Welcome to The Morning CheckUp, ThinkProgress Health’s 7:00 AM round-up of the latest in health policy and politics. Here is what we’re reading, what are you?
Alabama governor to sign 20-week abortion ban: Gov. Robert Bentley will sign a bill restricting abortions beginning on the first day of the 20th week of pregnancy. The measure makes no exceptions for cases of rape and incest and would make it a felony to perform an abortion after 20 weeks unless the woman is at risk of death or serious physical harm as a result of the pregnancy. [Channel 6 News]
Governors pressure Obama on Medicaid: If Obama allows states to tighten eligibility requirements, “it would outrage many of his core supporters while undermining the central goal of his signature health-care law: expanding health insurance coverage. But if the president turns his back on governors struggling to gain control of their finances by trimming their most costly program, he risks intense criticism just as his administration is locked in a battle with Republicans over the nation’s soaring debt.” [Washington Post]
Republicans are against menu labeling: “While this provision was designed to spare small business restaurant operators from the substantial costs associated with redesigning their menu boards, franchise owners will continue to face a significant economic burden by the proposed regulations,” they say. [The Hill]
CBO scores SGR fix: MedPAC’s proposed “Medicare physician payment reform recommendation would cost $273.7 billion over a decade.” [Inside Health Policy]
Health costs are up in Massachusetts: Private payer health spending in Massachusetts outpaced national health care spending and spending by Medicare and MassHealth. [Incidental Economist]
Managed care has higher administrative costs: “Medicaid managed-care plans owned by publicly traded insurers have higher administrative costs than similar plans owned by providers,” according to a Commonwealth Report. [Modern Health]
Cutting MRI costs: “Even before its official release, a new proposal to curb the overuse of costly MRIs and other advanced imaging in Medicare is sparking a furor among physician and patient groups.” “Imaging is one of the fastest-growing Medicare costs, rising from $6.5 billion to $11.7 billion between 2000 and 2009, according to federal figure.” [Kaiser Health News]
Restrictive Arizona abortion law back in court: A three-judge panel of the Arizona Court of Appeals heard arguments Tuesday about whether to overturn a lower-court ruling halting key parts of a 2009 abortion law from going into effect. [Arizona Republic]
Previous in TP Health
By clicking and submitting a comment I acknowledge the ThinkProgress Privacy Policy and agree to the ThinkProgress Terms of Use. I understand that my comments are also being governed by Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, or Hotmail’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policies as applicable, which can be found here.