Robert Laszewski

Mitt Romney has outlined his new health plan. He outlined five key steps in an op-ed in USAToday. It looks to me like his health care outline is more intended to make conservative Republicans happy then to really propose ways to reform America’s health care system.

Conservatives are in a full court press these days telling us the answer to America’s out-of-control health care costs—and our fiscal crisis—is to move Medicare, Medicaid, and the tax code subsidy for private insurance to a defined contribution system.

With Constitutional challenges to the individual mandate now threatening the very life of the new health care law, Republicans aren't the only ones that would like to see it jettisoned and replaced with something better.

Readers of this blog have often heard me say that a bipartisan agreement on a health care bill was possible in 2009--driven from the Senate Finance Committee. I have continually made the point that the two sides were much closer than is commonly believed--or partisans are willing to concede.

During the recent health care debate I heard many people on both sides of the debate worry out loud about passing a heath care bill that did not enjoy broad support. I guess this question is no longer a theoretical one.

This whole medical loss ratio (MLR) provision in the new health care law is a fool’s errand. When it comes to controlling health care costs it is about as productive as taking your shoes off at the airport is valuable at improving air travel security.

Away from Washington, people I talk to are just amazed at what the Democrats are in the process of doing on healthcare.

It is hard to see how the healthcare plan the President released on Monday changes anything.

Wellpoint is getting killed in the press over a “39%” rate increase for their individual health insurance block in California.

With word that the House is likely to take up the repeal of the health insurance industry anti-trust exemption it is now clear the Democratic leadership has begun Plan B.