Month: November 2012

The state's largest anti-abortion group sees opportunities to place further regulations on abortion, including requiring women seeking the procedure to view an ultrasound of her fetus. Wisconsin Right to Life is also proposing banning abortions that would cause pain to the fetus, barring abortions that are sought based on the sex of the fetus and prohibiting the ability of state employees to use their state health care plans to access abortions. (JOURNAL SENTINEL, 11/26)

In the week after the Nov. 6 presidential election. Gov. Scott Walker was confronted by an issue that divided his biggest financial backers. A review of campaign finance data by Gannett Wisconsin Media indicates groups and individuals that support a state-run health care exchange spent millions helping Walker survive this year's recall election. (GANNETT, 11/26)

Papa John's CEO John Schnatter’s recent statement that the Affordable Care Act will force the pizza chain to raise prices came as good news to Nick Martin. Martin, a part owner of Ian’s Pizza, a pizza shop with four locations in Wisconsin, said his business has offered full heath care coverage to its 50 full-time employees for years, making it all the more difficult to compete with national chains like Papa John's that pay workers low wages without health benefits. "This may level the playing field for us,” Martin said of the Papa John's price hike. (HUFFINGTON POST, 11/21)

Thomas Lewandowski, a Wisconsin heart doctor, was faced with a dilemma after his Medicare payments were cut and his overhead costs soared: Fire half his staff to keep his practice open, or sell it to a local hospital. (BLOOMBERG, 11/20)

Governor Scott Walker's announcement Friday that he will defer to the federal government's insurance exchange drew mixed reviews from the state's health care stakeholders. (WHN, 11/19)

Health care in Wisconsin has a growing role in economic development that would only be enhanced by payment reform, according to local leaders in the field. "We think quality, high-value health care ... really should be a competitive advantage for Wisconsin," said Eric Borgerding, executive vice president of the Wisconsin Hospital Association. (LEADER-TELEGRAM, 11/19)

Some question whether the federal government can pull off the feat of setting up exchanges in more than 20 states, each with different health insurance markets, by the end of next year. Wisconsin has one of the most competitive insurance markets in the country, and Walker and officials in his administration have contended that the Affordable Care Act will limit consumer choice. (JOURNAL SENTINEL, 11/19)