AHCJ Resources
Panelists suggest stories about Health Policy implementation
Affordable Care Act: The politics of health care, year two
Meeting the challenges of explaining Health Policy
The Affordable Care Act: What to cover at the one-year mark
Officials, health system administrator discuss challenges, 
implementation of the Affordable Care Act, Feb. 24, 2011 (audio available)
Health care reform has passed: What's next? Suggestions from four reporters on how to approach the topic
Covering high-risk insurance pools: Four reporters who have covered the topic offer story tips, suggestions and resources.
What's next? Reporting on Health Policy between now and 2014: Transcript of a briefing co-sponsored by AHCJ and related resources
Toolkit: Fresh Ideas for Reporting on Health Policy: Story ideas, reform timelines, expert sources and resources to help you cover implementation.
‘Landmark:' Behind the scenes of covering health care reform: Joanne Kenen interviews two of the authors of a book about about how the ACA evolved and how it will affect individuals, small businesses and insurers.
Charles Hallman
Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder
The Affordable Care Act, which recently celebrated its first birthday, is now the law, and parts of it are slowly being implemented. But the debate is as strong as ever.
Congress and the White House are putting on "a show," said Noam Levey, a health policy reporter for the Los Angeles Times. On one side, President Barack Obama and the Democrats want the law pretty much as is, while the other side has the Republican-controlled House of Representatives and its Senate GOP counterparts, who want either to change or repeal it, he added.
Levey, CQ Press Supreme Court Editor Kenneth Jost and Sarah Kliff, health care reporter for Politico, were panelists at "Health Policy: Repeal, replace or implement?" on the conference's Friday program, along with panel moderator Julie Appleby, Kaiser Health News senior correspondent.
Despite their post-midterm posturing, only one piece of Republican-sponsored repeal legislation – eliminating the 1099 reporting form – has become law thus far, noted Levey. "As it relates to some of the repeal proposals, a lot of it is show right now. Some of this may get more serious later on in the year," he said.
Levey points out the real discussion will be centered on implementation, especially how many citizens will qualify for Medicare and Medicaid, if uninsured. "I think one of the reasons why it's so difficult for Congress to have a discussion about entitlement reform is because [it] is wrapped up into all of the politics of Health Policy as well," he believes.
Jost compared the continued debate to sports. "The two sides have squared off, and they picked the places to play. They send in the best players," he said, adding that ultimately the courts will decide whether the law is constitutional or not.
Although many of the law's requirements already have begun to take place, the biggest debate is "not in Washington, but in the states," Kliff said. She advised journalists to closely track this year's state legislative sessions as they look to either follow the new federal law or pass legislation to reject any part of the law, or the entire law itself.
"It is a very fiercely fought debate right now," over who will make the ultimate call – the states or the federal government, Kliff said.
John Lister, a health journalism senior lecturer at Coventry University in England, was among the attendees. The new U.S. health care law "is a very complex and somewhat contradictory process," he said after the panel. He said he and many in England are puzzled about it, especially when it comes to health insurance reform: "It basically seems to be regarded as the thing that nobody can actually question its right to exist and make a profit," Lister said.
Charles Hallman is a staff writer for the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder, a weekly based in Minneapolis.
