First Edition: January 11, 2010

Today's headlines highlight Democrats' ongoing efforts to blend the House- and Senate-passed versions of health reform and Republican's continuing efforts to criticize the legislation.  

KHN Column: Transparency And Sausage Making Jonathan Cohn writes that compared to George W. Bush's administration, President Obama has made significant gains in legislative transparency (Kaiser Health News).

Unemployment Report: Health Care Jobs Grew As Other Sectors Withered Over the last couple years the health care industry has endured a deep economic recession that has included rising numbers of uninsured patients, a decline in doctors' visits and an uncertain future partially obscured by the ongoing overhaul debate in Congress (Kaiser Health News).

Letter From Washington: Cutting Costs Is Real Issue In Health Care Overhaul As Democratic Senate and House leaders privately hammer out a final compromise on their competing versions of health care legislation, the controversies focus on a government-run option and abortion. Some feel these are irrelevant to the important decisions that will affect the credibility and sustainability of the measure (The New York Times).

Insurance Mandate Feeds GOP's Attack On Legal Front As congressional Democrats try to iron out differences in the House and Senate health-care bills, Republicans are attacking the legal premise of the legislation, saying Congress has no power to make people carry health insurance or pay a penalty or tax (The Wall Street Journal).

In Colorado, Craving Reform Of Health Care And Congress Donny Seyfer, the manager of an auto repair shop here, had high hopes when President Obama and Congress tackled health care as their top priority early last year (The New York Times).

Nancy Pelosi's Uphill Health Bill Battle Speaker Nancy Pelosi is telling her caucus not to believe stories that the House will simply roll over and accept the Senate's hard-fought health care bill (Politico).

Report: Health Costs Up Slightly Under Senate Bill Americans would see only a modest rise in health care costs under the Senate's plan to extend coverage to 34 million people who currently go without health insurance, government economic experts say in a new report (The Associated Press/The Washington Post).

CMS Report Raises Doubts Over Medicare Savings Claims Senate Republicans have seized on a new report from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services calling into question some of the savings Democrats claim would result from healthcare reform (The Hill).

Stupak Abortion Curbs Fit District Democratic Rep. Bart Stupak's push for restrictions on abortion funding in the health-care overhaul is anathema to many liberal supporters of the bill. But Mr. Stupak sees them as a natural mix of the economic liberalism and social conservatism that defines his home district, Michigan's economically depressed Upper Peninsula (The Wall Street Journal).

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