Healthcare Digest: Republican Attempt to Subvert Obamacare Fails

To counter President Obama’s Affordable Care Act — mockingly called “Obamacare” by conservatives and Republicans at first, but that backfired — Republicans tried to come up with a plan of their own. But what to call it? “How can we cram as many buzzwords as possible into a title,” was probably how that brainstorming session began. And thus was created the “Helping Sick Americans Now” plan.

A plan that died yesterday.

“Republican leaders in the House of Representatives on Wednesday withdrew a bill that would change the Obama administration’s healthcare law amid conservative concerns that the legislation was replacing one big government program with another,” according to Reuters.

The argument against Big Government is a curious one, and one that sees little consistency — from either side, to be fair. It’s a buzzword that sounds good from the lectern or on a whistlestop tour — “Big Government is Bad!” — but it’s frequently pushed aside when matters of alleged morality or social programs enters the conversation.

Representative Raul Labrador of Idaho is quoted in the article: “I agree with [House Majority Leader Eric Cantor's] premise that we need to do something about the struggles of ordinary Americans. Subsidizing the struggles of ordinary Americans is not the solution to the questions that we are facing.”

Subsidizing Americans? Not the solution. Subsidizing Too-Big-To-Fail Businesses? Who do we make the check out to?

Thursday’s headlines:

They Want to Do More Than Deliver Packages: “UPS today announced it will purchase Hungary-based pharmaceutical logistics company, CEMELOG Zrt, as part of its ongoing global growth and investment strategy. The acquisition further strengthens UPS’s healthcare reach and expertise in Europe, enabling comprehensive, compliant services to customers in the pharmaceutical, biotech and medical device industries across the increasingly important markets of Central and Eastern Europe.” [Financial Post]

Healthcare Pops Up in Immigration Bill: “GOP critics of the Senate’s immigration bill warn Congress risks a rerun of ObamaCare if it approves the measure.” [The Hill]

Sen. Tom Harkin Has a Fit: “Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) has placed a hold on one of President Obama’s top healthcare nominees.
Marilyn Tavenner had previously seemed poised for an easy, bipartisan confirmation as the administrator of the federal Medicare and Medicaid agency.
But Harkin placed a hold on Tavenner’s nomination Wednesday. Harkin’s office noted his frustration at the way the Obama administration plans to spend a $15 billion fund for prevention and public health programs.” [The Hill]

Healthcare Premiums Increase: “170% since 2002.” [Examiner.com]

Data Breaches: “A common refrain among those outside the healthcare industry is that healthcare has a ways to go in catching up with the enterprise in security technology. While this is largely true, Verizon’s 2012 Data Breach Investigations Report revealed that healthcare is far from the most-afflicted industry when it comes to data breaches. A mere 7 percent of the industry groups represented in the study came from healthcare/social assistance. Instead, accommodation and food services led the way with 54 percent of total data breaches in 2012.” [Health IT Security]