December 16, 2010:
Without the Individual Mandate, What Will Happen to Obamacare?
On Monday, a Virginia federal district court struck down the individual mandate to purchase health insurance in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA). In his ruling, the judge wrote that:
Because an individual’s personal decision to purchase – or decline to purchase – health insurance from a private provider is beyond the historical reach of the Commerce Clause, the Necessary and Proper Clause does not provide a safe sanctuary. This clause grants Congress broad authority to pass laws in furtherance of its constitutionally-enumerated powers. This authority may only be constitutionally deployed when tethered to a lawful exercise of an enumerated power...
The Minimum Essential Coverage Provision is neither within the letter nor the spirit of the Constitution. Therefore, the Necessary and Proper Clause may not be employed to implement this affirmative duty to engage in private commerce.
Will the Supreme Court agree to hear the case on an expedited basis? As litigation continues, how will this ruling affect the ongoing implementation of PPACA? Finally, how will the litigation affect – and reflect – public unhappiness with the PPACA? Leading health care experts lend their predictions for where Obamacare is headed next.
This edition of our expert panel includes:
- Joseph Antos Wilson H. Taylor Scholar in Health Care and Retirement Policy and adjunct professor at the Gillings School of Global Public Health at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
- Michael Cannon is the Cato Institute's director of health policy studies.
- Dr. David Gratzer, senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute
- Sally Pipes, Taube Fellow in Health Care Studies, president and chief executive officer of the Pacific Research Institute
- Peter Suderman is an associate editor of Reason magazine and a 2010 Robert Novak Journalism Fellow
- Grace Marie Turner, president of the Galen Institute
November 11, 2010:
Post-Election Predictions for Obamacare
November 3, 2010 Republicans retook the House, in no small measure as a result of President Obama and a Democratic Congress over-reaching when they passed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act last March through a cynical legislative process and divisive partisan vote. The resulting legislation is extraordinarily expensive, and will do little to address that nation's underlying health care problems. While Republicans have promised to "repeal and replace" Obamacare, the road ahead will be difficult, given President Obama's veto power. At the same time, sustainable reform of the U.S.'s health care entitlements (Medicare and Medicaid) is a more pressing issue than ever. What can Republicans do to fulfill their pledge over the next two years and help create a truly competitive, affordable, and patient-centered U.S. health care system?
This edition of our expert panel includes:
- Dr. David Gratzer, senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute
- Thomas Miller, resident fellow at American Enterprise Institute
- Sally Pipes, Taube Fellow in Health Care Studies, president and chief executive officer of the Pacific Research Institute
- Peter Pitts, president and co-founder of the Center for Medicine in the Public Interest
- Tevi Troy, visiting senior fellow at the Hudson Institute and senior fellow at the Potomac Institute
- Grace Marie Turner, president of the Galen Institute
August 5, 2010:
Improving the FDA's REMS Program
The FDA recently concluded meetings reviewing industry, patient, and provider concerns surrounding the implementation of its Risk Evaluation & Mitigation Strategy (REMS) authorities. The driving concept behind REMS was to find a way of improving the use of drugs with known safety risks through a variety of tools. Patients and pharmacists complain that they have not been given enough input into REMS creation, while companies argue that the FDA has been slow to respond to requests to modify or improve REMS when it seems appropriate to do so. Given that the Food and Drug Administration Act of 2007 requires REMS not be "unduly burdensome" to providers or patients, how do you think that the FDA can incorporate these concerns into an improved REMS process that balances timely patient access with mitigating severe drugs risks?
This edition of our expert panel includes:
- Marc Boutin, executive vice president and chief operating officer of the National Health Council
- Scott Gottlieb, M.D., resident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute
- Steven Grossman, consultant specializing in FDA policy and author of fdamatters.com
- Henry Miller, M.D., research fellow at the Hoover Institution
July 8, 2010:
Are Foreign Clinical Drug Trials Safe?
Lately, news articles are highlighting a recent report by the department of Health and Human Services questioning the FDA's ability to oversee foreign drug clinical
trials. For this edition of our Second Opinion forum, we've asked policy experts if they think the existing foreign clinical trial system puts patients in the US at
risk, or if they think Americans are better off because of these trials.. Additionally, are there any global health concerns or benefits resulting from foreign
clinical trials?
This edition of our expert panel includes:
- David Henderson, associate professor of economics at the Naval Postgraduate School and a research fellow with the Hoover Institution
- Anup Malani, professor of law at the University of Chicago Law School and university fellow at Resources for the Future
- Henry Miller, research fellow at the Hoover Institution
- Tomas J. Philipson, Daniel Levin Professor of Public Policy at the University of Chicago and chairman of the Manhattan Institute's Project FDA
- Tevi Troy, visiting senior fellow at the Hudson Institute
ARCHIVES:
FDA's Bad Ad Program, June 03, 2010
Obesity and Public Health, May 05, 2010
The Route to Reconciliation, March 05, 2010
Conflict of Interest, January 28, 2010
Analyzing the Healthcare Bills, November 18, 2009
President Obama's Plan for Reform, August 24, 2009
The Healthcare Reform Debate, July 23, 2009
Priorities for the New FDA Commissioner, December 19, 2008
PhRMA's New Marketing Code, August 28, 2008
Personal Genetics Testing, July 29, 2008
Where health care policy experts have their say, June 13, 2008
Sources of Medical Research Funding, April 24, 2008
Off-Labeling Marketing, March 17, 2008
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