John W Rodat

Wyckoff Heights, New York State, the PPACA, and the Supreme Court: What’s the Connection?

March 26, 2012 Economics

Yesterday in Once Again, Why Universal Coverge, I re-wrote what I written in 2005 and in other terms, even earlier: Because we take the half-step of expecting the healthcare system to provide care to all, but don’t go all the way, we have instead a hidden and half-baked system. The lack of universal coverage provides […]

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Today in the Supreme Court

March 26, 2012 Medicaid

From today’s Supreme Court deliberations on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), here’s a sampler of some news and analysis. Here’s Adam Liptak from the New York Times, Justices Hear Argument That Health Case is Premature. For a different perspective, read Henry J. Aaron, a distinguished healthcare economist from the Brookings Institution. Here […]

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Once Again, Why Universal Coverage?

March 26, 2012 Government

I wrote and posted the following on my first blog on February 2, 2005. At some point, I would expect that link to become inactive, so I’ve copied it here in its entirety. I might tinker with a couple of minor things, but for the moment, choose to leave it as originally written: Implicit in […]

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Universal Coverage, “Obamacare,” and the Supreme Court

March 25, 2012 Federal Government

Be careful what you wish for. Coming up this week will be extensive, multi-day arguments before the US Supreme Court on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), labeled derisively by the right as “Obamacare” and perhaps increasing embraced by the Left as “Obamacare.” As Vice President Biden said at the signing ceremony, “this […]

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Use the Damn Data Newt

March 25, 2012 Data

It might not seem so to some, but compared to how much I babble about politics at home and among friends, I’ve minimized political talk on this site. (That may change later in year.) But I couldn’t resist this piece, Newt Gingrich: Not Great With Numbers by Jesse Singal on Gingrich’s pursuit of the Republican […]

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An Old Quote Recalled

March 23, 2012 Politics

In today’s New York Times, we find State Senate Race Spotlights a Feeble Democratic Party by Michael Powell. Powell recalls Meade Esposito, former Chair of the Thomas Jefferson Democratic Club in Southern Brooklyn which, in its good times, gave us two recent NYS Assembly Speakers. Powell’s own words are pretty good when he describes Esposito […]

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Talk Radio Made Me Do It

March 22, 2012 Budget

Talk radio is certainly not my gig. But I was asked on to a local show, Al Roney on AM 1300, this afternoon and it really forced me to do something I don’t do often, or particularly well: really simplify. As in simplify a lot. So it was an interesting and personally challenging exercise. The […]

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We Have a New Candidate for Humpty Dumpty

March 21, 2012 Budget

We said here that it seemed that the leadership of the Albany County Legislature was trying to cover their tracks by confusing everyone. Are they succeeding? Here’s the latest story from the Times Union. We’ll get to the substance later, but at least the State Health Department isn’t buying what Shawn Morse is selling: What’s […]

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Significant Decline in Employment Based Health Benefits Resulted from the Great Recession

March 21, 2012 Economics

Employment based health benefits have been declining steadily, but significantly for a long time. But the recent “Great Recession” accelerated that decline much more than my pessimistic self anticipated. From the National Institute for Health Care Reform (a non-profit established by the International Union, UAW; Chrysler Group LLC; Ford Motor Company; and General Motors): Between […]

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New Health Plan Deliberately Excludes High Cost Hospitals & Other Providers

March 21, 2012 Economics

By Robert Weisman from the Boston Globe: Harvard Pilgrim Health Care is teaming up with more than 50 hospitals and 16,500 doctors across the state to offer Massachusetts employers and their workers a 10 percent savings on health insurance by forming what they call a “focused network’’ of medical care groups that excludes Partners HealthCare […]

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