The Bush Administration's Health Policy Agenda

Other Articles

Calmes J, VandeHei J. White House, Congress Shift Agenda after Attack. Wall Street Journal. 2001 September 26: A22.
This article summarizes how the terrorist attacks have changed the policy agenda for the White House and Congress, shifting power balances and putting foreign affairs before domestic issues.

Coombs J, White E. Bush Proposes SCHIP Expansion, COBRA Coverage Plan for Displaced Workers. BNA's Health Care Policy Report. 2001 October 15: 1524-1526.
This article outlines President Bush's proposal to allow states to use unspent State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) money to expand coverage to laid-off workers and their families, and to use National Emergency Grants to help displaced workers afford Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act health coverage. It describes what SCHIP funds might be available, concerns about what the proposal might mean for the SCHIP program, and if the dollars could be distributed fairly among the states. Other quoted sources questioned whether COBRA subsidies would be adequate to the task of helping displaced workers maintain health coverage.

Economy: Bush Offers Compromise in Stimulus Bill Debate. American Health Line. 2001 December 12.
Hoping to break an impasse in negotiations over an economic stimulus bill, President Bush offered a compromise that would expand unemployment benefits by 13 weeks and provide tax credits to help displaced workers buy health insurance beyond the funds that he had previously proposed. This article describes the various proposals and counterproposals that have been developed to address the health coverage issue since October.

Goldreich S. Bush Plan to Phase in Medicaid Changes Faces Fierce Resistance from States that Will Lose Health Care Payments. CQ Weekly. 2001 November 24: 2787.
The Bush administration hopes to close a loophole in the Medicaid payment system. Many states pay excessive fees to public hospitals, then average those payments with lower payments to private hospitals to claim a larger share of federal matching funds. This means that states technically stay under the upper payment limit cap, which cannot exceed the rates paid for similar Medicare services. Public hospitals then return the bulk of the funds to the states, which use them for other purposes. The Bush administration plan would phase out the current system, giving states time to adjust. Many in Congress, however, support a delay in changing the current system to provide more time to close the loophole without undermining the Medicaid program. Groups such as the National Governors' Association and the American Hospital Association are also pressing for a moratorium on changing the upper payment limit.

Isenstein H. Altered Agenda: Congress' Focus on Terrorism Reprioritizes Health Issues. Modern Physician. 2001 November; 5(1): 14.
The terrorist strikes have changed the emphasis of health policy to public health, specifically to bioterrorism preparedness. Meanwhile, physicians are still working on other issues, such as Medicare reimbursement and reform.

Kirchoff S. Congress Renews Focus on Healthcare: Economic Downturn Leaves More Uninsured. Boston Globe. 2001 October 16: D1.
As the economy weakens, concern about the growing number of uninsured has put health care back at the top of the health policy agenda. This article describes the partisan differences in approach to this problem, and the attitudes of the business community to the various proposals.

McGill K. A Break from Anti-Terrorism: Bush Pushes Medical Agenda in Video Speech. Associated Press Newswires. 2001 October 14.
In a videotaped speech to a medical convention, President Bush took the opportunity to discuss domestic policy, specifically his proposed Medicare reforms and the administration-backed version of the patients' rights bill.

Politics & Policy - Bioethics: Bush Formally Creates Advisory Council. American Health Line. 2001 November 29.
On November 28, 2001, President Bush created a President's Council on Bioethics by executive order. It is an advisory commission that will study the ethical and scientific issues involved in stem cell research, cloning, and other biomedical research and technology. University of Chicago boethicist Dr. Leon Kass was selected to chair the council. Kass has historically been opposed to human cloning, and proponents of in vitro fertilization and human cloning have expressed concern about his appointment. The council is set to expire in two years unless the president extends the executive order before that time.

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