Cato Daily Dispatch for October 6, 2004
Subscribe to the Daily Dispatch via email
Subscribe to the Daily Dispatch via PDA (AvantGo)
(Links to outside sources were active as of the date of this dispatch; however, not all news sources maintain links to current stories indefinitely. Some links also may require registration.)
Health Care Costs to RiseCheney, Edwards Spar on Taxes
New D.C. School Superintendent Considers Drastic Changes
Health Care Costs to Rise
"Many large U.S. employers are budgeting for an average 8 percent rise in health care costs next year, in what would be the first significant decline from annual double-digit increases in more than five years, a new study shows," the Wall Street Journal reports.
"Among the biggest cost drivers: more prescriptions of heavily marketed drugs; increases in hospital prices; more-expensive diagnostic tests; and an increase in visits to specialists, thanks to a shift from more-restrictive health-maintenance organizations."
In a new Cato study, "Health Care Regulation: A $169 Billion Hidden Tax," Christopher J. Conover, an assistant research professor at Duke University, writes that health care regulations costs Americans $169 billion a year and has led to more than 7 million Americans without health care coverage. He suggests achieving savings through medical liability reform and reform of the Food and Drug Administration drug approval process.
Cheney, Edwards Spar on Taxes
"Deep political divisions on Iraq, health care and taxes dominated Tuesday's vice presidential debate, with Vice President Cheney and John Edwards defending the records and positions of the men who head their tickets," USA TODAY reports.
"The two clashed on tax policies--Edwards and Kerry have promised to roll back tax cuts on upper-income Americans, while selectively cutting taxes elsewhere."
The Cato Handbook for Congress recommends making the president's tax cuts permanent. Additionally, Congress should "make all federal taxes lower, flatter, and simpler," according to Cato Director of Tax Policy Studies Chris Edwards, in the Handbook.
New D.C. School Superintendent Considers Drastic Changes
"Clifford B. Janey, the District of Columbia's new school superintendent, said yesterday that he is considering closing underutilized schools, giving students more time to graduate and hiring a private company to temporarily run such operations as facilities, purchasing and food service," the Washington Post reports.
"Janey, the school system's fifth permanent leader in nine years, mentioned those possibilities during a wide-ranging discussion with reporters and editors of the Post. He cautioned that improvement will not come quickly to the long-troubled system, and he was unsparing in his assessment of its deficiencies."
In "The Need for Educational Freedom in the Nation's Capital," former Education Policy Analyst Casey Lartigue writes: "Despite having per-pupil spending that ranks among the highest in the nation-$10,550 for 1999-2000-public school students in the District rank near the bottom on standardized tests and in achievement levels. Although spending has almost tripled since the 1980-81 school year and increased 39 percent since Mayor Anthony Williams took office in 1998, the system lacks qualified teachers, safe facilities, and even basic supplies such as pencils and textbooks. The system's leaders demand more money in exchange for more promises of improvement."
Jonathan Block, editor, jblock@cato.org