The Massachusetts Public Health Council has delayed a vote until January 2008 on whether to allow medical clinics to operate inside retail stores in the state. CVS Corp. had asked for waivers from existing regulations so the chain could open 20 to 30 MinuteClinics in Boston-area stores in the to treat minor illnesses. Instead, state health officials decided to develop new regulations to address the concept of retail clinics.
High-cost and high-volume conditions helped drive the national hospital bill up 7 percent in 2005, to $873 billion. The record high nearly doubled 1997 spending when adjusted for inflation, according to a report from the federal Agency for Health Care Research and Quality.
The National Federation of Independent Business has warned politicians and policy makers not to impose new health-benefit obligations on small employers. In a statement, the group said that "a healthcare system built on employer mandates or on play-or-pay taxes is unacceptable." The group also called for universal healthcare, with a government safety net to help the neediest obtain coverage.
Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine proposed an expansion Wednesday of the state's effort to subsidize healthcare for the uninsured, but a tight budget forecast kept the governor from expanding the proposal to hundreds of thousands of residents who lack coverage.
For the second time, President Bush has vetoed a bipartisan effort in Congress to expand government-provided health insurance for children. Bush said the bill was unacceptable because it allows adults into the program, would cover people in families with incomes above the U.S. median and raises taxes.
Beginning in 2008, Maryland will become the first state to give consumers independent evaluations of Preferred Provider Organization health plans offered by four of the state's largest healthcare providers. The report card will help consumers make informed decisions, say representatives from the Maryland Center for Health Care Financing and Policy.