Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
In Case 'Cadillac Tax' Hits, Autoworkers Union Contracts Leave Open Possibility Of New Deductibles
The recent battles to win new four-year labor agreements with Detroit auto makers helped the United Auto Workers union reverse nearly a decade of givebacks, but the contracts allow for a change to health care plans that could reverberate on workers. Left open in the drive to win higher pay for union members was how the auto makers will handle their contracts’ health-care costs when a federal tax on high-cost health insurance plans begins in 2018. (Rogers, 12/9)
Elizabeth Holmes rarely slips out of character. When she responds to questions in an interview or on a conference stage, she leans forward, leg crossed ankle over knee in a half-lotus manspread power pose. She lowers her voice an octave or two, as if she’s plumbing the depths of the human vocal cord. Although she hates it being remarked upon, her clothing, a disciplined all-black ensemble of flat shoes, slacks, turtleneck, and blazer buttoned at the waist, is impossible not to notice. She adopted this uniform, as she calls it, in 2003, when she founded Theranos, a company seeking to revolutionize the medical diagnostics industry by doing tests using only a few drops of blood. (Kolhatkar and Chen, 12/10)