John Goodman’s Commentaries

How many people are harmed by preventable medical errors? That number is in hot dispute. About 25 years ago the Institute of Medicine estimated that 98,000 people died unnecessarily in hospitals.

Given the increasing polarization of American politics, readers may be pleasantly surprised to learn there are some public policy alternatives where the left and right seem to agree.

Obamacare cannot continue as it is currently structured.

The planned exodus of Aetna from 11 of 15 states follows on the heels of retreat announcements by United Healthcare and Humana.

The idea of a government run health insurance plan, competing with private insurers, has reentered the public discourse.

A massive experiment in California is proving embarrassing to the health policy community. It’s showing that one of the most common and doggedly held beliefs of the experts is completely wrong.

Here is something that may surprise you. Did you know that in the 6 ½ years since the passage of Obamacare, Republicans have not held a single hearing on the problems the law has created for ordinary people. No hearing in the House of Representatives.

After six years of living with Obamacare, Republicans have finally produced an alternative. Other GOP proposals in recent years have been narrowly focused on the 20 million or so people who have been insured by Obamacare.

For well over a decade, House Speaker Paul Ryan has been a steadfast supporter of replacing current tax and spending subsidies for health care and health insurance with a universal tax credit. Readers may be surprised to learn that within the health policy community this idea is not regarded as right wing.

Are Democrats smarter than Republicans? When it comes to health care they might be.