Hospitals that participated in the incentive program known as pay for performance showed significant improvement compared to non-participating hospitals, improving quality of care by 11.8 percent on average, according to research conducted by Premier Inc., a hospital consortium. Read more »
House and Senate negotiators finally came together on an agreement blending provisions passed by their respective chambers to reauthorize the State Children's Health Insurance Program. Even if the bill is vetoed, the provisions of the agreement could be the starting point for new efforts to expand the program after President Bush leaves office. Read more »
Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton unveiled a sweeping universal health care plan that includes an individual mandate requiring each American to have health insurance. Individuals could keep their current coverage or pick from the same menu of private coverage options available to members of Congress, and the plan would provide refundable tax credits to help individuals pay their premiums. Read more »
A government report found that an individual's income, the number of people in the area who are uninsured, and the concentration of physicians within that area significantly influence regional health care costs. Read more »
Critics of children's health insurance bills passed by the House and Senate (HR 3162, HR 976) say the proposals direct too much federal money toward funding coverage of middle-class children, but in fact most kids covered by the proposals would come from low-income households, according to a new analysis by the Urban Institute. Read more »
A Families USA analysis of Census Bureau data finds that more than one out of three people under age 65--approximately 89.6 million Americans--were uninsured at some point during 2006-2007. Read more »