Healthcare Policy

Sure, adding more medical schools can help address physician shortages. But it's just as important to expand residency programs, say medical school deans in Florida, one of 23 states targeted by a new federal residency-promotion bill. In Florida, the number of med school graduates should double during the next 10 years, but aren't any current plans on the table to dramatically increase the number of residency slots. However, things will change if The Resident Physician Shortage Reduction …

New York state governor Eliot Spitzer has come to a truce with the state's healthcare unions, which have violently and publicly opposed his recent attempts to slash the state's Medicaid budget and funnel more funds to community health centers. Spitzer's proposal, which would cut more than $1 billion from from New York's Medicaid budget, sparked a volley of big-bucks attack ad campaigns …

While far from enjoying a landslide of support, a bill which would create a single health insurer in Connecticut is continuing to move through the state legislature. Few observers expect the measure to proceed much further, but the progress of the Connecticut Saves Health Care bill intrigues supporters, who say that its continued progress shows a surprising level of support for single-payor reform. After all, if approved, the measure would radically change the state's health insurance …

Medical ethicists are shaking their heads over a new South Carolina bill which would let inmates leave prison six months early if they donate a kidney or bone marrow. The bill, which was just approved by the state Senate's Corrections and Penology Subcommittee, would let the state's Department of Corrections decide which inmates were allowed to donate. The costs for the donation, as well as any prison guard overtime needed to maintain the peace, would be paid for by the organ recipient …

After years of serving as a get-tough state's attorney general, New York state governor Eliot Spitzer (D) has proven that he's not afraid of a fight. Well, he's got a big one on his hands this time. The newly-minted governor, who's only been in office three months, is in a tough battle with the state's healthcare industry over Medicaid. As part of his 2007 budget, Spitzer is proposing a $1.2 billion cut in state Medicaid funding, the majority of which would come out of the pockets of …

Upset at losing its contract with Los Angeles county, Charles R. Drew University School of Medicine and Science has announced that it will sue the county for $125 million. Late last year, county leaders decided to terminate the contract between the school and the county's Martin Luther King Jr./Drew Medical Center (now known as Martin Luther King Jr.-Harbor Hospital). The termination was part of some sweeping changes made to the Watts-area hospital's management after it failed a CMS …

Despite the importance of such diagnoses to wartime medical care, the military hasn't developed a comprehensive plan to treat soldiers with mild and moderate brain injuries, according to a new report. The Pentagon has had traumatic brain injury (TBI) on its radar since at least mid-2006, when a military-generated report suggested that it was critical to develop good screenings for blast-associated TBI and other forms of brain injury. While the military does a good job of treating …

Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich (D) has released his plans to extend health coverage to the state's 1.4 million residents. The linchpin of his proposal is the "Illinois Covered Choice" health plan--privately issued health insurance made affordable by pooling members across the state. Uninsured individuals without access to coverage would be able to buy in regardless of health status--and families who buy in could save more than $10,000 per year, state officials said. In addition, …

A new report by the state's non-profit Public Affairs Research Council (PAR) argues that Louisiana should shut down its rural charity hospitals and pay private hospitals to pick up the slack. PAR researchers are in favor of keeping teaching hospitals in New Orleans, Baton Rouge and Shreveport open, but suggest that the seven other non-teaching hospitals in the system should be sold or transferred to local authorities. PAR's suggestions dovetail with recommendations some other researchers …

Spurred by reports of atrocious conditions at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, President Bush has established a commission to study how wounded soldiers are cared for when they return to the U.S. The bipartisan commission will be led by former senator Robert Dole, a disabled World War II veteran, and former HHS secretary Donna Shalala. Bush has also asked that the VA secretary create a …