Even as House Republicans press to repeal the health care law, government advisers this week are preparing to wade into one of the most contentious questions raised by the legislation: What benefits must insurers cover? The answer will affect tens of millions of Americans beginning in 2014: those who buy their own insurance and those who get coverage through small employers. (KAISER HEALTH NEWS, 1/11)
Read MoreNursing homes are shutting down across the country – but not in a uniform pattern that spreads the burden evenly across all sectors of society, according to a new report. (LA TIMES, 1/11)
Read MoreOhio is joining a multistate lawsuit over the federal healthcare reform plan passed less than a year ago because the law “tramples on the rights of Ohio’s citizens,” the state’s new attorney general said on Monday. (REUTERS, 1/11)
Read MoreA Madison drug developer will announce Tuesday it has secured $1.25 million of funding that it will use to explore additional uses for its lead drug candidate, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports. Venture Investors and the State of Wisconsin Investment Board, both in Madison, along with Rocket Venture Fund of Toledo, Ohio, participated in the funding. (JOURNAL SENTINEL, 1/11)
The Cleveland Clinic, one of the country’s most prominent medical research centers, and MedStar Health, the largest health-care provider in Maryland and the Washington region, will collaborate to bring medical inventions to market, according to a plan to be announced Tuesday. (WASHINGTON POST, 1/11)
Read MoreThe Supreme Court may not be so anxious to rein in Congress’ broad power to pass regulatory laws under the Constitution’s commerce clause, the key point of dispute in the pending court battles over President Obama’s health insurance law. By a 7-2 vote, the justices turned down a constitutional challenge to a 2002 law that makes it a federal crime for a felon to have body armor or a bulletproof vest. (LA TIMES, 1/11)
Read MoreWood County health officials are dropping nursing services for some local school districts, which now must explore new options for next year. The county Health Department provides a limited amount of nursing services to the Pittsville and Nekoosa public school districts, Assumption Catholic Schools and several Lutheran schools, but that will change because of county liability concerns. (WISCONSIN RAPIDS TRIBUNE 1/11)
Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen, a Republican, said Monday that Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi will request this week that Wisconsin and at least three other states be allowed to join the federal case, joining 20 more states that are already a part of it. U.S. District Judge Roger Vinson in Pensacola, Fla., would then have to decide whether to grant the request. (JOURNAL SENTINEL, 1/11)
While one interim health committee delays its work, another is generating more for itself. The Special Committee on Health Care Reform Implementation canceled today’s meeting and has not yet scheduled a new date. The Special Committee on Health Care Access, meanwhile, approved recommendations on two issues at its January 7 meeting and called another meeting for February 14 to potentially take up several new proposals. (WHN, 1/10)
A report released today by the liberal advocacy group WISPIRG concludes repealing the health reform law would lead to more health costs for Wisconsin families and small businesses and less coverage. (CAPITAL TIMES, 1/10)
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