The FEHBlog is back inside the Beltway after a relaxing week on the outer banks of North Carolina.

Congress is in session this week.  Here’s a link to the Week in Congress’s report on last week’s actions on Capitol Hill.

We may see a vote on the Better Care Reconciliation Act in the Senate. Check out Avik Roy’s interesting take on the CBO reports on the ACA repeal and replace law.  He explains that the CBO large losses in coverage represent an expectation that people won’t buy coverage unless they are forced to do so. Personal responsibility is such an important aspect of healthcare.  Give people more consumer choice in the health insurance market.

The FEHBlog was saddened to read about the unexpected death of Wall Street Joural editorial writer Joseph Rago. He was only 34 years old. He had won a Pulitizer Prize in 2011 for his editorials on the Affordable Care Act. The FEHBlog, in addition to reading the WSJ, frequently listened to him on podcasts and the weekly WSJ editors show on Fox News. Mr. Rago wrote on March 20, 2010, at the time Congress passed the ACA that

In our world of infinite wants but finite resources, there are only two ways to allocate any good or service: either through prices and the choices of millions of individuals, or through central government planning and political discretion. This choice is inexorable. Stripped of its romantic illusions, ObamaCare is really about who commands the country’s medical resources. . . .

If Congress does pass a repeal and replace law, Mr. Rago deserve credit for that action.

Finally, here’s a link to an insightful Politico article about the connection between tax exempt hospitals, which group represents the majority of U.S. hospitals, and the ACA.