health care industry news stories on Newser

Health-Care Firms Paid Gingrich's Think Tank $37M

Matt Cantor — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 07:43:57 CST

More consulting trouble for Newt. Since 2003, a Gingrich-founded think tank has pulled in at least $37 million from the health-care industry—and has called for an insurance mandate reminiscent of President Obama’s. Wellpoint, Blue Cross Blue Shield, AstraZeneca, and other members of the Center for Health Transformation paid as...

Bastards! Health 'Reform' Isn't Worthy of Name

Rob Quinn — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 03:45:44 CDT

The Democrats should hurry up and pass their sorry excuse for a health bill, but they should stop calling it "health care reform," writes Michael Moore. The president and Democratic leaders should apologize to the American people for coming up with a bill that leaves 12 million people still uninsured...

3 Big Myths About Health Care Reform

Rob Quinn — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 06:08:00 CST

Health care reform has made a miraculous comeback but its opponents are going to try to hoodwink the public with misinformation and lies down the home stretch, writes Paul Krugman. He outlines "three big myths" about reform in the New York Times . "The government is grabbing control of a sixth...

Health Summit Bares Hopeless Chasm

Rob Quinn — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 01:22:00 CST

President Obama's health care summit left pundits from across the spectrum feeling more pessimistic than ever about the chances of crafting a bipartisan agreement on reform. "It was a talking-point festival," writes Peggy Noonan at the Wall Street Journal. The Republicans put forth seemingly unconnected statements, and the "boorish" Democrats...

GOP to Push Gradual, Market-Based Health Reform

Rob Quinn — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 05:44:50 CST

Congressional Republicans will likely bring a well-developed alternative road map to health care reform to their summit with President Obama, based on an examination of past actions. The GOP favors a far more market-oriented and less comprehensive approach to reform, according to a New York Times analysis of bills the...

Indexes Hit 2009 Highs; Dow Closes Up 54

M. Morris — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 12:20:12 CST

The major stock exchanges hit highs for the year today as traders reacted positively to news that new jobless claims grew less than projected. Health care was the only sector showing broad losses, a reaction to the Senate's passage of the health care bill, the Wall Street Journal reports. The...

Health Bill Fiendishly Hard to Call

Rob Quinn — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 01:20:07 CST

David Brooks would vote no if he were a senator deciding on the health care bill today. But he admits that the pros and cons are so finely balanced that he flip-flops from week to week. The bill should be supported because it takes the deficit seriously, will provide insurance...

Dems, Not GOP, Are Party of Big Business

Harry Kimball — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:55:05 CST

The idea that the GOP is the “party of big business” is a convenient fabrication, Jonah Goldberg writes, that handily deflects blame from the progressives who have historically been in bed with the fat cats—particularly the health care industry. Just look at GE during the Great Depression, when it...

Lieberman, Bayh Wives in Bed with Health Biz

Rob Quinn — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 09:38:57 CDT

The threats from Sens. Joe Lieberman and Evan Bayh to help filibuster any health reform bill with a public option should come as no surprise to anybody familiar with their family finances, writes Joe Conason. Lieberman's wife Hadassah spent 30 years working in the corporate health sector for pharmaceutical firms...