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December 8, 2008 |
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IN THIS ISSUE
President's Column: Buy American For Your
Patients' Sake
Chiropractic Scope Bills Hit Fast Track: Immediate
Response Needed!
WSUSOM Student Publishes Journal Article
New National Health Care Team Wants Your Opinion
Auto Bailout Could Feature Tough Times For
Hospitals
Obama Stimulus To Include Medicaid, Health IT
Funds
National Influenza Vaccination Week Is Upon Us
Kennedy Drops Judiciary
Assignment To Focus On Health Care |
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Click Here To Contact Us
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President's Column: Buy American For
Your Patients' Sake
By E. CHRIS
BUSH, MD
Traditionally Michigan's workforce has enjoyed enhanced private
health insurance benefits compared to other states. The reason for
the difference has been the contracts worked out between the United
Auto Workers and the auto companies.
Physicians and
other health providers have benefited over the years as most
employees have had rich benefits and low deductibles and copayments.
Those days are
over with the near-collapse of the auto industry, the massive loss
of jobs and exodus of many of Michigan's citizens. Most of the
patients seen by physicians in Southeast Michigan are employees or
retirees from the auto industry or its suppliers. The local steel
industry is also highly dependent on sales to the auto plants.
Now, more than
ever, our patients need our help. We need to reach out to them and
assist them to get the care they need as well as our emotional
support. The physicians of the Wayne County Medical Society of
Southeast Michigan have always risen to the challenge to help our
patients in need.
In addition,
the Big Three need to sell some cars and trucks. The 4,000-plus
members of WCMSSM need to visit local dealerships and buy or lease a
Ford, General Motors or Chrysler product. Eight thousand new
purchases would be a shot in the arm to our economy and would be a
gesture our patients would appreciate. Now is not the time to debate
the value of domestic versus foreign makes. Clearly, all of the
automakers are global in scope. Nevertheless, the profits made by
the Big Three go to headquarters located in Auburn Hills, Dearborn
and Detroit instead of Tokyo, Stuttgart or Seoul.
As UAW
President Ron Gettelfinger recently remarked: "The data is clear:
Domestic auto plants create more jobs in this country than overseas
producers who locate here."
I hope to see
you in the near future pulling into the doctors' lot in your GMC,
Ford or Chrysler automobile.
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Chiropractic Scope
Bills Hit Fast Track: Immediate Response Needed!
The Michigan Senate announced Dec.4 that instead of
being assigned to a committee, the "Chiropractic Scope-of-Practice
Bills" (HB 5759 and 6201) that just passed the House will head
directly to the Senate floor, where they can be acted on at any time
once the Senate reconvenes on Wednesday, Dec. 10.
THESE BILLS WILL PASS IF PHYSICIANS DON'T ACT!
Senate leadership has told MSMS that senators are hearing from
chiropractors on this issue, but not from physicians. In order to
prevent this dangerous and potentially costly scope-of-practice
expansion,we need you to use the prewritten message below to urge
your own senator and Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop
to stop the bills from passing.
In addition, we need you to make FOUR
IMPORTANT PHONE CALLS to key senators using prepared
talking points:
1) Call Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop:
517-373-2417
2) Call (incoming) Senate Minority Leader Mike Prusi:
517-373-7840
3) Call Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Wayne Kuipers:
517-373-6920
4) Call your own senator
(www.senate.mi.gov,
click on "Find Your Senator")
NOTE: If you call outside of their office hours
PLEASE LEAVE A MESSAGE. They will take note of how
many calls/messages they receive.
HB 5759 and 6201 seek to change the existing language
in the Michigan Public Health Code to expand chiropractic scope of
practice from the "spinal column" to the "musculoskeletal system."
Click to view the December 3 House roll call votes on HB 5759
(63-46)
and HB 6201
(59-50).
Introduced by current House Health Policy Committee
Chair Rep. Kathy Angerer (D-Dundee)--who will take
over as Majority Floor Leader in January--the bills specifically
would add "differential diagnosis" and "physical modalities and
rehabilitative services" to chiropractors' scope. In addition, this
would allow chiropractors to order MRI, CT scans, PET scans, and
almost any other imaging test.
In addition to concerns regarding patient safety, the
legislation carries a potentially massive cost in terms of the
increased use of imaging technologies by chiropractors. It is the
standard of care within chiropractic to order an x-ray prior to
treatment with manipulation. Increasing the areas of the body to
treat increases the number of images needed prior to treatment,
which causes costs to rise.
MSMS believes there is no valid reason to increase
scope of practice for a profession that has not increased its
training or education to be commensurate with their scope of
practice expansion.
MSMS and nearly 30 other organizations have formed the
"Educate, Don't Legislate"
coalition to fight this unwarranted scope of practice expansion.
For more information, contact Colin Ford at MSMS at
517-336-5737 or
cford@msms.org.
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WSUSOM Student
Publishes Journal Article
Berkin Ulgen, a first-year student at the Wayne State University
School of Medicine, has published a paper in Neurosurgery Online,
the official journal of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons.
The paper, “Augusta Déjerine-Klumpke, MD, (1859-1927): a historical
perspective on Klumpke's palsy,” was published in the August 2008
issue. The paper is a biography of Dr. Klumpke, an early and
important contributor to the descriptions and treatments of
neurological diseases. Klumpke’s palsy was first described by her in
1885.
Integrated into the biography are three works she wrote, including
her 1885 paper on lower trunk brachial plexus palsy. The papers were
only available in their original French. Ulgen said his research
team translated them for an English audience for the first time.
“What is perhaps most remarkable about Dr. Klumpke’s story,
especially from a non-medical perspective, is the timing of her
achievements,” Mr. Ulgen said. “Dr. Klumpke reached the highest
echelons of academic medicine in a time when such opportunities were
absolutely closed to women. In her biography we explore how her
studious upbringing and her intellect paved the way for succeeding
at every academic level, culminating in her becoming the first woman
accepted to the highly competitive positions needed to practice
academic medicine in late 19th century France.”
Mr. Ulgen, 23, is originally from Ann Arbor. He completed his
undergraduate studies at Johns Hopkins University. He became
interested in medicine during a Summer Science Academy program while
in high school. The two-week program at the University of Michigan
introduced him to the field of medicine.
“This was my first real exposure to medicine as a career, and what I
came away with from this experience is the intrinsic meaningfulness
of the medical profession, i.e. the ability to help others, that in
my opinion most other career paths lack,” he explained.
Mr. Ulgen is president of the School of Medicine’s Board of Student
Organizations (BSO), which serves as a liaison to the Student Senate
and administration on behalf of student organizations. The entity
also works to create opportunities for intra-organization
cooperation, including such events as the Student Orgs Fair during
New Student Orientation, the student group sponsoring of Orientation
Week social events and the Ethnic Fair, he said.
The BSO this year created a website –
www.med.wayne.edu/bso/ --
for student organization leadership, created a database of contact
information of all organizations and worked to streamline
intra-organizational events.
In addition, Mr. Ulgen is treasurer of the World Health Student
Organization, and serves on the Social Work Committee for the
Student Run Free Clinic, which organizers hope to have open and
running by fall 2009.
While unsure of his career pursuits after graduation, he is
interested in cardiology and surgery. “What draws me to cardiology
is the need for qualified cardiologists to deal with the high
morbidity rates of heart disease that plagues our country. I also
think that the heart is just a fascinating organ.”
After graduation, he plans to devote time each year caring for
underserved patient populations at home and abroad. He hopes to work
with Doctors Without Borders.
Mr. Ulgen selected Wayne State University for his medical training
for a variety of reasons. “The School of Medicine is a fabulous
research institution as evidenced by its ranking in the top 25 of
medical schools in terms of National Institutes of Health funding,”
he said. “Another reason is the top-notch clinical training at
affiliated hospitals, which provide diverse learning environments
and a chance to serve the underserved populations of Detroit.”
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New National Health
Care Team Wants Your Opinion
President-Elect Obama's Transition Team Solicits U.S. Residents'
Opinions on Health Care in Nationwide Campaign
[Dec 08, 2008]
Former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.), head of
President-elect Barack Obama's health transition team and likely
nominee for
HHS secretary, on Friday announced a nationwide campaign to
gather public input on improving the U.S. health care system, the
Denver Post
reports (Riley,
Denver Post, 12/7).
At a health care summit in Denver organized by Sen. Ken Salazar (D-Colo.),
Daschle encouraged U.S. residents to hold community meetings and
house parties from Dec. 15-31 to discuss their health care concerns
and experiences. The Obama transition team will gather the
information from those meetings and post it on the Web site
change.gov (Freking,
AP/USA Today,
12/6). Daschle said he will attend at least one house party and
prepare a detailed report for Obama (Connolly,
Washington Post,
12/6).
Daschle said, "President-elect Obama has made health reform one of
his top priorities," adding, "I'm here to tell you that his
commitment to changing the health care system remains strong and
focused" (Levey,
Los Angeles Times,
12/6). According to Daschle, "There is no question the economy is
going to be directly related to our ability to reform the health
care system in the years ahead." He said, "Health care is going to
destroy many of our manufacturing industries unless we fix the
system" (Carey,
CQ HealthBeat,
12/5). With more than half of U.S. residents receiving health care
coverage through their employer, the rising unemployment rate makes
overhauling the health care system "so urgent and so much a part of
the economic recovery process," Daschle said (Marcus,
Bloomberg,
12/5). He added, "Once we get started, it would be a big mistake to
put it aside and move on to something else. Once we get started,
let's get it done."
Among the principles that will guide the Obama administration's
efforts to overhaul U.S. health care are increasing access to care
for low-income and uninsured residents, shifting incentives that
undercut preventive care, and changing the way the health care
system tracks medical information and keeps records (Denver
Post, 12/7). Obama in a statement on Friday said, "In
order for us to reform our health care system, we must first begin
reforming how government communicates with the American people,"
adding, "These Health Care Community Discussions are a great way for
the American people to have a direct say in our health reform
efforts" (Washington Post,
12/6).
New Approach
According to the Los Angeles
Times, the plan to hold community discussion "appears
designed to avoid the appearance that the new administration is
developing a sweeping agenda behind closed doors," a perception
"widely believed to have helped doom the Clinton administration's
health care reform efforts in the early '90s" (Los
Angeles Times, 12/6). John Rother, public policy
director for
AARP, said that Obama and his transition team "are clearly
trying to do it differently and help the American public see the
case for reform in human terms" (AP/USA
Today, 12/6).
"This effort would be an extension ... of the Obama transition
team's forays into harnessing that vast grassroots network it built
during the campaign as it tries to channel the diffuse but palpable
energetic forces into a newly formed, broader-based good," the
New York Times'
"The
Caucus" reports (Phillips, "The Caucus,"
New York Times,
12/5). Recently the transition Web site change.gov
hosted an online health care discussion that collected about
10,000 entries to which Daschle responded in a short video (Rhoads,
Wall Street Journal,
12/6).
Reprinted from
kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire
Kaiser Daily Health Policy
Report, search the archives, and sign up for email
delivery at www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy . The
Kaiser Daily Health Policy
Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free
service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. © 2008 Advisory
Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved."
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Auto Bailout Could Feature Tough
Times For Hospitals
Lawmakers To Vote on $15B, Short-Term Financial Assistance Package
for Big Three Automakers
[Dec 08, 2008]
Lawmakers this week likely will vote on a $15 billion financial
assistance package for the Big Three automakers, although passage of
such legislation remains uncertain, the
New York Times
reports (Vlasic, New York Times, 12/8).
On Tuesday, officials for the automakers presented to lawmakers
individual proposals that included requests for as much as $34
billion in financial assistance, as well as revisions to their
obligations to a fund that will provide health benefits to
United Auto Workers retirees. Under contracts negotiated last
year, the automakers agreed to contribute about $56.5 billion to a
voluntary employees' beneficiary association, which UAW will manage.
The VEBA, which will take effect in 2010 and remain operational for
80 years, will reduce retiree health benefit liabilities for the
automakers by about $100 billion.
In addition, UAW on Wednesday agreed to allow the automakers to
delay their contributions to the VEBA and make other concessions to
help the companies obtain financial assistance from the federal
government (Kaiser
Daily Health Policy Report, 12/5).
Senate Banking Committee Chair Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) said that
congressional Democrats hope to pass a short-term, $15 billion
financial assistance package for the automakers and that any
long-term package would require the companies to take significant
steps to restructure their operations. The $15 billion would come
from a
Department of Energy program designed to promote the development
of fuel-efficient vehicles, he said.
Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.) on "Fox
News Sunday" said that lawmakers and the Bush administration
have moved "very close to a deal" on a financial assistance package
for automakers but added that passage of such legislation is a "much
more complicated question." Levin said that the Senate likely will
vote on such legislation on Wednesday.
UAW Concessions
UAW President Ron Gettelfinger during an appearance on ABC's "This
Week" on Sunday discussed the agreement to allow the automakers to
delay their contributions to the VEBA. However, lawmakers have asked
UAW to accept smaller contributions or take some of the payments in
stock rather than cash -- "concessions the union hasn't been willing
to make," the
Detroit News
reports (Shepardson/Trowbridge,
Detroit News, 12/7).
Detroit Hospitals Prepare for Decline in Revenue
Detroit area hospitals are "bracing for major changes and deep work
force cuts" following restructuring plans by the Big Three
automakers, the
News
reports. According to the
News, layoffs by automakers and plant closings could
reduce the number of people seeking care from area hospitals, "which
have long thrived" because of the Big Three's generous health
benefits. The reduction in revenue could force hospitals to
implement additional efficiency measures, as well as reduce staff
and spending on new medical technologies and close underused
facilities.
In addition, automaker layoffs could prompt an enrollment increase
in government-sponsored health coverage programs -- such as Medicare
and Medicaid, which pay less than commercial insurers -- and lead to
a rise in uncompensated care at the hospitals. According to Dean
Smith, a public health professor at the
University of Michigan, such a scenario "would require a very
different health system than we have now."
Bob Hoban, chief strategy officer for St. John Health, said, "You
could have a scenario where there is a fair amount of surplus in the
industry and that could lead to some facilities closing," adding,
"Whether or not we get into a situation of that magnitude, it's
still too early to tell." Some hospitals are considering greater
collaboration to reduce overlapping services and spread out the
financial burden of an increase in the number of uninsured patients,
according to Smith. He said, "We may end up with a more efficient
system and more cooperation so there isn't so much competition." He
added that hospitals also will have to reevaluate any long-term
building plans (Rogers,
Detroit News, 12/5).
In related news, Detroit's no-cost health clinics already have
experienced an increase in patients because of the current economic
recession, the
News
reports. As a result of the increase, people seeking care at the
clinics can wait weeks for an appointment or for several hours as a
walk-in (Stolarz, Detroit News, 12/5).
Editorials
§
Philadelphia Inquirer:
UAW "is showing it understands the seriousness of the crisis" for
the automakers with the agreement to allow the companies to delay
their contributions to the VEBA and make other concessions, but
those steps "probably don't go far enough to ensure the companies'
return to profitability," an
Inquirer editorial
states. The editorial concludes that lawmakers must require
"stringent goals for more fuel-efficient cars and leaner operations
as conditions for this bailout" (Philadelphia
Inquirer, 12/7).
§
Philadelphia Inquirer:
The agreement by UAW to allow the automakers to delay their
contributions to the VEBA and make other concessions makes the
financial assistance package a "reasonable risk to take," an
Inquirer editorial
states. However, "American cars will never be able to compete in the
global marketplace until U.S. automakers no longer are burdened with
the costs of health care for their current and retired workers,
which right now add about $2,000 to the cost of each car" (Philadelphia Inquirer, 12/8).
§
Springfield Republican:
UAW "at long last" is "stepping up to offer some concessions
intended to demonstrate that the automakers -- from the top to the
bottom -- are serious about changing their ways," a
Republican editorial states. The agreement by UAW to
allow the automakers to delay their contributions to the VEBA and
make other concessions "will not in itself secure federal funds for
the Big Three, but it marks a real and surprisingly big step," the
editorial states (Springfield
Republican, 12/5).
§
Washington Post:
UAW, in addition to the agreement to allow the automakers to delay
their contributions to the VEBA and suspend a jobs bank program,
must "agree to bring wages and benefits of its active members into
line with those of nonunion workers at foreign-owned plants,
immediately," to prevent bankruptcy at GM, according to a
Post editorial. "If
GM, the union and the bondholders don't get it done by March 31,
then the government would get its money back and the company would
go bankrupt," the editorial states (Washington
Post, 12/7).
Broadcast Coverage
ABC's
"This
Week" on Sunday included comments from Gettelfinger about a
possible financial assistance package for the automakers
(Stephanopoulos, "This Week," ABC, 12/7).
"Fox
News Sunday" on Sunday included comments from Levin and Sen.
Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) about such legislation ("Fox News Sunday,"
Fox News, 12/7).
Reprinted from
kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire
Kaiser
Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, and
sign up for email delivery at www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy
. The Kaiser Daily Health
Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free
service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. © 2008 Advisory
Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved."
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Obama Stimulus To
Include Medicaid, Health IT Funds
Obama Says Stimulus Package Will Include Funds for Medicaid, Health
Care IT
[Dec 08, 2008]
President-elect Barack Obama on Saturday during his weekly radio
and Internet address released additional details about his economic
stimulus package, which he said would include funds for Medicaid and
health care information technology,
Long Island Newsday
reports (Brune, Long Island
Newsday, 12/8). Among other measures, the package
would seek to provide hospitals and physicians with access to
electronic health record systems and other new medical technology
(Shear,
Washington Post,
12/7). Obama said that such a measure could help improve health care
delivery and reduce costs (Nicholas/Hook,
Chicago Tribune,
12/7).
Obama did not provide details about the total cost of the stimulus
package (Schouten,
USA Today,
12/8). Estimates of the cost of the package have reached as high as
$1.2 trillion (Long Island
Newsday, 12/8).
Prospects
According to CongressDaily,
congressional Democrats acknowledge that a "deal with Republicans
and the Bush White House remains unlikely before January," an
indication that "any action on a stimulus package is not expected
next week" (Hunt/Sanchez,
CongressDaily, 12/5). Top economic advisers to Obama
and congressional Democrats hope to complete work on the package in
January to allow Obama to sign the legislation when he takes office
on Jan. 20, 2009.
However, on Saturday, "congressional sources expressed skepticism
... that a program of such size and scope could be passed in the two
weeks after Congress returns to Washington on Jan. 6," the
Washington Post
reports. According to the
Post, "Democrats said that even if a recovery act
quickly passed the House early next year, it could take longer in
the Senate, where fiscally conservative Republicans have expressed
concern about adding to the soaring deficit with a massive new round
of government spending" and where "Republicans could easily hold up
a final vote" (Washington
Post, 12/7).
NBC's
"Meet
the Press" on Sunday included an interview with Obama during
which he discussed details of his stimulus package (Brokaw, "Meet
the Press," NBC, 12/7).
Editorials
§
Denver Rocky Mountain News:
The "goal of a stimulus package should be to, well, stimulate the
economy -- or at least stabilize rattled markets so that a recovery
seems possible" and "should not primarily be a way to balance state
budgets," a News
editorial states. According to the editorial, a "number of governors
and lawmakers are pushing for tens of billions more to help support
programs such as Medicaid," but states "can't just be given a blank
check," as the "danger here is that Congress may simply throw
additional bundles of taxpayer money at the financial crisis -- all
of which amounts to long-term debt -- without adopting policies that
lead to a sturdy recovery" (Denver
Rocky Mountain News,
12/7).
§
Orlando Sentinel:
"States have a good case to make for federal help" through a
stimulus package, as they likely will have to reduce spending for
health care and other programs to address a combined $24 billion
budget deficit for the current fiscal year, a
Sentinel editorial
states. According to the editorial, a temporary increase in federal
funds for state Medicaid programs "would help close the gap in their
budgets without sparing them the necessity of taking a hard look at
other, less vital programs." The editorial adds, "More cuts
inevitably would drain more money from programs that serve the most
vulnerable members of society -- the young and old, the poor and
sick -- just as the bad economy is increasing the need for those
programs" (Orlando Sentinel,
12/8).
§
Washington Times:
States have asked Congress for $40 million in additional federal
funds for their Medicaid programs, as well as $136 million in other
funds, and they "should be required to put forth their plans to cut
spending and trim their bureaucracies" before they can receive any
funds, according to a Times
editorial. The editorial states, "The wake-up call for governors is
that it is in their states' best interest in the short and long term
to make the tough calls" (Washington
Times, 12/7).
Opinion Piece
Comprehensive health care reform -- "specifically, universal health
care" -- should "top the list" of measures included in a stimulus
package because a "bold embrace of universal health care offers
policymakers the chance at a fiscal triple-play: Universal coverage
would stimulate the economy, it would boost the financial security
of ordinary Americans and it would break the health care reform
log-jam," Chris Farrell, a contributing economics editor for
BusinessWeek,
writes in an opinion piece. He writes, "Universal coverage would
boost the economy in the short term," adding, "Targeting fiscal
stimulus toward universal coverage would help ordinary workers
rather than Wall Street tycoons" and "relieve a major source of
economic insecurity for anyone handed a pink slip during the
recession." In addition, Farrell writes, "To be sure, this kind of
universal health care isn't good enough for the long haul," but
"once the economy recovers, Washington can debate how to create a
more cost-effective and cost-efficient health care system" (Farrell,
BusinessWeek,
12/5).
Reprinted from
kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire
Kaiser Daily Health Policy
Report, search the archives, and sign up for email
delivery at www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy . The
Kaiser Daily Health Policy
Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free
service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. © 2008 Advisory
Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved."
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National Influenza
Vaccination Week Is Upon Us
To help raise
awareness of the seriousness of influenza and the importance of
continuing influenza vaccinations throughout December, January and
beyond, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(CDC), the US Department of Health and Human and other agencies have
designated Dec. 8-14 National Influenza Vaccination Week.
Although flu
season usually does not peak in the United States until January or
February, the number of people getting vaccinated tends to decrease
substantially after November. Because many people who should get the
flu vaccine this year are still unvaccinated , the CDC is
encouraging public health partners and health care providers to
conduct vaccination clinics and other activities to promote
influenza vaccination during Vaccination Week and throughout the
rest of the flu season.
Each year, on
average, 5-20 percent of people in the United States are infected
with influenza virus; more than 200,000 of them are hospitalized
from influenza complications. CDC recommends annual flu vaccinations
for the following groups:
-
Children 6
months of age to age 19 years
-
Pregnant
women
-
People older
than 50 years
-
Those with
chronic health conditions such as asthma, diabetes or heart
disease
-
And adults
who live with or care for children younger than 5 years and
especially younger than 6 months; adults 50 years of age and
older; or children or adults with chronic health conditions
-
Health care
workers
-
Anyone else
who wants to decrease their risk of influenza
Additional
information, including printable information for distribution to
patients is available online at:
http://www.cdc.gov/flu/
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Kennedy Drops
Judiciary Assignment To Focus On Health Care
Sen. Edward Kennedy To Step Down From Seat on Senate Judiciary
Committee To Focus on Health Care
[Dec 08, 2008]
Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) announced Friday that he will step
down from his seat on the
Senate Judiciary Committee in the 111th Congress to concentrate
on health care reform,
CQ HealthBeat
reports. "As chairman of the
Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, I expect
to lead a very full agenda in the next Congress, including working
with [President-elect] Obama to guarantee affordable health care, at
long last, for every American," Kennedy said. A top aide said health
care overhaul will be "priority one, two and three" for Kennedy.
CQ HealthBeat
reports that Kennedy has been coordinating with the Obama team on
potential health care reform plans and has worked with other
Democrats, such as
Senate Finance Committee Chair Max Baucus (D-Mont.). According
to CQ HealthBeat,
Kennedy and Baucus are planning to introduce health care overhaul
legislation early in the 111th Congress, either separately or under
a "one bill" approach pushed by Kennedy.
Kennedy currently is chair of the
Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Refugees and Border Security.
According to an aide, Kennedy will keep his seat on the
Senate Armed Services Committee and will continue to be chair of
its Seapower subcommittee (Armstrong/Perine,
CQ HealthBeat,
12/5). The Boston Globe's
"Political
Intelligence" blog reports that Kennedy's action honors a
request made last month by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.)
for Democratic caucus members to relinquish some of their committee
assignments to allow for opportunities for the eight new Democrats
elected to the Senate (Smith, "Political Intelligence,"
Boston Globe, 12/5).
Kennedy expects to return to the Senate full-time in January after
an absence following his diagnosis of brain cancer in May (CQ HealthBeat, 12/5). A Judiciary Committee spokesperson
said it is too early to know who will replace Kennedy on the
committee (Friedman,
CongressDaily, 12/5).
Reprinted from
kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire
Kaiser Daily Health Policy
Report, search the archives, and sign up for email
delivery at www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy . The
Kaiser Daily Health Policy
Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free
service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. © 2008 Advisory
Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved."
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