From hearings, press conferences, and interviews in Washington, D.C.
Senators were in Washington over the weekend, sloughing away on health reform legislation. Democrats are hopeful that with slow, but steady progress they can get a final bill by Christmas.
In this week’s Policy & Practice Podcast, we take a look at one of the first amendments made to the health reform bill–a requirement for all health plans to cover preventive services for women. The amendment, sponsored by Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D.- Md.), was proposed in response to the recent political firestorm over mammogram recommendations from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. The controversial recommendations state that screening mammograms should not be routinely performed in women aged 40-49 years. Not surprisingly, those recommendations have become a political football in the larger health reform debate, with the GOP saying that health reform will be tantamount to rationing.
The latest installment of the podcast also looks at the cost of the Senate bill and its impact on premiums.
Take a listen and share your thoughts.
— Mary Ellen Schneider (on Twitter @MaryEllenNY)
