Senate Republican reintroduces measure to repeal health law's Independent Payment Advisory Board

Meanwhile, on the House side, a top Democrat has said he will support efforts to undo the panel created to curb Medicare spending growth. The American Medical Association also reiterated its support for repeal. 

Politico Pro: Cornyn Reintroduces IPAB Bill
Sen. John Cornyn has reintroduced his legislation to repeal the health care reform law's Independent Payment Advisory Board with a way to pay for it, a sign that Senate Republicans are preparing to go after the provision. Cornyn (R-Texas) would pay for the IPAB repeal by requiring people to repay more of their premium subsidies if their income changes during the year, after the subsidies go into effect in 2014. Republicans and Democrats have used the same provision to pay for other legislation before, but this version would require consumers to repay even more (Haberkorn, 2/27).

CQ HealthBeat: Pallone To Back GOP Effort To Repeal Medicare Cost-Cutting Panel
A top House Democrat on health issues plans to vote in favor of a GOP bill that would repeal an independent board created by President Obama's health care overhaul to curb Medicare spending growth. Frank Pallone Jr. of New Jersey, the ranking member on the Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee, said Feb. 24 that he will support the measure at a panel markup Feb. 29, despite his concern that Republicans are using the bill to attack the 2010 health care law (Attias, 2/27).

The Hill: AMA Pushes IPAB Repeal Ahead Of House Panel's Vote
The American Medical Association reiterated its support Monday for Republican-led efforts to repeal the controversial cost-cutting board created by President Obama's healthcare law. The House Energy and Commerce Committee's health panel is scheduled to vote this week to repeal the Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB). The panel of healthcare experts would be tasked with cutting Medicare payments to doctors if spending rises faster than a certain rate (Baker, 2/27).

And The Washington Post reports on the Senate politics swirling in the background -

The Washington Post: The Fight For The Senate Majority Headed For Deadlock
A key reason is that the Senate, which will provide some of the most competitive and expensive contests on the election calendar, is likely to function, or not, in January 2013 the way it does now, regardless of which party holds the majority. Neither the Democrats nor the Republicans are expected to make the sort of sweeping gains at the polls that are necessary to take effective control of the chamber, where work has been hobbled by a constant flow of filibusters and other political and procedural gimmicks (Kane, 2/27).