Deck 7: Why Health Reform Happened

Question 1

What does the author suggest the future holds?

A)hard work to protect a law that does not deliver big tangible benefits for years to come
B)healthy expansion along the lines of Social Security, which started small and grew big
C)fairly clear sailing after the Supreme Court's 5-4 decision in favor of the law
D)significant problems after the Supreme Court made the expansion of Medicaid optional

Answer 1

hard work to protect a law that does not deliver big tangible benefits for years to come

Question 2

The author of Chapter 7 is a(n)____.

A)political scientist with a Ph.D. from Yale
B)Congressman from Connecticut
C)former member of President Clinton's staff
D)economist with a Ph.D. from Harvard

Answer 2

political scientist with a Ph.D. from Yale

Question 3

The three leading Democratic candidates in the 2008 presidential race ____.

A)endorsed essentially the same reform plan
B)were out of sync with the Democratic congressional leadership
C)varied in their support of the public option
D)endorsed somewhat similar reform plans

Answer 3

endorsed essentially the same reform plan

Question 4

Early on, President Obama's team cut sweetheart deals with the pharmaceutical and hospital industries. In the long run, ____.

A)they largely took off the table tools of cost control used in other nations
B)Congress successfully undid them
C)they enhanced the law's ability to deliver tangible benefits to the middle class
D)they receded in importance

Question 5

The economy played an important role in health care reform in that it was ____.

A)in a steep downturn
B)relatively stable
C)increasingly prosperous
D)starting to decline

Question 6

The composition of the Democratic majority in Congress with whom President Obama worked ____.

A)included fewer members from conservative southern regions
B)was less liberal than in President Clinton's time
C)included more members from conservative western regions
D)was essentially the same as in President Clinton's time

Question 7

President Obama's approach was to ____.

A)facilitate a congressionally centered process
B)dictate to Congress exactly what it should produce
C)win over the voters, not the usual interest groups
D)weigh in repeatedly on congressional progress

Question 8

Major unions, liberal think tanks, and health care advocacy organizations ____.

A)were strong backers of the compromise plan
B)were mixed in their response to the compromise plan
C)sought a single-payer plan
D)sought significant expansion of employer-based coverage

Question 9

A prerequisite for the health care reform that occurred in 2010 was the ____.

A)election of a Democratic president
B)election of President Obama
C)Democrats achieving a majority in the Senate
D)universal acceptance of the public option

Question 10

The American Medical Association, a fierce opponent to health care reform in the past, now ____.

A)sought higher revenues under public programs
B)remained equally fierce
C)opposed only the individual mandate
D)held its fire but did not endorse reform

Question 11

The author describes the relationship between the level of public support of health care reform in 2010 and its passage as ____.

A)decisive
B)necessary but not sufficient
C)necessary and sufficient
D)sufficient but not necessary

Question 12

The insurance industry in particular wanted to harness the power of ____.

A)the individual mandate
B)universal coverage
C)the public option
D)the "fix" to the 1997 Medicare formula

Question 13

Which statement best describes the "public option"?

A)A public insurance plan modeled after Medicare that would compete with private plans to enroll those without coverage.
B)An individual option to participate in a public plan providing the mandatory minimum of coverage.
C)A public insurance plan modeled after Medicare that would provide universal coverage.
D)An individual option to participate in a public plan after reaching age 55.

Question 14

What does the author recommend based on his experience with health care reform?

A)Political scientists should be more attuned to the contours of public policy and the process by which it is made.
B)Political scientists should maintain objectivity and focus on real scholarship rather than political advocacy.
C)Academic economists are more suited to engage with public issues than political scientists.
D)Political scientists should at least once enter the political, policy-making fray

Question 15

A key factor in the convergence of Democrats around essentially the same reform plan was the ____.

A)failure of the Clinton plan
B)move away from employer-based insurance
C)decreased role of the public option
D)growth oriented economic environment