Category Archives: Health care

The latest issue of TIME magazine recaps the decisions states are making about whether to accept the Medicaid expansion linked to the 2010 federal health care reform law. Since the Supreme Court ruled that states could opt out of the Affordable Care Act’s expansion of Medicaid, a public insurance program for the poor, governors andContinue Reading

While full implementation of Obamacare relies largely on states, the federal health law’s ultimate goal of achieving universal health coverage at an affordable price depends on young, healthy individuals to sign up for coverage. Because health insurance plans are forced to include more benefits and services, premiums inevitably rise.  To help offset the higher costContinue Reading

Barry Smith reports for Carolina Journal Online that the N.C. Senate’s tax reform plan has cleared the first of two required votes. Katherine Restrepo’s Daily Journal offers an interesting comparison between Medicaid programs in North Carolina ans Oregon.

Since Medicaid is now “talk of the town,” especially in the midst of the Senate and House budget negotiations, let’s discuss one of the beloved claims Medicaid expansion proponents make: “If our state doesn’t accept the federal money, then that money is going to go to another state that opted for expansion.” This is notContinue Reading

The latest edition of National Review features Ramesh Ponnuru‘s observations about the political implications of ObamaCare’s implementation. Ponnuru is warning conservatives and Republicans not to sit back and expect the law’s failings to lead to electoral advantages. He points to the need for a viable alternative. While that theme is interesting, what’s most worth quotingContinue Reading

New Common Core public education standards are raising red flags for parents and education reformers. During the next edition of Carolina Journal Radio, Terry Stoops discusses problems associated with new North Carolina English tests based on the Common Core. Stoops also discusses community college remediation efforts, while John Locke Foundation research colleague Katherine Restrepo outlinesContinue Reading

…that Medicaid is a broken system.  Taxpayer dollars wastefully fund this entitlement program that is already way too big.  If you look at the analysis behind Oregon’s landmark health study that was conducted in 2008, there are significant comparisons between North Carolina Medicaid and Oregon’s Medicaid program that indicate a need for reform. 1.  HighContinue Reading

Young adults have provided some of President Obama’s staunchest support — despite the accumulation of bad economic news for young people documented by groups like Generation Opportunity. Now Megan McArdle ponders in a Daily Beast article how “rate shock” associated with ObamaCare will impact those young adults. The most basic reason that rate shock mattersContinue Reading