Galen Institute Semiannual Report

July – December 2010

2

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

ObamaCare is law but the debate definitely is not

over. Rather than growing in popularity, as the

president and his supporters firmly believed would

happen, the law gets more unpopular as people

learn more about it.

Many companies and organizations who

supported it because of certain provisions that

they believed would be helpful now are finding an

avalanche of unforeseen consequences — both in

other parts of the law that they believe will be very

harmful and in the way that the regulations are

being written that stretch the law far beyond what

they had anticipated.

Harvard Professor Robert Blendon, in a recent

survey for the Kaiser Family Foundation, found that

opposition to ObamaCare jumped 9 percentage

points from December to January, with a majority

of Americans now opposing the law.

And that was before the new leadership in the

House took over and started asking a lot of hard

questions — questions that we believed should

have been asked before the law was passed.

In late January, the House Budget committee called

one of the most objective analysts in Washington

— Medicare actuary Rick Foster — and asked his

straight opinion about two central promises made

by the president and his supporters.

As we wrote in Health Policy Matters:

Rep. Tom McClintock, R-CA, asked Foster

for a simple true or false response on

the two claims: that it will bring down

unsustainable medical costs and that it

will let people keep their current health

insurance if they like it.

On the costs issue, “I would say false, more

so than true,” Foster responded.

As for people getting to keep their

coverage, “not true in all cases,” he said.

So the man who works for the administration and

whose job it is to analyze the intricate details of

the law and its future impact says that it is “false,

more so than true” that it will bring down costs

and that many people will lose the coverage they

have now.

Then another committee asked regulation writers

how an end-of-life provision, which caused such an

uproar in town hall meetings in 2009, got back into

a 692-page regulation about Medicare payment

after it was pulled from the bill. The head of the

Office of Management and Budget’s regulatory

office Cass Sunstein said he didn’t know.

3

And at yet another hearing, the chairman of the

president’s Council of Economic Advisors, Austan

Goolsbee, got tied into a pretzel over whether the

fine for not buying the mandatory health insurance

is in fact a tax. Answer: For political purposes, no.

For purposes of the lawsuits challenging the law,

yes. That is not making the courts reviewing the

constitutionality of the law happy at all.

So what does this mean? It means we must not give

up! Democratic pollster Pat Caddell said as much

himself, admitting that voting for the president’s

legacy health overhaul law was a huge mistake. He

said passage of the health overhaul law was the key

reason for his party’s loss of 63 seats in the U.S.

House of Representatives in November.

Caddell told FOX News, “. . . the American people

found this a crime against democracy . . . they want

it repealed, and this issue is gonna go on and on.”

And we are not stopping. We have a major book

that is being published by HarperCollins on March

22, the week of the anniversary of the passage

of this law. We’re writing it with three coauthors

from other think tanks, and we believe it will be a

blockbuster, finally telling the truth about, as its

title says, Why ObamaCare Is Wrong for America. We

will send you a copy as soon as we have them.

While others are forced to move on to other issues,

we continue to focus on just this one crucial

front — health care — in the fight for freedom.

This booklet gives you highlights of our activities

month-by-month over the second half of last year.

As you will see in our Executive Summary, interest

in this issue continues in the media. Our op-eds

reached at least 76 million readers of major

publications including The Wall Street Journal,

Forbes, and the Omaha World-Herald. We also

gave dozens of interviews to print and broadcast

journalists and reached millions of people through

shows such as Varney & Co. and The Lou Dobbs

Show, and many local shows around the country.

We are enormously grateful to you for your support

for our work at the Galen Institute. We believe

it is crucially important that we continue our

efforts to educate the American people about the

major consequences that this law will have for

our country. Thank you for joining us in this vital

work to protect our freedom. We could not do this

without you!

Sincerely,

Grace-Marie Turner

The Galen Institute is a non-profit public policy research organization devoted exclusively to advancing

free-market ideas in health policy. We work to promote a more informed public debate over ideas that

support innovation, individual freedom, consumer choice, and competition in the health sector.

Please contact us with your comments, suggestions, and questions:

Executive Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Monthly Highlights

July . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

August . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

September . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

October . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

November . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

December . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

ABOUT GALEN INSTITUTE

CONTENTS

mail Galen Institute

P.O. Box 320010

Alexandria, VA 22320

phone 703-299-8900

web www.galen.org

facebook.com/GalenInstitute

twitter.com/GalenInstitute

email galen@galen.org

5

Publications

Our commentaries on the real impact of the health overhaul law, rising health care costs, Medicare

payment rates, prescription drugs, innovation in the health sector, the mid-term elections, and new

solutions to reform reached more than 76 million readers over the last six months. Our pieces were

published by more than 135 major news outlets in 40 states, including The Wall Street Journal, The

Philadelphia Inquirer, Forbes, The Sacramento Bee, and the Omaha-World Herald.

We released 3 major papers: “Why the Obama Health Plan is Not Entitlement Reform;” “Massachusetts

Shows Federal Reform Headed For Trouble;” and “9 Things States Can Do to Push Back Against

ObamaCare.” You can read these papers and our commentaries on our website at www.galen.org.

In the Media

We gave interviews to dozens of radio stations in cities around the country, as well as to nationally

syndicated programs, including The Lou Dobbs Show, Dateline: Washington, The Martha Zoller Show, and The

Jason Lewis Show. Grace-Marie Turner was also a frequent contributor to Varney & Co. on FOX Business.

Our scholars were interviewed by reporters from Politico, Congressional Quarterly, SmartMoney, and many

other news outlets. Articles that quoted Galen experts reached more than 58 million readers of more

than 50 publications, blogs, and media websites including The Daily Caller, Reason Magazine, Kaiser Health

News, and the San Francisco Chronicle.

Speeches and Events

Grace-Marie delivered more than 20 speeches on a range of health policy issues, including consequences

of the health care reform law, health care costs, and patient-centered reform. She spoke to grassroots

organizations and to top industry executives, to physicians and scientists, and to journalists, legal

experts, and Members of Congress.

We hosted a myriad of successful events:

A Capitol Hill event on July 15 to release a paper, “Why the Obama Health Plan is Not Entitlement • 

Reform,” by our colleague Jim Capretta of the Ethics and Public Policy Center. Rep. Paul Ryan

led off the discussion, and budget experts Doug Holtz-Eakin of American Action Forum and Gene

Steuerle of the Urban Institute provided analysis.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARYJuly – December 2010

6

A briefing for seniors, “Debt, Deficits, and the Health Care Law,” featuring former Virginia Gov. and • 

Sen. George Allen, former CBO Director Doug Holtz-Eakin, and 60 Plus Association chairman Jim

Martin, who co-hosted the event with us on September 16.

“Medicaid and ObamaCare: The impact of the overhaul law on the states,” a Capitol Hill briefing • 

on October 7, co-hosted by the Institute for Policy Innovation. Our speakers — John R. Graham,

Christie Herrera, and Marc Kilmer — discussed unfunded liabilities, demand for physicians, and

difficulty accessing care.

Our November 30 conference on “Challenges and Changes: The Next Chapter in the Health Reform • 

Debate” was packed with valuable ideas and insights about actions both state and federal officials

can take to get us on the right path to health reform. The conference, which was jointly sponsored

by Galen, the American Action Forum, and the Institute for Policy Innovation, featured panel

discussions with state legislators and policy experts, and keynote addresses by Sen. Ron Wyden,

Rep. Michael Burgess, MD, and Rep. John Shadegg.

Realities of Risk and Debt

This Will Not Stand

Massachusetts Warning Signs

More Re-education

Two Strikes Against ObamaCare

ObamaCare Has Failed

Running from ObamaCare

It’s About Jobs

The Red Tape Blues

Disastrous Dynamics

Tip of the Iceberg

Reporting from Sundance

Top 10 Reasons ObamaCare Is Unraveling

ObamaCare Vote Haunts Congressional Candidates

Support for ObamaCare Was a Death Knell for Candidates

80 to 100 Million Could Lose Current Coverage

Congress, States Gearing Up To Fight ObamaCare

States Prepare to Push Back Against ObamaCare

First Strategy: Dismantle ObamaCare

A Very Bad Week for ObamaCare

Health Policy Matters

Health Policy Matters is e-mailed to more than 6,000 subscribers every week, including health industry

executives, insurance agents, journalists, consumers, physicians, small business owners, and federal and

state legislators. We produced 20 editions from July to December 2010:

Left to right: Panelists at our July entitlement briefing; Galen’s Grace-Marie Turner gives a presentation at our October Medicaid briefing; Panelists address the audience at our November Challenges and Changes conference

7

Coalitions & Meetings

We facilitated numerous meetings of the Health Policy Consensus Group to discuss the consequences of

the health overhaul law and free-market solutions to reform.

As part of our coalition outreach, we continued to host conference calls for the media, policymakers,

industry leaders, and medical professionals concerned about the health reform debate. Speakers included

Stephanie Carlton, RN, Special Assistant for Health Policy Legislation to Sen. John Cornyn; Douglas Holtz-

Eakin from the American Action Forum; Katie Mahoney of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce; and Janet

Trautwein of the National Association of Health Underwriters, among others.

We produced 5 calls in our popular series for state policymakers focusing on the impact of ObamaCare

on the states, co-hosted by the Institute for Policy Innovation and the State Policy Network.

Galen staff also participated in more than 70 meetings and policy briefings to discuss new initiatives and

health policy ideas with government officials, Congressional staffers, representatives from companies,

member associations, and other think tanks.

New Media & Social Networking

The Galen Institute continued to be actively engaged

in new media in 2010. We posted videos to YouTube,

commentaries to Facebook, and news updates to

Twitter. Friends and followers of the Galen Institute

and Health Reform Hub grew to 2,480.

8

Impact

Health reform is NOT entitlement reform, at least

as configured in the health overhaul legislation

that Congress has passed. And nowhere is the

case made more clearly and forcefully than in a

new paper, “Why the Obama Health Plan is Not

Entitlement Reform,” written for the Galen Institute

by budget expert Jim Capretta, which was released

at a conference we organized on Capitol Hill in July

featuring Rep. Paul Ryan.

Among those hit hardest will be young people.

We continued our outreach to this community

by releasing a new rap video called “Feelin’ It”

about the impact of ObamaCare on young people.

The video makes it clear that young people who

understand they will bear the brunt of the costs of

ObamaCare want Congress to start over with the

right kind of reform.

We continued to explain, with every

communications tool we can muster, that real

health care solutions are possible. We never gave

up, and we were as busy as ever with speaking,

media, and writing requests.

Publications & Productions

We released a new paper on Massachusetts health

reform, “Massachusetts Shows Federal Reform

Headed For Trouble,” with a related commentary

featured on Kaiser Health News.

Grace-Marie Turner’s commentary about the

coming exodus of physicians from the Medicare

program was featured in more than 30 news

outlets this month, including the Boston Herald,

The Orange County Register, and Louisville Courier

Journal. We also contributed a number of posts to

National Review Online: Critical Condition.

We released 3 videos in July: a commentary on

the realities of ObamaCare; highlights from our

July 15 entitlement reform briefing; and a rap

video we commissioned on how ObamaCare

affects young adults, which garnered more than

1,700 views on YouTube!

Speeches & Events

Grace-Marie gave three speeches in July on the

realities of the impact of ObamaCare to grassroots

organizations and to top industry executives.

A number of independent studies have proven the

health overhaul law will not reduce the deficit or

put us on a path to long-term entitlement reform,

as clearly documented in a new paper written for

the Galen Institute by Jim Capretta. We released

his paper, “Why the Obama Health Plan is Not

Entitlement Reform,” at a Capitol Hill briefing

“Feelin’ It” highlights many of ObamaCare’s damaging provisions for young people

JULY

9

on July 15, with Rep. Paul Ryan leading off the

discussion, and analysis from budget experts Doug

Holtz-Eakin of American Action Forum and Eugene

Steuerle of the Urban Institute.

Galen in the News

We gave a dozen interviews to radio shows across

the country, including six nationally syndicated

programs. Grace-Marie spoke about Donald

Berwick’s appointment as administrator of the

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the

impact of ObamaCare on small businesses, and

England’s plans to decentralize its health care

systems on programs like Dateline: Washington,

Point of View, and The Small Business Advocate.

Our comments were featured in more than a

dozen news stories in July, including articles in

The Daily Caller, The Atlantic, and the Northwest

Florida Daily News.

Coalitions & Meetings

We facilitated numerous meetings with colleagues,

and we attended several additional meetings to

discuss new initiatives and health policy ideas with

government officials, industry leaders, member

associations, and other think tanks.

Rep. Paul Ryan talks about his Roadmap at our Capitol Hill briefing

Jim Capretta explains how ObamaCare makes America’s entitlement and budget problems worse

10

Impact

Although Congress took a recess in August, the

Galen Institute didn’t stop in our work to help

people understand the dangers of government

control over our health care. Our writings appeared

in publications with a combined circulation of 23

million readers — including an article in The Wall

Street Journal — plus interviews on national radio

and television programs, and video commentaries

for our websites. In addition to several speeches,

we worked with our colleagues and coalition

members to educate health care providers,

journalists, and state leaders about the real impact

of ObamaCare.

Publications

We reached millions of readers in August with

our commentaries on the risks and damage of

ObamaCare, including high health costs, and the

value of health savings accounts and innovation

in the health sector. Grace-Marie Turner also

participated in a pro/con published debate with

Rep. Jim McDermott (D-WA), responding to the

question of whether the health overhaul law will

lead to greater prosperity for American workers.

Dozens of major publications featured our work,

including an article by Galen Institute adjunct

scholar Jim Capretta in USA Today about his paper

on entitlement reform:

The Wall Street Journal:•  Putting the Brakes on ObamaCare

Investor’s Business Daily:•  Fast Track To Government Health Care

USA Today:•  Think health reform will cut costs? Think again.

The Oklahoman:•  Pros, Cons to Converting to Electronic Medical Records

Pittsburgh Tribune Review:•  ObamaCare — It’s a

horrible Rx

Galen in the News

Grace-Marie was a guest on FOX Business’s Varney

& Co. show to respond to the question, “Can GOP

Repeal Parts of Health Care Reform?” She was also

a guest on several radio programs, including the

nationally syndicated shows Dateline: Washington,

Real Wealth Weekly, and City on a Hill. We gave

interviews to journalists from SmartMoney, Modern

Health Care, Congressional Quarterly, and the

Associated Press.

Grace-Marie Turner appears on Varney & Co.

AUGUST

11

Meetings

We facilitated a meeting of colleagues to discuss

an upcoming statement on free-market solutions

to health reform.

Grace-Marie attended “Medicare after Reform:

The 2010 Medicare Trustees Report,” hosted

by the American Enterprise Institute. And Galen

staff participated in several meetings with

Congressional staffers, industry executives, and

representatives from other think tanks to discuss

patient-centered health care and new regulations

imposed by the health overhaul law.

Speeches & Events

Grace-Marie’s August speeches included an

address in New Jersey to a large audience of

physicians about the impact of ObamaCare

on their patients and practices, and a panel

discussion on health care and money for a group

of financial industry executives in New York.

We hosted three virtual briefings in August. The

Institute for Policy Innovation and the State Policy

Network joined us in hosting “The Impact of

Medicaid Expansion on the States,” which featured

Mark Birdwhistell, former Secretary for Health and

Family Services for Kentucky and currently Chief

of External Affairs at the University of Kentucky

Medical Center.

Our nurses coalition heard from Stephanie Carlton,

RN, Special Assistant for Health Policy Legislation

to Sen. John Cornyn, and Marty McGeein, an RN

who has served in several senior positions at the

Department of Health and Human Services, during

our call on “ObamaCare: What does it mean for

Nurses and Patients?”

And we hosted a special briefing for journalists

on “The Controversy Over Insurance Regulations,”

with experts Doug Holtz-Eakin and Jim Capretta,

whose explanation of federal taxes and

administrative costs was featured in a Wall Street

Journal editorial.

Productions

We released two videos in August, which were

viewed more than 150 times in just one week.

In “Fast Track to Government Health Care,”

Grace-Marie explains the regulatory burdens of

ObamaCare. “Why the Obama Health Plan is Not

Entitlement Reform” is a full-length recording of

our successful summer briefing featuring Rep.

Paul Ryan, Jim Capretta, Doug Holtz-Eakin, and

Gene Steuerle.

Jim Capretta addresses our Capitol Hill audience

12

Impact

The Galen Institute focused on the importance

of the doctor-patient relationship in our writings

and speaking this month, promoting the value

of private-sector innovation and opposing

bureaucratic intrusions that keep patients from

getting the care that is most appropriate for

their needs. Our commentaries on these issues

appeared in more than three dozen publications

across the country in September, including the

Hartford Courant, Investor’s Business Daily, and The

Denver Post. We continued to reach out to the

public through speeches, media interviews, and

co-hosting two successful events.

Publications

Grace-Marie’s pro/con debate debate with Rep.

Jim McDermott (D-WA) responded to the question

of whether the health overhaul law will lead

to greater prosperity for American workers. It

appeared in more than 30 publications around

the country, most recently in The Buffalo Sunday

News. Our commentaries on rising health costs,

prescription drugs, insurance premiums, and our

recommendations for reform were published by

dozens of major news outlets reaching millions of

readers across the country, including:

Reuters:•  Don’t Demonize Drug Samples. They Are Crucial to Our Healthcare

National Review Online’s Critical Condition:•  Fueling the Health-Cost Fire

National Journal Health Care Expert Blog:•  Seek Bipartisan Support for Repeal

South Florida Sun-Sentinel:•  We Do Need Health Reform, But With Some Tweaking

The Orange County Register:•  ObamaCare worse for U.S. workers

The Denver Post:•  Despite Obama’s promises,

costs will go up

Speeches & Events

The Institute for Policy Innovation and the State

Policy Network joined us in hosting a virtual

briefing on September 9, “State and Business

Responses to ObamaCare,” which examined the

ways states and the business community are

fighting the overhaul law. Karen Harned, executive

director of NFIB’s Small Business Legal Center,

explained why NFIB joined the Florida lawsuit

challenging the constitutionality of ObamaCare.

And we heard from Independence Institute

President Jon Caldara, who explained how he

successfully fought to put a Right to Health Care

Choice initiative on the Colorado ballot.

SEPTEMBER

13

On September 16, we hosted a briefing for seniors,

entitled “Debt, Deficits, and the Health Care Law,”

featuring former Virginia Gov. and Sen. George

Allen, former CBO director Doug Holtz-Eakin, and

60 Plus Association chairman Jim Martin, who

co-hosted the event with us. Speakers argued

that ObamaCare should be repealed so we can

implement the right kinds of health reform, and

Gov. Allen outlined policy steps to a brighter future

with market-based, consumer-friendly solutions.

Grace-Marie participated in a debate on “Is

health care a right?” hosted by the Benjamin

Rush Society on September 29. And she gave

several additional presentations on the impact of

ObamaCare to members of Congress, business

leaders, and physicians.

Galen in the News

Grace-Marie was a guest on numerous nationally

syndicated radio and television programs in

September, including Varney & Co. on FOX

Business, where she discussed the reasons

behind the rising premiums for health insurance.

She also spoke with journalists from Business

Insurance Magazine, Dateline: Washington, and the

Associated Press.

Coalitions & Meetings

We facilitated a meeting of the Health Policy

Consensus Group, at the invitation of the minority

staff of the House Energy and Commerce

Committee, to discuss health policy alternatives

and recommendations.

We attended many additional meetings to discuss

health policy ideas with congressional staffers,

state government officials, representatives from

companies and member associations, and other

think tanks.

Gov. George Allen, Grace-Marie Turner, and Jim Martin discussed the impact of ObamaCare on seniors at our September briefing

Grace-Marie Turner discusses health care costs with Stuart Varney

14

Impact

While the nation was laser-focused on the

elections, the Galen Institute continued our

mission to educate the American people and

policymakers about the significant impact the new

health overhaul law already is having on our health

sector and economy. We hosted three briefings for

the public, policymakers, health sector leaders,

and the media. Our commentaries reached more

than 18 million people nationwide in major news

outlets, including The Wall Street Journal, The

Oklahoman, and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

And we continued our interviews with Dateline:

Washington, Congressional Quarterly, and others,

and our speeches to small business owners,

insurance brokers, and physicians.

Publications

Grace-Marie’s commentary on the “Top 10 reasons

ObamaCare is unraveling,” was featured in the

top 10 most viewed stories on The Washington

Examiner website. Our commentaries on health

care costs, the overhaul law, prescription drugs,

and innovation were published by news outlets

around the country, including:

The Oklahoman:•  Government offering strong dose of hubris

The Wall Street Journal:•  ObamaCare Requires Urgent Dismantling

Modesto Sunday Bee:•  Health insurance reform means ever-rising costs

Atlanta Journal-Constitution:•  Tax policy’s impact on medical sector

National Review Online:•  Judge Makes Wrong

ObamaCare Decision

Speeches & Events

On October 6, Grace-Marie spoke at the Society

of Professional Journalists meeting in Las Vegas

about health policy issues that are getting a

lot of news coverage and issues that should be

getting more attention. She spoke about the

need for reporters to cover the regulations being

written to implement the health overhaul law and

creation of new boards and commissions that will

have a huge impact, including the Independent

Payment Advisory Board, and the controversy over

comparative effectiveness review studies.

Galen co-hosted a briefing on Capitol Hill on

October 7 about “Medicaid and ObamaCare: The

impact of the overhaul law on the states,” with

the Institute for Policy Innovation. Our speakers

— John R. Graham of the Pacific Research

Institute, Christie Herrera of the American

Legislative Exchange Council, and Marc Kilmer of

the Maryland Public Policy Institute — discussed

OCTOBER

15

unfunded liabilities, demand for physicians, and

difficulty accessing care. You can watch videos of

the briefing on our website at www.galen.org.

On October 27, we hosted a conference call for

journalists to discuss the significant impact

the pending medical loss ratio rules will have

on access to health insurance and costs. Our

speakers were Janet Trautwein of the National

Association of Health Underwriters, Donna Novak

of NovaRest Consulting, Karen Kerrigan of the

Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council, and

Katie Mahoney of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

In addition, the State Policy Network and the

Institute for Policy Innovation joined us in hosting a

conference call about state responses to the health

overhaul law. Our speakers were Jim Capretta of

the Ethics and Public Policy Center, Tom Miller

of the American Enterprise Institute, and Cheryl

Smith of Leavitt Partners.

Galen in the News

Grace-Marie was a guest on numerous nationally

syndicated radio programs recently, including The

Small Business Advocate, City on a Hill, and Dateline:

Washington. She was also interviewed by the

Associated Press, Slate Magazine, The Daily Caller,

and Kaiser Health News.

Coalitions & Meetings

On October 27 at Americans for Tax Reform,

Grace-Marie spoke to the weekly meeting audience

in response to a representative from the Puerto

Rican government about recent surprise tax

increases enacted by the Commonwealth.

Grace-Marie participated in the Health Sector

Assembly in Sundance, Utah, in October. And we

participated in many other meetings to discuss

health policy ideas with Congressional staffers,

state government officials, representatives from

companies and member associations, and other

think tanks.

Marc Kilmer, John R. Graham, and Merrill Matthews participate in a panel discussion at our Medicaid and ObamaCare briefing

16

Impact

In November, the mid-term elections finally

proved to Congress and state legislatures that

the American people are unhappy with the health

overhaul law and the way it was passed. Galen

seized this opportunity to advance ideas for

reform by meeting with newly elected officials

to offer strategies for market-based, consumer-

friendly reform. We co-hosted a successful event

in Washington, DC, to discuss what federal and

state officials can do to address the voters’ serious

concerns. And we continued our public educational

efforts by giving speeches to physician groups,

publishing commentaries in major news outlets,

and participating in nationally broadcast radio

shows, among other activities.

Publications

Grace-Marie Turner’s commentary on the impact

of the passage of the health reform law on the

mid-term elections was published in more than

36 newspapers around the country, including The

Sacramento Bee, Arizona Sunday Sun, and Arkansas

Democrat-Gazette. Our other commentaries on

state efforts to fight ObamaCare, Medicare,

prescription drugs and innovation, and solutions

for free-market reform were published by dozens

of major news outlets with millions of readers

nationwide. Some of our pieces included:

The Daily Caller:•  Puerto Rican Madness

Providence Journal:•  Anger over health reform swamped Dems

Omaha World-Herald:•  Drug Delays Hurt Research

The New York Times Room for Debate Blog:•  16 Ways to Cut the Deficit — Allow Real Competition in Medicare

Health Reform Report:•  States Preparing to Fight Back Against ObamaCare

National Review Online’s Critical Condition:•  Should

Congressmen Turn Down Health Insurance?

Coalitions & Meetings

We facilitated a meeting of the Health Policy

Consensus Group at The Heritage Foundation to

discuss next steps to inform health policy actions

in the new Congress.

We participated in more than two dozen meetings

to discuss new initiatives and health policy ideas

with government officials, industry leaders, member

associations, and other think tanks in November.

Galen in the News

Grace-Marie was interviewed about the direction

of health care reform in light of the mid-term

elections on several nationally syndicated radio

NOVEMBER

17

programs, including Dateline: Washington, The

Lou Dobbs Show, and The Jason Lewis Show, with

guest host former Sen. Rod Grams. She was

also interviewed by journalists from Politico, The

Washington Examiner, Investor’s Business Daily, and

the San Francisco Chronicle.

Speeches & Events

Our conference on “Challenges and Changes:

The Next Chapter in the Health Reform Debate”

was superb — packed with valuable ideas and

insights about actions both state and federal

officials can take to get us on the right path to

health reform. The conference, which was jointly

sponsored by Galen, the American Action Forum,

and the Institute for Policy Innovation, featured

panel discussions with state legislators and policy

experts, and keynote addresses by Sen. Ron

Wyden, Rep. Michael Burgess, MD, and Rep. John

Shadegg. The conference webcast, handouts, and

presentations are available on our website.

Earlier in the month, the Galen Institute, the

Institute for Policy Innovation, and the State Policy

Network co-hosted a conference call briefing for

state legislators to discuss options for addressing

health reform, featuring speakers Christie Herrera

of ALEC and Jason Mercier of the Washington

Policy Center.

In addition, Grace-Marie gave several speeches on

the impact of ObamaCare and options for patient-

centered reform in November, including addresses

at the annual scientific meeting of the American

College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology in

Phoenix, and Bloomberg Television’s briefings on

“Health care reform: What are the big changes for

small businesses?” in New Jersey and Maryland.

Rep. John Shadegg, Sen. Ron Wyden, and Rep. Michael Burgess speak at our Challenges and Changes conference

18

Impact

After the tide of the mid-term elections swept

through America in November, our focus turned

in December to next steps in the still-unresolved

debate over ObamaCare. We provided ideas and

research for new and re-elected legislators and

governors in the states and in Washington. Our

paper on “9 things states can do to push back

against ObamaCare,” which was featured by

National Review Online, offered suggestions for

legislators to protect their states from the costs,

mandates, and reach of the unpopular law. We

also co-hosted a conference call with the Institute

for Policy Innovation and the State Policy Network

to discuss next steps for the states with state

think tank experts and state legislators. And in the

midst of this, we also managed to complete the

manuscript on a new book on ObamaCare that we

are co-authoring with three colleagues.

Publications

We reached more than 14 million readers across

the country in December with our commentaries

on the health overhaul law, innovation in the

health sector, and state efforts to challenge

ObamaCare, including:

Statesman Journal:•  Breast cancer research, innovation and big government

Health Reform Report:•  States Preparing to Fight Back Against ObamaCare

The Washington Times:•  Confronting ObamaCare — GOP needs to battle the bill on many fronts

Forbes:•  When A Major Medical Financing Study Gets It Wrong

Investor’s Business Daily:•  First Step in Dismantling ObamaCare?

The Philadelphia Inquirer:•  It is a government takeover

South Florida Sunday Sun-Sentinel:•  Health care —

Dark future if by Britain’s example

And as mentioned earlier, we published our paper

on “9 things states can do to push back against

ObamaCare,” which offers ideas for states to

protect their citizens from being swamped by

federal demands outlined in the health overhaul law.

Speeches, Events, & Meetings

The video from our November 30 conference on

“Challenges and Changes: The Next Chapter in

the Health Reform Debate,” is now available on

our website. The conference offered valuable ideas

DECEMBER

19

and insights about actions both state and federal

officials can take to get us on the right path to

health reform.

Grace-Marie Turner spoke about the consequences

of the health care reform bill at a legal executives

meeting in Orlando, Florida, on December 10.

The Galen Institute’s Board of Trustees held

its annual meeting in Alexandria, Virginia, on

December 11, which was followed by a holiday

party at Grace-Marie’s home to thank members

of the Health Policy Consensus Group for another

successful year of collaboration.

We co-hosted another conference call with the

Institute for Policy Innovation and the State Policy

Network in our series for state legislators. Guest

speakers included John R. Graham of the Pacific

Research Institute and Arlene Wohlgemuth of the

Texas Public Policy Foundation.

We also participated in meetings with Members

of Congress and industry executives to discuss

the impact of the overhaul law and free-market

solutions to reform.

Galen in the News

Grace-Marie was a guest on FOX Business’s

Varney & Co. on December 29 to discuss the

failings of the new federal high-risk pools with

host Charles Payne.

We gave several radio interviews in December

about efforts state legislators were making to

push back against ObamaCare, and the significant

court ruling that the individual mandate is

unconstitutional. Grace-Marie was a guest on

nationally syndicated programs The Lou Dobbs

Show and Battle Line with Alan Nathan, and many

local programs, including The Grandy Group. These

additional interviews are availble online:

Small Business Advocate• 

Wake Up Call with Holloway and Lundun• 

Richmond’s Morning News with Jimmy Barrett• 

Grace-Marie Turner appears on Varney & Co.

Colorado State Rep. Amy Stephens, ALEC’s Christie Herrera, and Utah State Sen. Dan Liljenquist speak about options for the states at our Challenges and Changes conference

You do an excellent job of bringing the issues home.

You provide information and details so one can

read, review and do their own research. I thank you

for keeping all of us informed. Much appreciated.

— Cher Z., Florida

Grace-Marie Turner’s recent article appeared in

the Virginian Pilot, Norfolk, Va.’s local paper. From

a physician perspective her comments were the

most accurate I have read in recent times.

— Joseph K., Virginia

I thoroughly enjoyed yesterday’s event — it

was terrific! Very captivating and informative.

Outstanding and varied agenda/speakers/topics,

too — which all coalesced wonderfully!

— Katie M., Washington, DC

Grace-Marie, I want to thank you for your

wonderful presentation…Many people remarked

afterwards how insightful and informative they

found your remarks and responses to questions.

— Steve L., Washington, DC

What a wonderful conference. You all did an

amazing job. I learned so much. Thank you for the

opportunity to listen in on your live web cast. It

worked great. I so appreciated it...I never want to

miss another one! What a tremendous opportunity

you have created for states. Thank you for putting

this together.

— Cindy S., Colorado

Let me first thank you for the event you hosted

today. I’m a new attorney monitoring health care

regulations...and events like the one you had today

are extremely helpful to me...I look forward to

coming to your future events.

— John V., Virginia

You are probably aware that The Wall Street Journal

had an editorial on this same topic today. However,

yours is actually much clearer.

— Don K., Washington, DC

Not only do we truly appreciate your knowledge,

we also appreciate your passion. It’s a

compelling combination.

— Cliff K., Florida

What a joy to be at the conference! I learned so

much and thank you for allowing me to be a part

of it. You continue to be the voice of reason to all

of us, helping guide us towards policy that makes

sense for Americans! Thank you!

— Amy S., Colorado

I want to express my appreciation for your

efforts on behalf of the public and of physicians

in general. You are providing the only effective

leadership in articulating meaningful health care

reform and I can only hope that the physician

community will arouse from the deep slumber

we’ve been in...Thanks so much for your efforts.

— Steve H., Minnesota

PRAISE FOR GALEN INSTITUTE