost of health care has weighed down our economy and our conscience long enough. So let there be no doubt, health-care reform cannot wait, it must not wait and it will not wait another year."
I am writing today to tell you that Texas Medical Association is ready for that. We are engaged and on the job. We have a plan of action that will bring your voices – your hopes and your fears – to the nation’s capital. Like no one else can, we will speak out for our patients … and thus for our profession. Many of us will be in Washington early next month to work with our senators, representatives, and Obama administration leaders.
Continue to Letter by Dr. Josie R. Williams, TMA President
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UT Regents Urged to Keep Medical Branch on Galveston Island
from The Austin American-Statesman, Feb. 21, 2009
 The message at a public hearing Friday on the future of Galveston's hurricane-damaged public hospital and medical school was clear: Rebuild it and keep it on Galveston Island. University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston doctors and medical students, as well as residents and local and state officials implored the UT System Board of Regents to reject recommendations to move all patient beds to the mainland. More
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Obama Addresses Congress, Calls for Health Care Reform
from CNN, Feb. 24, 2009
President Obama pledged Tuesday night to cure Americans from what he called "the crushing cost of health costs," saying the country could not afford to put health-care reform on hold. Obama's prescription for health-care reform included making "the largest investment ever" in preventive care, rooting out Medicare fraud and investing in electronic health records and new technology in an effort to reduce errors, bring down costs, ensure privacy and save lives. More
Straus Doesn’t Take Stand on Ultrasound Bill
from The Austin American-Statesman, Feb. 25, 2009
A bill requiring women seeking an abortion to first get an ultrasound got a big push Tuesday from three top Texas Republicans, but GOP House Speaker Joe Straus didn't take a stand. Gov. Rick Perry touted the proposal at an anti-abortion rally at the Capitol. Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst also spoke at the rally. So did Attorney General Greg Abbott, who said that if the bill becomes law and is challenged, he would "aggressively defend" its constitutionality. All three are expected to run for office in 2010. The Texas Medical Association opposes the bill, in part because it interferes with the doctor-patient relationship, said Dr. Albert Gros, chairman of the association's council on legislation. More
A Warning Shot in the Health Care Fight
from The Los Angeles Times, Feb. 24, 2009
In an age when Americans compare hotel rooms, cars and even prospective mates with the click of a mouse, helping people identify the most cost-effective medical care seems like common sense. But when President Obama included money in his economic stimulus plan to do just that, he set off one of the sharpest, and most unexpected, political fights of his young administration. More
Health Care Costs to Top $8,000 Per Person
from The Houston Chronicle via The Associated Press, Feb. 24, 2009
Even before lawmakers start debating how care is delivered to the American people, the report shows the economy is making the job of reform harder. Health care costs will top $8,000 per person this year, consuming an ever-bigger slice of a shrinking economic pie, says a report by the Department of Health and Human Services. As the recession cuts into tax receipts, Medicare's giant hospital trust fund is running out of cash more rapidly, and could become insolvent as early as 2016, three years sooner than previously forecast. More
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Opinion: Texas Finally Has Enough ER Physicians
from The Dallas Morning News, Feb. 19, 2009
In 2003, the Texas Legislature passed HB 4, which contained medical liability reforms. The public voted on the measure, and tort reform became a reality. Five years later, the results are in and the reforms' success is indisputable: Texas has experienced a dramatic increase in board-certified emergency physicians treating patients statewide. More
New Degree Creates Doctor Nurses – And Confusion
from NPR, Feb. 22, 2009
No one wants to badmouth Florence Nightingale, but a new degree for nurses is causing bad blood between doctors and their longtime colleagues. The program confers the title of doctor on nurses, but some in the medical profession say only physicians should call themselves "doctor." More
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Groups Urge Easier Enrollment After State Health Expansion for Kids
from The Dallas Morning News, Feb. 20, 2009
The recent expansion of the Children's Health Insurance Program means working-class families in Dallas-Fort Worth and the state can breathe easier now, right? Wrong. It means families, health care and social service providers now have to roll up their sleeves and make sure they get those benefits. And the only way to do it is to enroll more children. But that's not as easy as it sounds, largely because critics say the current system makes it anything but easy to enroll. More
Recession Scrambling U.S. Health Spending
from U.S. News & World Report, Feb. 24, 2009
Although millions of Americans have lost their jobs - and their health insurance - during the current recession, health care spending in the United States is expected to have its largest single-year increase in 2009. That's the surprising conclusion of a report released Tuesday by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). The new CMS report seeks to project health care spending for the next 10 years. More
Autism: How Childhood Vaccines Became Villains
from Newsweek, Feb. 21, 2009
Although millions of Americans have lost their jobs - and their health insurance - during the current recession, health care spending in the United States is expected to have its largest single-year increase in 2009. That's the surprising conclusion of a report released Tuesday by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). The new CMS report seeks to project health care spending for the next 10 years. More
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