So out of one side of their mouths, healthcare “reform” advocates bemoan the fact that health care is a limited resource. They cry because everybody can’t get all the health care they need, whenever they want it, regardless of whether or not they can pay for it.

But then White House spokesman Robert Gibbs came out with this gem, calling some insurance plans “far too generous”:
“The best way to bend that cost curve is to go after and Read more

Food Rules author Michael Pollan appeared on the Daily Show last night to plug his book — and to comment on how healthcare “reform” could impact America’s diet.

In the linked clip, Pollan correctly states that once insurance companies are forced to cover everyone, regardless of preexisting conditions, it’s going to be in their interest to prod you toward a healthier lifestyle so they have fewer payouts to make. This could lead to insurers Read more

I can’t think of any frustration to express with the Senate’s “reform” vote that I haven’t expressed already, so instead I’m going to go in a more positive direction: my health- and fitness-related goals for 2010.

First, I want to brag that I was very successful in 2009. Thanks to my favorite iPhone app, Lose It!, I went beyond my original goal of losing 15 pounds. I went from 157 pounds to 135, the same as I weighed as a senior in high Read more

This is the first in what I hope will be a series of posts on how a free market might solve many of the problems we have with health care in America. I say “might,” because I am not actually a healthcare professional; I’m sure that, free from the constraints of government interference, hospital administrators, doctors, insurers, and anyone else involved in the delivery of care would come up with solutions beyond what I can dream of. Though I do not Read more

The Senate continues to look for creative ways to rob the American people in order to finance healthcare “reform.” Many big targets for taxes, like so-called “Cadillac insurance plans” (ie, plans with comprehensive coverage that cost a lot of money), have turned out to be politically contentious — unions, whom the Democrats love, don’t want the high-value plans taxed because that would affect many of their membership, for example.

So, Read more

Of an amendment to the House healthcare “reform” bill that would bar any insurance plan paid for with federal subsidies from covering abortion (a similar amendment is being considered by the Senate),

Representative Jan Schakowsky, Democrat of Illinois, said the restrictions were “the most crushing blow we have seen to reproductive rights since Roe v. Wade,” the 1973 Supreme Court decision that established a constitutional right Read more

A news release issued by the FDA on Tuesday said:

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is seeking a permanent injunction against Sharkco Seafood International Inc., located in Venice, La. The injunction is intended to stop the seafood processing company from distributing scombrotoxin-forming fish in interstate commerce. Consumption of scombrotoxin-forming fish that are not properly preserved or refrigeratedcan result in scombroid Read more

One of the Senate’s creative ways to steal money to pay for healthcare “reform”: A tax on plastic surgery not considered necessary to correct congenital defects, the results of an injury, or the aftermath of a disfiguring disease.

Plastic surgeons are protesting the tax, but they’re going about it the wrong way. They argue that the tax is being proposed because plastic surgery patients are seen as wealthy housewives who can afford to pay Read more

I’ve been working a lot lately. A LOT. Much of this work is (no) thanks to the FDA; I can’t go into details, but not only has it been long hours, but I may also have to work this weekend. For the girl who deeply enjoys preparing the Thanksgiving meal for her family, this is a severe annoyance.

Here’s the thing, though…this is just one year of annoyance for me. For doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals, it may be EVERY year Read more

Very quick commentary, since I don’t have time to write much about this:

House Democrats are accusing the pharmaceutical industry of increasing prices in anticipation of cost cuts from whatever healthcare “reform” bill passes. They haven’t said what they’ll do if an investigation says that the pharma companies are “price-gouging,” but I wouldn’t be at all shocked if antitrust proceedings and massive fines ensued.

Now, if the Read more