Donald Berwick was appointed by President Obama to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid services (CMS) Wednesday while Congress is in recess. Berwick’s recess appointment means that politicians have been deprived of an possibility to weigh in again on the health care reform bill that passed earlier this year. The administration explains the recess appointment of Berwick helps move heath care reform along without Republican obstruction. Republicans say it’s a devious try to obscure Berwick’s record. Berwick, a professor at Harvard Medical School is being vilified by Republicans even though he has the support of the entire health care industry behind him.
Medicare overhaul lead by Donald Berwick
Donald Berwick’s recess appointment happened because the White House said the new health care reform law calls for huge changes in Medicare and Medicaid, which insure nearly one-third of all Americans. Dan Pfeiffer, who’s the White House communications director, told the New York Times that the president decided to act because “many Republicans in Congress have made it clear in recent weeks that they were going to stall the nomination as long as they could, solely to score political points.”
Bush appointees back up Berwick
Donald Berwick was nominated in April to lead the CMS. Since October 2006, the agency didn’t have a permanent administrator. The Washington Post said Berwick is the perfect choice to oversee a Medicare/Medicaid budget of $800 billion — about one-third of all health-care spending. He is recognized as one of the nation’s top experts on improving health care quality while also saving some cash. Two CMS administrators which were appointed by George W. Bush back the nomination, as well as the American Hospital Association, the AARP, the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare and a long list of local medical groups.
Immediately bypassed is the republican obstruction
Despite his credentials, Republicans are preparing use Donald Berwick’s nomination to whip up partisan furor over “Obamacare.” It was reported by the Associated Press that Republicans, who use “rationing” as a code word to discredit health care reform, have seized on comments like one Berwick made to an interviewer last year: “The decision is not whether or not we will ration care, the decision is whether we will ration with our eyes open. And right now, we are doing it blindly.” Berwick also drew Republican ire for praising Britain’s National Health Service.
Idea to ration health care revisited
The Post reports that contain Pat Roberts of Kansas are trying to twist these statements. ”Dr. Berwick is the perfect nominee for a president whose aim has always been to save money by rationing health care,” Mr. Roberts stated on the Senate floor last month. The Associated Press article explained when it comes to the rationing issue; Republicans argue that Berwick would deny needed care based upon on cost. Supporters argue rationing already is done by insurance companies, and Berwick wants transparency and accountability in medical decisions.
More data about this topic at these websites:
New York Times
thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/07/06/obama-bypassing-congress-on-medicare-job/
Washington Post
washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/06/28/AR2010062804675.html
Associated Press
hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_OBAMA_HEALTH_CARE_APPOINTMENT?SITE=WNYC&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT
