Healthcare (October 2010)

The Aug. 23 ruling by U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth halting federal funding for embryonic stem-cell research has had a chilling effect on one of the most promising fields of biomedical inquiry. 

It has been just more than six months since the new health insurance reform law was signed by President Obama, and many new patient protections have already begun to take effect, ending some of the worst abuses of insurance companies and giving Americans important new rights.

The U.S. Constitution established a federal government possessed of limited and enumerated powers, leaving general powers of health, safety and welfare to the states.

During the last decade, embryonic stem-cell research has been a subject of much controversy and division. 

This summer, a salmonella outbreak causing hundreds of people to fall ill triggered a national egg recall. The cause of the outbreak is still under investigation, but salmonella poisoning is all too common and is sometimes the result of inexcusable, intentional conduct. And inadequate penalties often make these criminal offenses a mere cost of doing business for food producers and manufacturers across the country. When the Senate returns to session in November, it will consider important food-safety legislation, and the Food Safety Accountability Act should be a part of that effort.

There are problems in our healthcare system for which solutions are needed. As a physician for nearly 30 years, I have witnessed them firsthand. Every day in this country, too many Americans find quality healthcare services beyond their grasp because they either cannot afford them or are struggling with a chronic illness that insurance will not cover.