OTHER VOICES

“A six-volume report released this week by Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson suggests that patients at a large non-profit Minnesota hospital system have been badgered, harassed, deceived and intimidated about paying medical bills both before and after receiving needed care, sometimes even at bedside. ... Thus, decisions that could have medical consequences are transferred from a medical care facility to a company whose main incentive is financial. Patients and their families are unaware that they are not dealing with the hospital in which they have placed their trust.” — St. Louis Post-dispatch

“Here we go again. The experts who oversee Social Security and Medicare rang the alarm bells once more last week. … (Medicare’s) hospital trust fund won’t be depleted until 2024. That’s the same date as projected last year, but 1.2 million Americans also have joined Medicare since then. The fund is already spending more on healthcare than it takes in from payroll taxes. One temptation is to wail and head to the nearest tornado closet. But the better response for members of Congress and presidential hopefuls is to start taking action.” — Dallas Morning News