11/09/2011
Questions about the Affordable Care Act's constitutionality took center stage again this week, as a fourth appeals court rendered its decision and the Supreme Court prepares to conference on whether to take the case. by Dan Diamond, California Healthline Contributing Editor
11/02/2011
New reports on health sector lobbying reveal that the industry continues to donate generously to President Obama and Democrats, despite public criticism of last year's health reform law. by Dan Diamond, California Healthline Contributing Editor
10/26/2011
After months of industry criticism, CMS' accountable care organizations are winning plaudits after the agency made the program less intimidating for participants. Some suggest that will make ACOs less effective tools of reform, too. by Dan Diamond, California Healthline Contributing Editor
10/19/2011
Health care is facing a different kind of jobs debate. The sector has added more than one million jobs since the Great Recession began, but analysts warn that the jobs growth masks major concerns about labor productivity. by Dan Diamond, California Healthline Contributing Editor
10/12/2011
Billy Beane's data-driven strategies made him the talk of baseball, the king of the current box office and a highly visible advocate for evidence-based medicine. But Beane's teams have faded since their "Moneyball" heyday -- and evidence-based medicine might not be the home run that some reformers hope it will be. by Dan Diamond, California Healthline Contributing Editor
10/05/2011
Medicare Part D is Exhibit A in how a health reform can evolve from partisan legislation to beloved protection. Aware of the drug benefit's popularity, but facing real fiscal concerns, lawmakers are broaching delicate changes to the program. by Dan Diamond, California Healthline Contributing Editor
09/28/2011
With a nod to David Brooks' annual awards in the New York Times, "Road to Reform" highlights our own Sidney Awards, named for Kaiser Permanente's co-founder. Here are six major health policy studies that changed the course of conversation this summer. by Dan Diamond, California Healthline Contributing Editor
09/21/2011
More cuts to Medicare are looming, just months after the Affordable Care Act sliced billions in program spending. Whether the new changes will be sweeping or merely substantive remains to be seen. by Dan Diamond, California Healthline Contributing Editor
09/14/2011
Texas' hands-off approach to its health care safety net can offer takeaways for California, either as a hard lesson for the cash-strapped Golden State -- or as an example of what not to do. by Dan Diamond, California Healthline Contributing Editor
09/07/2011
The Affordable Care Act pushes new efforts at health care provider integration, like accountable care organizations, that may lead to more market concentration. The Federal Trade Commission is stepping up efforts to stop provider consolidation. Which approach will win out? by Dan Diamond, California Healthline Contributing Editor
08/24/2011
Health care organizations are grappling with a new CMS plan to realign payment along episodes of care. California's experience with capitation and other payment models will give state providers a unique vantage point on the initiative. by Dan Diamond, California Healthline Contributing Editor
08/17/2011
The 11th Circuit Court's decision to strike down the Affordable Care Act's individual mandate raises questions for the law's future, but also its past. Could the White House have better constructed its sweeping health law to avoid constitutional challenges? by Dan Diamond, California Healthline Contributing Editor
08/10/2011
Health care remains the standout amid the nation's flagging jobs numbers. Do the sector's latest employment figures put to rest the "job-killing ObamaCare" argument once and for all? by Dan Diamond, California Healthline Contributing Editor
08/03/2011
Two years after lawmakers and activists battled over the fate of the public option, its erstwhile replacement -- a plan to create health cooperatives -- was finally unveiled last month. by Dan Diamond, California Healthline Contributing Editor
07/27/2011
As the nation's leaders lurch toward a deal to cut the deficit, lawmakers have floated a range of possible health care cuts. Here's a list of potential programs and reform initiatives that are most at risk in the current negotiations. by Dan Diamond, California Healthline Contributing Editor