from kaisernetwork.org Daily Reports.
http://www.kaisernetwork.org/daily_reports/rep_index.cfm?DR_ID=14476
Some predictions from a number of news sources on how Tuesday's elections
will likely affect health care issues:
"CAPITOL HILL WATCH
Health Care Issues To Be Important, But Not Top Priority for New
Congress, Analysts Say
Republican lawmakers, who will assume control of both the House and
Senate in the 108th Congress next year, will likely use their
"substantially increased power" to "change the national debate" on health
care and enact market-based reforms, the Wall Street Journal reports.
For example, Republicans hope to pass a Medicare prescription drug
benefit that "relies heavily" on private insurers, rather than the
federal government, to provide coverage (Rogers et al., Wall Street
Journal, 11/7). Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa), who will likely assume
the chair of the Senate Finance Committee, which has jurisdiction over
Medicare legislation, said that his agenda next year will include a
prescription drug benefit bill (Hulse, New York Times, 11/7). The
prescription drug benefit legislation, which GOP lawmakers may propose as
part of a larger Medicare reform bill, could focus on low-income
beneficiaries rather than all Medicare beneficiaries, the Hartford
Courant reports (MacDonald, Hartford Courant, 11/7).
"Let's quit talking about doing something for the low-income elderly that
need prescription drugs" and pass legislation to address the issue,
Senate Minority Leader Trent Lott (R-Miss.), who will likely assume the
position of Senate majority leader, said (Clymer, New York Times, 11/7).
The pharmaceutical industry hopes that such legislation would "ward off
pressure" to place caps on prescription drug prices (Rogers et al., Wall
Street Journal, 11/7).
The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America donated more
than $12 million to Republican candidates in the 2002 election cycle
(Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, 10/15). Pharmaceutical companies
predict that their contributions to GOP candidates will place an
industry-supported prescription drug benefit on the "fast track" to
approval next year (Russell Chaddock, Christian Science Monitor, 11/7).
The Republican-controlled Congress also may block legislation to increase
access to generic treatments, a move that would benefit brand-name
pharmaceutical companies (Wall Street Journal, 11/7). "You'll see policy
that is friendly to the drug industry" in the 108th Congress, AARP Policy
Director John Rother said (Hartford Courant, 11/7).
Bills for Providers, HMOs?
Republican lawmakers also hope to pass legislation to limit damage awards
in medical malpractice lawsuits (Rogers et al., Wall Street Journal,
11/7). The House in September passed a bill that would limit the amount
of noneconomic and punitive damages that juries could award in
malpractice lawsuits, but the Senate has not passed similar legislation
(Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, 9/27). "A Republican-controlled
Senate will be much more likely to deal with the issue," American
Hospital Association Executive Vice President Richard Pollack said
(Freudenheim, New York Times, 11/7).
In addition, Sen. Judd Gregg (R-N.H.), who will likely assume the chair
of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, plans to
make "business-friendly changes" to the Family and Medical Leave Act, a
1993 law that requires employers to provide employees with as many as 12
weeks of unpaid leave for serious illnesses or to care for a newborn or a
family member with an illness (Drea!
zen/Hitt, Wall Street Journal, 11/7).
Managed care organizations also hope that the GOP-controlled Congress
will pass legislation that mandates that states cannot require HMOs to
provide certain services, such as podiatry and acupuncture. The New York
Times reports that HMOs can "stop worrying" about patients' rights
legislation that would allow members to file lawsuits to resolve disputes
(Freudenheim, New York Times, 11/7). Several health insurance analysts
predicted that the patients' rights "bill is dead" next year (Hartford
Courant, 11/7). Hospitals and other providers hope that Republican
lawmakers will pass a Medicare provider "giveback" bill with reductions
in reimbursements scheduled to take effect on Jan. 1 (Freudenheim, New
York Times, 11/7). In addition, health insurers, such as the Blue Cross
Blue Shield Association, hope that GOP lawmakers next year will consider
tax credits to help low-income employees and small businesses purchase
health insurance (Hartford Courant, 11/7).
Roadblocks to Reform
However, the "narrow margins" of GOP control in the Senate -- 51
Republicans, 47 Democrats, one Independent and one still undecided seat
-- may limit the ability of Republicans to move their health care
legislation through Congress (Rogers et al., Wall Street Journal, 11/7).
For example, Norman Ornstein, an analyst at the American Enterprise
Institute, said that a Republican-sponsored Medicare prescription drug
benefit bill "will not be a slam dunk" in the Senate next year (Hartford
Courant, 11/7). Senate Republicans will have to address the concerns of
centrist senators to reach a compromise on the legislation, the New York
Times reports (Clymer, New York Times, 11/7).
In addition, increased federal budget deficits also may impact the "quest
to put a Republican stamp on health care," the Journal reports. The
government ended fiscal year 2002 with a $159 billion deficit, and the
Congressional Budget Office estimates a $145 billion deficit for fiscal
year 2003 -- which co!
uld prevent the passage of a prescription drug benefit (Rogers et al.,
Wall Street Journal, 11/7). Increased federal budget deficits also may
prevent passage next year of legislation to help the uninsured (Hartford
Courant, 11/7).
Lame-Duck Session
Meanwhile, President Bush hopes that Republican lawmakers will address a
large part of his agenda, which includes a number of health care
proposals, in a lame-duck session scheduled to begin on Nov. 12, the
Washington Times reports (Sammon, Washington Times, 11/7). Republicans
may assume control of the Senate in the lame-duck session based on
whether Sen. Dean Barkley (I-Minn.) -- whom Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura
(I) appointed to fill the Senate seat left vacant last month by the death
of Sen. Paul Wellstone (D-Minn.) -- caucuses with Republicans and whether
former Rep. Jim Talent (R-Mo.) -- who defeated incumbent Sen. Jean
Carnahan (D-Mo.) in a special election and will take office after the
election results are certified -- is "seated quickly" (Mitchell, New York
Times, 11/7). Bush has asked Republican lawmakers to address patients'
rights legislation, a ban on human cloning, an increase in funds for
community health centers and other proposals (Washington Times, 11/7).
Republican lawmakers also hope to address a Medicare prescription drug
benefit and a ban on "partial-birth" abortion (Mitchell, New York Times,
11/7). In addition, they have said that they plan to address a Medicare
provider "giveback" bill (Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, 11/1).
However, Lott said that he hopes to conclude the lame-duck session in a
few days and delay most major legislation until next year (Mitchell, New
York Times, 11/7).
Multimedia
A roundup of multimedia coverage regarding the election's impact on the
congressional agenda appears below:CNN's "Crossfire" featured Rep. Harold
Ford (D-Tenn.), who addressed the election's potential impact on Medicaid
and Medicare for underserved rural and urban areas (Begula et al.,
"Crossfire," CNN, 11/6). A transcript of the show is available online.
NPR's "All Things Considered" featured Alan Greenblatt of Governing
Magazine (Jaffe, "All Things Considered," NPR, 11/6). The full segment
is available in RealPlayer online. NPR's "Talk of the Nation" featured
Rep. Tom Reynolds (R-N.Y.), who said, "And as we now look at a Senate
that has a Republican majority, my hope is that we will be able to get an
agenda in the Senate that will be able to take up these measures ... like
prescription drugs ... and begin to move these important pieces of
legislation through the Senate, get them compromised between the House
and Senate and send to the president," (Neary, "Talk of the N!
ation," NPR, 11/6). The full segment is available in RealPlayer online.
PBS' "NewsHour with Jim Lehrer" featured Ornstein who said, "There's a
major health agenda that we have out there. Remember that almost every
Republican running for election pledged to do a prescription drug
benefit; they want to do a very different one than the Democrats, but now
they can put their item -- one that doesn't use Medicare for the
prescription drug benefit but private insurers on the agenda, and we're
going to have to deal with Medicaid, as well as perhaps insurance for
everybody who doesn't have it" (Ifill, "NewsHour with Jim Lehrer," PBS,
11/6). A transcript of the "Election '02: Impact" segment is available
online. In addition, the segment is available in RealPlayer online.
---------------------------
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