OTHER VOICES

“Healthcare spending in the United States increased at the slowest rate in half a century in 2009 and 2010. … The hitch: The main factor was the recession that left millions of Americans unemployed, uninsured, short of income and unable or unwilling to spend money on healthcare. Optimists hope that most of the decreased spending came about by eliminating care that was not really medically necessary. Pessimists fear that many lowincome people are forgoing care they need, increasing the likelihood that they will eventually become sicker and require costly hospitalization.” — New York Times

“If some people had their way, the U.S. Supreme Court would decide a case challenging the constitutionality of the new healthcare law with just seven of the nine justices participating. ... Partisans on both sides are counting noses on the court. ... Two justices—elena Kagan and Clarence Thomas—have been called upon to voluntarily recuse themselves in the healthcare case, meaning they would not participate in the arguments or a decision because they are said to have ethical conflicts. … Neither Kagan nor Thomas has indicated they will sit out the healthcare case, nor should they.” —Des Moines (Iowa) Register