Tag: U.S. healthcare

NSDA Nationals USX R&D from Prepd: Entitlements & Health Care

By

On May 19, 2022

In R&D, U.S. Extemp

Today’s R&D is brought to you by Prepd (pronounced “prepped”). Prepd is building debate technology that helps extempers and congressional debaters research, practice, and compete. Visit www.prepd.in to learn more.

Over the next month and a half, Extemp Central will provide R&Ds on the topic areas for the 2022 NSDA National Tournament.  USX topic areas will have R&Ds posted on Thursday and IX topic areas will have R&Ds posted on Friday.  This is meant to help extempers assemble resources to prepare for the competition in Louisville.  This week we tackle USX topic area #3 on entitlements and healthcare.

Read More

R&D from Prepd: Entitlements & Healthcare

By

On June 6, 2021

In R&D, U.S. Extemp

Today’s R&D is brought to you by Prepd (pronounced “prepped”). Prepd is building debate technology that helps extempers and congressional debaters research, practice, and compete. Visit www.prepd.in to learn more.

As part of the leadup to the 2021 National Speech and Debate Association (NSDA) National Tournament, Extemp Central will be providing daily research & development (R&D) posts for each of the tournament’s fourteen topic areas.  These will include links to important articles about each. It is hoped that these will aid in extempers preparation for this year’s national tournament.

Read More

R&D from Prepd: Problems with the Affordable Care Act

By

On October 27, 2016

In R&D

[fblike]

l_2Today’s R&D is brought to you by Prepd, the only software built specifically for extemp. Prepd makes it easy to research, practice, and compete!  Visit www.prepd.in to learn more. Like Prepd on Facebook for special info and contests.

This R&D provides resources on the problems of the Affordable Care Act (ACA).  President Barack Obama’s major legislative initiative is suffering from a lack of insurance competition in many states and it was revealed this week that significant premium hikes are on the way.  Some states such as Arizona could see premium hikes that go beyond 100%.  Republican critics of the ACA have seized on this as proof that the system should be scrapped, while liberal forces argue that a “public option” should be introduced where the government could compete with private insurers to keep premium costs low.  It is unclear whether recent news about the ACA will affect the 2016 presidential election and be this year’s “October Surprise.”

Read More

R&D from Prepd: Prescription Drug Prices

By

On December 17, 2015

In R&D

[fblike]

l_2Today’s R&D is brought to you by Prepd, the only software built specifically for extemp. Prepd makes it easy to research, practice, and compete!  Visit www.prepd.in to learn more. Like Prepd on Facebook for special info and contests.

This R&D provides resources on prescription drug prices in the United States.  Americans spent more than $370 on prescription drugs last year and prices have continued to increase in recent decades, sometimes by double digit percentages.  Democratic presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders have drawn attention to the high price of prescription drugs, arguing that Medicare should be allowed to negotiate prices with drug makers and that more legislation is needed to prevent “price gouging” by companies. Polls show that Americans do favor action to reduce drug prices, but they cannot agree on what specific policies would be preferable or which political party is better suited to accomplish that task.

Read More

The Affordable Care Act (2013)

By

On December 31, 2013

In Topic Brief, U.S. Extemp

[fblike]

During his first year in office President Obama decided to tackle a problem that had frustrated previous presidents:  universal healthcare.  Harry Truman, Richard Nixon, Jimmy Carter, and Bill Clinton had all proposed plans for a universal health insurance program, but none of them were able to make them part of American law.  From 2009-2010, the U.S. Congress debated the feasibility of having a universal healthcare system and in March 2010, President Obama signed the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare, into law.  President Obama’s push for universal healthcare was assisted by the Democrats having a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate and a majority in the House, but opposition to the ACA from voters played a role in giving the Republicans control of the House in the 2010 midterms.  After several years of planning, the ACA has begun its rollout, but extempers are likely aware that elements of this rollout have been botched, notably on the government’s healthare.gov website which is supposed to a portal for citizens of thirty-six states to shop for health insurance.  President Obama has also used his executive powers to delay mandates in the law, which are currently being challenged in the court system as a usurpation of legislative authority.  Due to the politics of the ACA and questions about its implementation, extempers will be handling questions about the ACA for seasons to come.

The ACA has been the subject of many rumors, misinformation, and distortions since it was formulated and passed into law.  This confusion about the law has made implementation difficult and made it difficult for President Obama to rally public opinion behind the law.  This confusion has also affected extempers, who may be unsure about the intentions of the ACA and what it does.  This topic brief will not stake out a political position on the ACA because it is Extemp Central’s belief that these topic briefs should provide you with enough information to reach your own conclusions.  Instead, this topic brief will break down the reasons why the ACA was implemented, what the ACA does, arguments and complaints made by liberals and progressives in the Democratic Party over the legislation, arguments and complains made by conservatives and libertarians in the Republican Party over the legislation, and provide some tips for handling future questions on the ACA.  It is our hope that after reading this brief you will have a better understanding of the ACA and be more confident when speaking about it in future rounds.

Readers are also encouraged to use the links below and in the related R&D to bolster their files about this topic.

Read More

R&D: The Affordable Care Act (2013)

By

On December 31, 2013

In R&D

[fblike]

Here is today’s premium R&D to accompany today’s premium topic brief on the Affordable Care Act.

 

Read More

Healthcare.Gov Problems

By

On October 29, 2013

In Topic Brief, U.S. Extemp

[fblike]

On October 1st, the federal government launched healthcare.gov, which allowed for Americans in 36 states to find healthcare policies that were congruent with the requirements of the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare.  By March 31st, all Americans are required to purchase health insurance or pay a fine.  Although conservatives challenged this individual mandate in court shortly after the Affordable Care Act was signed into law in March 2010, the Supreme Court found it constitutional last summer as a tax.  President Obama hoped that the national exchange would lead to millions of Americans signing up for health insurance and that it would generate good press for his landmark achievement.  However, the website has been riddled with problems, ranging from individuals being unable to create accounts to access the exchange to time outs to slow browsing speed.  States that are running their own exchanges, like Washington, Kentucky, and California have also experienced some technical difficulties.  Conservative critics have seized on the problems of healthcare.gov to bolster their political fortunes after the government shutdown and if these problems are not fixed it could imperil the Affordable Care Act.

Extemp Central has broken down the politics of healthcare reform in the past and extempers are urged to check out our previous briefs on healthcare reform.  This brief will dive into the current controversy by breaking down the problems of healthcare.gov, the impact these problems could have on the success of the Affordable Care Act, and the potential political fallout in Washington D.C. if these problems are not fixed.

Readers are also encouraged to use the links below and in the related R&D to bolster their files about this topic.

Read More

R&D: Healthcare.Gov Problems

By

On October 29, 2013

In R&D

[fblike]

Here is today’s premium R&D to accompany today’s premium topic brief on the problems facing healthcare.gov.

 

Read More

R&D: Obamacare

By

On September 27, 2013

In R&D

[fblike]

Today’s R&D covers the controversial Obamacare initiative, which begins its official roll out on October 1st.

 

Read More

Topic Brief: Healthcare Debate Update, Part 2

By

On November 20, 2009

In Topic Brief, U.S. Extemp

Yesterday, we began our discussion of the current Healthcare Debate in the first part of our topic brief.  As we wrap up your week of preparation for The Glenbrooks, we dive in further to help you better understand some additional complexities concerning the debate.

by Logan Scisco

Abortion Debate

While the Republican Party fought a small civil war over the 23rd New York House district a couple of weeks ago, Democrats are gearing up for their own civil war over the abortion issue.  One of the misconceptions made in the healthcare debate is that the Republican Party is pro-life and the Democratic Party is pro-choice.  While it is true that it is hard to imagine the Republican Party rallying behind a pro-choice candidate (just ask Rudy Giuliani) or the Democratic Party rallying behind a pro-life candidate, both parties have a mixture of ideas about the abortion issue in their camps.

Read More

Topic Brief: Healthcare Debate Update, Part 1

By

On November 19, 2009

In Topic Brief, U.S. Extemp

By Logan Scisco

Since the summer, the Obama administration has attempted to push healthcare reform through Congress.  With 46 million Americans uninsured, the administration and its Democratic colleagues have emphasized the urgency of passing healthcare reform that would provide insurance to these individuals who do not possess insurance because of choice, their economic condition, or because a pre-existing medical condition excludes them from obtaining quality health insurance.  The current economic situation in the country, where the official unemployment rate is the highest in 26 years at 10.2% (some have the actual number of unemployed at 17%), would seem to help the administration pass this reform.  Another added advantage of the administration going into the healthcare debate is that the Democrats control both houses of Congress and have a crucial filibuster-proof majority in the Senate.

However, Obama’s initial push to pass healthcare reform by the end of the summer bit the dust and when representatives went back to their constituents they faced hostile town meetings.  While the media debated the merits of these meetings, they showed how divisive healthcare reform can be as violence was reported at some of the town halls and one man even had a finger bit off.  Furthermore, although the House of Representatives succeeded shortly after the 2009 elections in passing a healthcare bill, the Senate is facing a series of complications in ensuring healthcare reform can clear its chamber.

This topic brief will provide an updated focus on the healthcare debate.  It will examine the future of the public option, the new controversy involving abortion in the healthcare legislation, and the chances of the Democrats getting a healthcare bill through the Senate.

As a side note, I cannot recommend enough that extempers read as much as possible about the healthcare debate, looking at medical journals such as the American Journal of Medicine and other publications to get a sense of the problems that effect American healthcare.  It would also be wise for extempers to read about other “national” healthcare systems that exist in Canada, Great Britain, and France because comparisons in speeches are never a bad idea.

Read More

Extemp Roundtable

By

On September 2, 2009

In Strategy, U.S. Extemp

exfilesept09-01with Nicholas Cugini, Mark Royce, Logan Scisco, Rob Warchol

Extemp Roundtable is a new addition to The Ex Files for this season.  In this column a panel of recognized extempers will examine a question that could come up in a future round and they will reveal their feelings and how they would tackle the question if it was posed to them in a round.

This issues panel is made up of the following individuals:

Nicholas Cugini placed third in United States Extemp at the 2009 NFL National tournament.  Last season, we was also the winner of United States Extemp at the St. Mark’s Heart of Texas Invitational and was a finalist at the MBA Round Robin and the International Extemp tournament at St. Mark’s.  He attended Cypress Ridge High School in Texas and was coached by Scott Baker.  In the fall, Nicholas will attend Yale University.

Mark Royce was the runner-up in International Extemp in 2002.  He coached at Montgomery Bell Academy, and is now a Ph.D. candidate in political science at George Mason University.

Logan Scisco was the national final round champion of United States Extemp at the 2003 NFL National tournament.  He was a four-time national finalist in extemp while competing for Danville High School in Kentucky and for Western Kentucky University.  He currently coaches for Boone County High School in Kentucky and for Western Kentucky University, where he is pursuing a masters degree in history.

Rob Warchol competed for Cardinal Mooney High School in Youngtown, Ohio. With the help of Karen Wright, he was a 3 time state qualifier, and a 2 time national qualifier in United States Extemp. He placed 7th at the 2009 NFCL National Tournament and 8th at the 2009 NFL National Tournament. Rob is continuing his extemp career under Jason Warren at George Mason University, where he plans on majoring in Government and International Politics, with an aspiration of law school.

Read More

Powered by WordPress & Theme by Anders Norén