Healthy San Francisco's Job-Killing Taxes to Live On

The U.S. Supreme Court has denied the Golden Gate Restaurant Association’s appeal of a 9th Circuit decision that permits San Francisco to levy a punitive tax on businesses to fund its public-health bureaucracy.

I’ve previously challenged research produced at UC Berkeley, which concluded that the ordinance did not cost jobs. Plus, I’ve noted the job-killing effects of the Healthy San Francisco program in a series of blog-entries (here, here, and here).

The GGRA had argued that the city ordinance violated ERISA, the federal law that regulates job-based benefits. But that is all water under the bridge. Kathleen Sebelius, U.S. Secretary of Health & Human Services has formed a (small and exclusive) mutual admiration society for government-run health care with Gavin Newsom, Mayor of San Francisco, so this decision will surely be welcomed by her and all ObamaCare-backers.

Does this judicial failure to overturn a mandate in San Francisco allow us to handicap the success of the lawsuits against ObamaCare’s national mandate? Unlikely: The San Francisco lawsuit relied on a federal law, ERISA, whereas the anti-ObamaCare lawsuits rely on the U.S. Constitution.

Plus, ERISA is not really a very effective law, as I’ve written about previously. Strategically, it’s a weak foundation to rely upon, for those who advocate individual choice in health care.

The Bipartisan Medicare "Doc Fix"

Is a short-term fudge that harms medicine and reveals Republicans' inability to take risks on health reform, as I write at John Goodman Health Blog.

How is the Senate's "Doc Fix" Paid For?

By hiking taxes and raiding hospitals, as I write at National Review Online. Hardly a good start for Republicans who want to repeal ObamaCare.

You'll Lose Your Insurance Broker, Too

Ok, everybody knows that they're likely to lose their health benefits, despite what the president has mistated again and again. But insurers are having to cut back commissions to brokers to comply with new ObamaCare regulations, as I discuss at StateHouseCall.

Single-Payer Fanaticism: Is Rwandan Health Care Better Than U.S.?

Yes, suggests the New York Times, in a remarkable article which I dissect at National Review Online.

Hope for Consumer-Driven Health Care? Venture Capitalists Think So

Two recent reports have made me question my pessimism about consumer-driven health care under ObamaCare. My take over at StateHouseCall.

Congress Can Never "Fix" The Medicare "Doc Fix"

And the American Medical Association's multi-million dollar advertising campaign won't change that: This month's Health Policy Prescription.

Orthopedic Surgeons Vs. Insurers in Idaho

The U.S. Department of Justice has settled antitrust allegations against a small group of orthopedic surgeons in Idaho. I suggest that the federal antitrust jurisdiction is inappropriate, at StateHouseCall.

The Crusade against the Happy Meal | The Daily Caller

My latest column, at The Daily Caller.

"Redeeming Health Reform" Video is Up

Americans for Free Choice in Medicine hosted a panel presentation at the National Press Club in Washington, DC on May 10. The great speakers included yours truly. Video is now available here.