How To

How to Follow the Health Care Debate

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By Marie Horrigan, eHow Contributing Writer

Article Rating: (3 Ratings)

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Everybody has an opinion on health care reform

With some 47 million people living without health insurance in the United States, few argue against the idea of affordable coverage for everyone. But after that there's little agreement.
Democrats and the Obama administration have staked their reputation on passing comprehensive health care reform before the end of the year, while Republicans are steadily fighting efforts they argue are too expensive and unwieldy.
It can be difficult to decipher the arguments of all interested parties and facets of the debate, but eHow has compiled a guide to following the health care debate as it wends its way through Congress.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Step 1

Keep track of President Obama's plan.

The White House has a Web site devoted to health care reform at www.healthreform.gov, where the Obama administration posts the latest news and policy positions.
Step 2

Find out what both political parties are saying.

Both Democrats and Republicans have sites devoted to their parties -- and key issues.

The Republican Party maintains a Web site with a section on health care reform (www.gop.gov/solutions/healthcare) while the GOP leader in the House, Rep. John Boehner of Ohio, has a special section of the minority leader's Web site dedicated to the health care debate (healthcare.gopleader.gov/).

The Democratic Party similarly has information dedicated to the debate. The party's site for the Senate (democrats.senate.gov/) posts videos and information on the ongoing debate while House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi of California has a special section of the House speaker Web site dedicated to health care (www.speaker.gov/issues?id=0004).
Step 3

Find out what key players are saying.

The Department of Health and Human Services, the main agency overseeing health issues for the U.S. government:
http://www.hhs.gov/

The Congressional Budget Office, a nonpartisan governmental body that researches budget issues and the likely impact of proposed legislation:
http://www.cbo.gov/publications/collections/health.cfm

America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), one of the major voices for the insurance industry:
http://www.ahip.org/

Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), which represents pharmaceutical research and biotech companies:
http://www.phrma.org/health_care_reform/

The AFL-CIO and SEIU, two of the top labor unions in the United States:
http://www.aflcio.org/issues/healthcare/
http://www.seiu.org/seiuhealthcare/index.php
Step 4

Follow the debate with information from major media outlets.

Time Magazine has a "cheat sheet" for key terms in the debate:
http://www.time.com/time/healthcaredebate

The New York Times has a topic page devoted to the debate:
http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/health/diseasesconditionsandhealthtopics/health_insurance_and_managed_care/health_care_reform/index.html?scp=1-spot&sq=health%20care%20reform&st=cse

The Wall Street Journal Health Blog:
http://blogs.wsj.com/health/

Tips & Warnings

Check the source for any information on the Internet. If you're reading something online, make sure you know who's paying for it -- is it one of the political parties, special interests, academics? That will make a difference in how you interpret it.

Comments

anointedtoday said

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on 06/02/2010 5*

anointedtoday said

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on 06/02/2010 Very good tips. Yes it is a great concern, because in some countries they automatically have health care for everyone and that is not a great concern like it is in usa.