Forum Posts by
Michael K. Gusmano
- Health Reform and Competing Visions of Justice
Posted on May 7, 2017
On May 4, 2017, just over one month after abandoning a previous version of the bill, the U.S. House of Representatives voted by a 217-213 margin (with one abstention) to adopt the American Health Care Act (AHCA). During the coming weeks and months, most of the political commentary will focus on the strategies that were… Read more
- New Homeland Security Rules and Health Care Access for Undocumented Immigrants
Posted on February 27, 2017
On February 21, the Department of Homeland Security released new policies prioritizing deportation of undocumented immigrants. Will this policy shift affect health care access for this population of 11 million? Two public health studies from Arizona suggest that immigration crackdowns change health-seeking behavior. During and following the 2010 enactment of Arizona SB 1070, a highly controversial… Read more
- Health Care Access for Undocumented Immigrants under the Trump Administration
Posted on December 19, 2016
Health care access is local; creating, financing, expanding, or restricting health care access for a low-income population involves local, state, and federal policies. During the Obama administration, health insurance for the estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants in the United States remained severely restricted by this population’s broad exclusion from federally financed public benefits such as Medicare,… Read more
- The Challenge of High Drug Prices in the U.S.
Posted on October 5, 2016
Drug spending in the United States increased more than 12 percent in 2014 and is projected to rise faster than overall health care spending over the next 10 years. Between 2007 and 2016, the price of a pair of epinephrine autoinjector EpiPens, used to counter life-threatening allergic reactions, rose from $100 to $600. This price… Read more
- Singapore Case Notes: Reframing “Family” Caregiving in the World’s Fastest Aging Society
Posted on October 23, 2015
A previous post described the Singapore Casebook project, a collaboration among the Centre for Biomedical Ethics at the National University of Singapore, The Hastings Center, and the Ethox Centre at the University of Oxford. The first edition of this online casebook, Making Difficult Decisions with Patients and Families, is widely used in undergraduate and professional health… Read more
- Supreme Court Decision in King v Burwell: Backstory and Next Steps
Posted on June 26, 2015
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) relies on three primary strategies for expanding health insurance coverage. First, it regulates the insurance market to prevent practices that made it difficult or impossible for sick people to purchase insurance. Second, it expands Medicaid dramatically, particularly for childless adults. Third, it establishes in an individual “mandate,” which requires… Read more
- Why Health Plan Cancellations Do Not Mean Failure for ACA
Posted on November 19, 2013
On November 14, President Obama announced that he would delay by one year the implementation of requirements imposed by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act(ACA) that would have led to the cancellation of some low cost health insurance plans. The president felt compelled to do this because he had repeatedly stated, “If you like… Read more
- “Undocumented Doctors” and the Health of the Dreamers
Posted on July 2, 2013
Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine’s recent announcement that it would accept applications from Dreamers – young undocumented immigrants eligible for Deferred Action on Childhood Arrivals (DACA)status – is an innovative and welcome response to the promise implicit in DACA. The idea that young people who had been brought to the U.S. as children should be freed from… Read more
- Administration Reveals Lack of CLASS
Posted on November 15, 2011
The demise of the CLASS (Community Living Assistance Services and Support) Act is the calamitous result of ideological warfare and political cowardice. It would have provided a modest benefit – a basic guaranteed lifetime benefit of at least $50 a day in the event of illness or disability to be used for medical or related… Read more
- The 15 Percent: Misinformation about U.S. Poverty
Posted on October 28, 2011
In September, the Census Bureau reported that the poverty rate in the United States reached its highest level since 1993. More than 15 percent of Americans, or about 46.2 million people, are now living in poverty. While these figures are deeply troubling, they understate the problem because the federal poverty level does not adequately capture… Read more