Holland & Hart Healthcare Law Blog

HEALTH CARE REFORM PART II: MAURAUDING SENIORS INVADE TOWN HALL.

Many of the seniors showing up at congressional town hall meetings on health care reform – at least those drawing the media’s attention seemed to be in serious need of adult supervision. The antics before the cameras seemed bent on disruption and venting of anger almost as much as the display of ignorance that seemed to pervade these events. Sure, the Seniors seemed to be angry at a lot of things in addition to health care.  They also seemed to be spurred on by irresponsible seniors-caring tactics by those commentators that have no ethical compunction against the intentional “misreading” of the text of the proposed house and inflammatory media ads by radical fringe groups 60plus.org.  to further political ends.

BOOK REVIEW – CRITICAL: WHAT WE CAN DO ABOUT THE HEALTH-CARE CRISIS. Sen. Tom Daschle with Scott S. Greenberger and Jeanne M. Lambrew. Thomas Dunn Books, St. Martin’s Press (2008).

 This small, readable book should be essential reading for all interested in the Health Care reform debate. It is probably more important for its influence than its content, because it was written by President Obama’s first choice as Secretary of HHS and lead player in the President’s efforts to accomplish health care reform until derailed by his failures in tax planning and by the current Deputy White House Health Care Reform guru, Jeanne M. Lambrew.

 

BOOK REVIEW: Ray Kurzweil and Terry Grossman, M.D., FANTASTIC VOYAGE: LIVE LONG ENOUGH TO LIVE FOREVER, Rodale 2004.

Aubrey de Grey, the British biomedical gerontologist who recently appeared on 60 Minutes and gave a lecture on “Why We Age and How We Can Avoid It” on TED is convinced that we now have the resources to repair metabolically damaged tissue so as to be able to live for 1000 years.  He believes that it is possible for a 50 year old to “pull out of the dive” of aging based on current and immediately anticipated technology.

Book Review: Public Health law: Power, Duty Restraint, Lawrence O. Gostin; University of California Press (Revised and expanded Second edition (2008).

The title, Public Health Law smacks of the kind of mind numbing subject of old textbooks one runs across occasionally in used book sales at public libraries or the free book box outside of used book stores. This book is far different. It is an intelligently imagined overview of the public health system of the United States from a legal perspective that focuses on the inherent legal tensions and conflicts between collective action and individual liberty that pervade every major social issue affecting citizens. There are very few social- political issues extant in our country that fail to fall within the rubric of some aspect of public health. This book is in the nature of a survey course on the subject hitting mostly the top of waves. It provides a comprehensive overview of the legal cases affecting all aspects of public health law and represents an excellent primer for student, professionals and general readers alike.