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"Constitutional Thunderdome": Day Two of Obamacare Oral Arguments

Tue, 27 Mar 2012 16:50:00 EDT

Reason's Damon Root attended the pivotal second day of oral arguments before the Supreme Court on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA), which he described as a "Constitutional Thunderdome." The debate over the legality of the mandate to purchase insurance at the heart of ACA was, says Root, a rough-and-tumble colloquy about the "the role of government in our lives" and "what sort of limits the Constitution places on the federal government."

"I'm more confident after today's arguments than I was going in that the individual mandate is in trouble," says Root. Oral arguments end tomorrow and the Supreme Court's decision is expected in early June.

Runs about 3 minutes.

Produced by Anthony L. Fisher, shot by Josh Swain and Fisher.

To read Root's dispatch from Day One of the proceedings, click here.

For more of Reason.tv's coverage of Health Care debate, click here.

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Want to Live Forever? Sonia Arrison Explains How In Her New Book

Wed, 19 Oct 2011 00:00:00 EDT

"Everyone has an interest in this," explains Sonia Arrison author of a new book 100 Plus: How the Coming Age of Longevity Will Change Everything, From Careers and Relationships to Family and Faith, "because everyone has an interest in living healthier, longer."

Arrison sat down with Reason.tv to talk about the technological innovations and regenerative medicine that will fuel the the next "longevity revolution." She explains what people need to expect and how regulatory reforms are needed to speed the innovations up so that "we will be able to repair ourselves."

Interview by Reason's Paul Feine. Shot by Alex Manning and edited by Sharif Matar.

About 9.30 minutes long.

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Matt Welch Talks Obamacare Switch to Electronic Medical Records

Fri, 06 May 2011 03:00:00 EDT

Reason Magazine Editor in Chief, Matt Welch appeared on Varney & Co. to discuss a mandate in President Obama's healthcare bill that would force doctors to switch to electronic medical records. Air date: May 5, 2011.

Approximately 5:30 minutes.

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No Accepted Medical Use? Three Perspectives on Medical Cannabis

Wed, 15 Sep 2010 00:00:00 EDT

The U.S. government classifies marijuana—along with heroin and LSD—as a Schedule I drug, the most tightly restricted category of drugs in the United States. According to the federal government, Schedule I drugs are unsafe and have "no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States."

Really?

As medical marijuana proponents have pointed out since the Controlled Substances Act was passed by Congress in 1970, cannabis has been used medicinally for thousands of years, and there has never been a reported case of a marijuana overdose. Moreover, in recent years clinical researchers around the world have demonstrated the medicinal value of cannabis.

We talked to a doctor, a pharmacist, and a patient to get three firsthand perspectives on medical cannabis. Special thanks to Dr. Donald Abrams, JoAnna LaForce and Don Grubbs.

Approximately 10 minutes. Produced by Paul Feine and Alex Manning.

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Do Vaccines Cause Autism?

Thu, 06 May 2010 06:30:00 EDT

It's not surprising that so many parents are so worried about autism. After all, the disorder strikes about one out of every 115 kids, its prevalence seems to be growing, and its cause or causes remain mysterious.

A 1998 article published in the British medical journal The Lancet generated enormous impact by proposing a link between autism and childhood vaccines. Since then, celebrity activists like Jenny McCarthy have argued that common shots like the measles, mumps, and rubellla vaccine (MMR) trigger autism. Countless media stories have covered the alleged link.

Some parents take to the streets to protest the federal government's vaccine policy and thousands more take the issue to court. Many others, like Kelly Green, who runs AutismHwy and is the mother of an autistic child, feel overwhelmed by the information flooding in from both sides of the debate. Jim Moody, of the think tank Safe Minds, blames the federal government for not being honest about the threat and failing to provide reliable information on the matter. But researchers like UC Santa Barbara's Lynn Koegel say the evidence is overwhelming that vaccines do not cause autism.

Recently, the debate took another turn when The Lancet retracted the 1998 article that did so much to spark the controversy. Will the retraction finally allay parents' worries or will some continue to resist vaccinations?

"Do Vaccines Cause Autism?" is written and produced by Ted Balaker, who also hosts. Producer: Hawk Jensen; Associate Producer: Paul Detrick; Camera: Dan Hayes, Hawk Jensen, and Alex Manning. Approximately 5.50 minutes.

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3 Reasons Healthcare Legislation Won't Reduce the Deficit

Wed, 24 Mar 2010 08:30:00 EDT

One of the main selling points of health care reform was that it would cut the federal deficit by a supposed $143 billion over the next decade and a trillion-plus dollars in the one after that.

But not only will the legislation not cut one thin dime from the deficit, it will also certainly cost far more than the $940 billion in new spending already on the table for at least three reasons.

These include:

1. Legislative Trickery. Congressional Democrats have pledged support for "the doc fix," a permanent upward adjustment to the rates at which Medicare providers are reimbursed. As Speaker Nancy Pelosi has said, "We have made a commitment to do this. This is very important." The cost of the "doc fix"? Some $247 billion over the next 10 years, wiping out any deficit reduction from health care reform.

2. Higher Premiums. In 2006, Massachusetts passed health care reform very similar to what President Obama just signed. The result? The Bay State now has the highest premiums in the country and cost about 33 percent more than expected.

3. Bad Accounting. The government is terrible at predicting how much programs will cost, especially when it comes to medical care. Initial 1960s' projections of Medicare's costs in 1990 had the program costing about $12 billion; the actual result was almost 10 times that amount. As a Joint Economic Committee report notes, "Major health care proposals have almost always cost more...than the highest cost estimates published while the legislation was pending."

Approximately 2.19 minutes. Written and produced by Meredith Bragg, Dan Hayes, and Nick Gillespie, who also hosts.

Read more about health care reform and its costs here.

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Matt Welch on C-SPAN's Washington Journal, December 12, 2009

Thu, 17 Dec 2009 12:00:00 EST

On Saturday, December 12, 2009, Reason magazine Editor in Chief Matt Welch appeared on C-SPAN's Washington Journal to discuss his controversial article, "Why I Prefer French Health Care," from the January 2009 issue.

Approximately 30 minutes. Scroll down for embed code and downloadable versions.

A True Tale of Canadian Health Care

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 05:00:00 EST

Many advocates of health-care reform are admirers of Canada's state-run, no-opt-out, single-payer system. Indeed, in 2003, President Barack Obama voiced enthusiasm for such a health-care program.

Proponents of Canadian-style health care should meet Cheryl Baxter, a Canadian citizen who waited years for hip-replacement surgery, only to be told that her operation would not happen any time soon. Instead of waiting, Baxter did what an increasing number of Canadians are doing: She flew to a clinic in the United States, paid out of pocket, and had a life-altering surgery in a matter of weeks rather than years.

Baxter's experience doesn't just throw damning light on Canadian health care. The sort of clinic she went to in Oklahoma suggests a different way of delivering health care in the United States, too: A simple fee-for-service model in which providers openly advertise their prices, service, and reputation. Rather than a frustrating, complicated mess of intermediaries such as employers and insurance companies, U.S. health-care reformers should think about bringing medicine into line with the same dynamics that help deliver great service at great prices throughout most other parts of the economy.

While Canadian health care is certainly cheaper than its U.S. counterpart (health care spending in Canada is about 10 percent of GDP versus 16 percent in the United States), it is not necessarily better or more equitable. As a recent National Bureau of Economic Research comparison concluded, "Americans are more likely to report that they are fully satisfied with the health services they have received and to rank the quality of care as excellent." Not only do Americans have far greater access to basic diagnostic tools ranging from mammograms to CT scans, the researchers found "the health-income gradient is actually more prominent in Canada than in the U.S." That is, wealthy Canadians receive far better care compared to low-income Canadians than rich Americans versus poor Americans.

"A True Tale of Canadian Health Care" was produced by Dan Hayes and Peter Suderman. Interviews were filmed by Alex Manning and the segment is hosted and scripted by Nick Gillespie. Approximately 5.11 minutes.

Reason.tv would like to thank the Independence Institute for arranging and underwriting travel to Canada for Suderman and Manning.

For other Reason.tv videos on health care, go here.

Raiding California

Tue, 10 Jun 2008 18:00:00 EDT

UPDATE: On August 5, 2008 Charlie Lynch was found guilty on all five counts. Sentencing is scheduled for June 11, 2009.

For reason.tv's coverage of the trial (including an on-camera interview with the jury foreperson), go here, here, and here.

For more information, visit Friends of Charles C. Lynch.

For information on how to contact your elected officials, please go here or here.

______

June 10, 2008

Should medical marijuana be kept from minors at all costs? Why is it that pharmacists can dispense amphetamines without getting busted, but legal operators who dispense medical marijuana face prison time? Why do armed federal agents persist in raiding California?

With its sun, surf and small town atmosphere, California's San Luis Obispo County is a good place to grow up. Seventeen-year-old Owen Beck played football and soccer for a local high school, but one day his thoughts abruptly turned away from sports and school. Doctors told Owen he had bone cancer, and would have to begin chemotherapy right away.

The young athlete suffered another blow—doctors would have to amputate his leg to try to keep the cancer from spreading. Chemotherapy attacked Owen's cancer and his body, leaving him bald, gaunt, and vomiting the food he needed to recover. The amputation introduced Owen to a bizarre, new agony called phantom pain, and although doctors gave him powerful medication, nothing helped.

But might a new kind of pharmacy offer new hope? A medical marijuana dispensary had recently opened in the nearby city of Morro Bay. More than a decade earlier, California voters legalized medical marijuana and Morro Bay's mayor and Chamber of Commerce held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the dispensary, and its owner Charlie Lynch.

Owen's parents knew the idea of giving medical marijuana to a 17-year-old strikes many people as scandalous. Local Sheriff Pat Hedges even asserts that allowing medical marijuana is "not in the best interest of a community that prides itself on providing a healthy, family environment."

But the Becks weren't concerned about what other people thought; they were focused on helping their son. So with a written doctor recommendation in hand, they purchased medical marijuana for their teenage son. The new medication eased Owen's pain and nausea like nothing else had, and the Becks grew fond of Charlie Lynch, who would sometimes refuse payment because, says Steve Beck, "He was just a compassionate kind of a guy."

But one day, Owen's life took another abrupt turn. Federal agents and local sheriff deputies raided Charlie Lynch's dispensary, and seized nearly everything inside, including Owen's medicine. "He had a prescription from a doctor at Stanford, and they took his stuff!" says Debbie Beck. Federal agents cuffed Lynch, and put him behind bars. Even though state and local laws allow for it, medical marijuana is still illegal under federal law. And because he had clients like Owen who were under age 21, Charlie Lynch faces heightened penalties. In California the average first-degree murder serves 20 years behind bars; Charlie Lynch could face a sentence as long as 100 years in prison.

The trial of Charlie Lynch begins this July.

Organ Transplants

Tue, 18 Mar 2008 03:00:00 EDT

When we go to the doctor’s office for a checkup, most of us get annoyed if we have to thumb through old waiting-room magazines for a half-hour. Yet many people wait much longer for something much more important.

Sally Satel, a researcher at The American Enterprise Institute, waited for new life in the form of a kidney transplant, until an unexpected someone stepped forward. Since giving Sally her right kidney, Virginia Postrel, former editor of Reason, has thought a lot about how to increase the supply of kidneys for people like Christina Deleon. Like 75,000 other Americans, Christina has no living donor and has no choice but to endure dialysis and wait—she’s been on the list since 2003.

Postrel and UCLA’s Dr. Gabriel Danovitch take on some common misconceptions about kidney donation, but they disagree sharply on the most controversial proposal—paying people to donate kidneys.

Each year more than 3,000 Americans—a figure comparable to the death tolls from the 9/11 attacks—die waiting for kidneys. Is it time to legalize the sale of kidneys?

Drew Carey investigates what could be done to end the wait for people like Christina, and give them the freedom they deserve.

Bootleggers, Baptists, Body parts

ted.balaker@reason.tv (Ted Balaker) — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 10:07:00 EST

If you're not allowed to sell yourself, others just may steal you--or parts of you. It's another "Bootlegger and Baptist" tale. The Baptists are the medical ethicists and foundation leaders who oppose markets in body parts.

Kidney donor Virginia Postrel:

When the National Kidney Foundation heard about the [American Enterprise Institute conference on incentive-based organ transplant reforms], its chief executive, John Davis, complained to the institute's president, "We don't see how an AEI forum would contribute substantively to debate on this issue."
Davis' group adamantly opposes donor compensation, lobbying against even experimental programs and small tax credits. It's as though the National Parkinson Foundation opposed stem cell research, or thought researchers should work for free.

Meet some bootleggers:

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A nurse admitted Wednesday he cut body parts from 244 corpses and helped forge paperwork so the parts, some of them diseased, could be used in unsuspecting patients.
Authorities say nurse Lee Cruceta was the lead cutter in a group that trafficked in more than 1,000 stolen body parts for the lucrative transplant market.
...
His lawyer, Mario Gallucci, earlier told The Associated Press that [accused ringleader Michael] Mastromarino plans to tell prosecutors about the companies that bought the stolen specimens.
Mastromarino, a former oral surgeon, paid funeral directors $1,000 per corpse, then sold the parts to tissue banks, Sagel said. The body parts fetched up to $10,000 apiece, though the tissue banks resold them to hospitals for many times that amount, he said.
Prosecutors believe Mastromarino, employing several teams of cutters, took in $6 million to $12 million since 2001.

Some unsurprising black-market maneuvering:

A grand jury in Philadelphia found that the body-parts ring forged death certificates to hide diseases such as cancer and AIDS and lower the ages of the deceased to make the stolen specimens more desirable.

Medical Marijuana

Thu, 01 Nov 2007 00:00:00 EDT

“I think it’s clear by now that the federal government needs to reclassify marijuana. People who need it should be able to get it – safely and easily,” says The Price Is Right and Power of 10 host Drew Carey in a new Reason.tv video examining medical marijuana and the war on drugs.

One of the most outrageous consequences of the war on drugs is the federal crackdown on medical marijuana, which is used by patients to help treat the effects of cancer, glaucoma, HIV-AIDS, chronic pain and nausea, and other severe symptoms associated with serious illnesses. Medical marijuana prescribed by a physician is legal in 12 states, yet federal agents are raiding state-approved dispensaries and preventing patients from having safe access to this drug.

In Episode 2 of Reason.tv's Drew Carey Project, Drew takes a look at patients who need and use medical marijuana in California, and how the federal government is making their lives even worse.

Episode 1 of Reason.tv's Drew Carey Project, Gridlock, is here.