Tuesday Tidbits

A day sort of off today, so a quick update on the news. And no, I am not going to say anything about Anthony Weiner other than that I'm not going to say anything about him:

Premiums are starting to come down, and we will see more of this due to health reform. This is due to the medical loss ratio rules that require insurers to spend 80 or 85% of premium dollars on health care, thereby limiting administrative expenses. But out of pocket costs continue to be a problem for cancer patients -- indeed, for anybody with a chronic illness.

Yet another poll shows Americans opposed to the GOP plan to gut Medicare. But conservatives are pushing the GOP to stand firm on the debt ceiling. And Dems are adamant that they won't accept cuts to Medicare. They want Medicare off the table in debt ceiling talks. There's even a new ad blasting the GOP for trying to dismantle Medicare. Talking about Anthony Weiner might be preferable to talking about this mess.

The GOP may push for a two-year budget so we don't have to go through this every year. Part of me thinks that would be great.

In anticipation of tomorrow's oral argument in the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals on the health reform law, over 150 state legislators have signed a letter supporting the individual mandate.

In a pathetic move, the Connecticut legislature gutted the premium rate review bill, allowing the Attorney General and Healthcare Advocate to call for "symposiums" on rate increases. But they also passed the Sustinet compromise bill, along with a bill to open the state employee plan to other pools of people -- municipal employees, nonprofits.

Doctors oppose a New York law that requires them to discuss end-of-life care with their patients. This is a little strange to me, unless it's just that they don't want to be told what to do since most of them probably do it anyway -- and the ones who don't probably should.

Hospitals are trying to address the problem of low staffing and bad care on nights and week-ends. They're also trying to reduce the rate of hospital re-admissions using a "virtual" nurse named Louise!

Learn the early warning signs of a migraine and you may be able to stop it before it starts.

And that's all I have -- except Anthony Weiner is an idiot. Unfortunately for me, he's an idiot I really admired. Ugh. Well, have a great day! Jennifer