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Baucus signals finance committee progress on health overhaul bill

"A group of key Senate negotiators found a way to further reduce the price tag on the health care reform bill, bringing it in line with a $1 trillion target and moving the Senate Finance Committee closer to a deal, Chairman Max Baucus said Thursday," according to Politico.

29 Jun 2009

President Obama joins in chorus of complaints about CBO figures

President Barack Obama joins the chorus of Democrats who criticize Congressional Budget Office numbers and claim that their analyses estimates aren't fair. The criticism comes after the agency provided $1 to $1.6 trillion estimates for two of the Democrats' draft health care reform bills.

29 Jun 2009

Warranties and reimbursements for family caregivers provide alternative payment methods

The New York Times reports on a proposal for a new health care reimbursement model that offers warranties to patients, a topic also examined in a piece by Francois de Brantes in the journal, Health Affairs.

29 Jun 2009

Critics escalate attacks on health care overhaul

Tensions are showing as health reform continues to be center stage on the President's and Congress' domestic policy agenda.

29 Jun 2009

Finance Committee Senators: Reform bill trimmed to less than $1 trillion

Some senators on the Finance Committee said Thursday they've moved closer to cutting their health reform bill's cost to under $1 trillion.

29 Jun 2009

Is President Obama fighting the last war?

Bill and Hillary Clinton are off saving the world, he through his global foundation and she via the State Department. But their presence looms over the health care debate as surely as if they were running the White House. Their epic failure to pass reform in 1994 has become the defining object lesson in how to botch health care legislation--a lesson President Obama has obviously taken to heart. Push for reform right away; let Congress hash out the details; and, above all, don't threaten people's current insurance arrangements. You can sum up Obama's strategy for health reform as "WWCD": What Wouldn't the Clintons Do.

29 Jun 2009

White House not ruling out taxing benefits, public plan compromise

Politico: "White House senior adviser David Axelrod says President Barack Obama would like to have a public option – or government-run insurance plan – as part of a health reform package, but will not insist on it.

29 Jun 2009

Obama, Democrats walking fine line on health overhaul

Various media outlets examined how negotiations for a bipartisan health care overhaul are facing challenges from Democrats as well as Republicans.

29 Jun 2009

Sources: Hospitals may strike deal to save $200 billion

Hospitals could sign on to an agreement with Senate health reform leader Max Baucus, D-Mont., and the White House to help save up to $200 billion as part of the overhaul plan, lobbyist and health industry sources tell Roll Call.

25 Jun 2009

Poll: Most want health reform but fear its side effects

"A majority of Americans see government action as critical to controlling runaway health-care costs, but there is broad public anxiety about the potential impact of reform legislation and conflicting views about the types of fixes being proposed on Capitol Hill, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll," The Washington Post reports.

25 Jun 2009

Colorado rural co-ops provide example for health care system proposal

Rural utility co-ops in Colorado could provide an example of how a co-op would work nationally for health care, The Denver Post reports.

25 Jun 2009

Obama, health insurers clash on public plan

"President Obama made a detailed case on Tuesday for a new government-administered health insurance plan, but he did not rule out signing a bill that lacks such an option if he cannot win enough support from Democrats in Congress," The New York Times reports.

25 Jun 2009

Lawmakers, spouses ties to health industry shape views

Nearly 50 lawmakers in Congress have spouses who work in the health care industry and that may be influencing their thinking on health reform, CQ Politics reports.

25 Jun 2009

Baucus takes center stage as health reform deal maker

"As President Obama's effort to overhaul the health care system seems to hit one roadblock after another in Congress, he is counting on Senator Max Baucus [D-Mont.], a political shape-shifter and crafty deal maker who is not fully trusted by either party, to help him clinch his top domestic priority," the New York Times reports in a profile of the Senate Finance Committee leader.

25 Jun 2009

Business groups note faults in House Democrats' overhaul plan

House Democrats readying a health reform bill without a price tag or a budget analysis will hear from business interests today that their plan is irrevocably broken and that they need to start from scratch, CongressDaily reports.

25 Jun 2009

HHS Secretary presses lawmakers on health care

"Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius told a U.S. House panel Wednesday that the Obama administration is willing to negotiate how health overhaul legislation is paid for, but not whether it is paid for," according to the Dow Jones Newswires.

25 Jun 2009

Finance Committee continues work on health overhaul, benefits tax advances in negotiations

The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee continued its mark up of health care reform legislation while the Senate Finance Committee "was hunkered down in negotiations on its version, with Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) shuttling between closed-door meetings to try to reach a consensus," Roll Call reports.

25 Jun 2009

Dental health advocates want to sink teeth into health care reform

The Washington Post reports many oral health professionals worry that dental issues have "a tenuous place at best in the national debate" regarding an overhaul of the health care system. Still, they emphasize that dental health is an integral part of health care and note the special burden untreated dental issues have on poor children.

23 Jun 2009

Details remain unclear on Medicare drug deal

The White House formally announced the drug manufacturers' plan to lower Medicare drug prices Monday. While details still remain unclear, it appears drug companies may benefit from the deal.

23 Jun 2009

Firms tweak benefit plans in District of Columbia and Baltimore area

The Washington Post reports that "More Washington- and Baltimore-area employers are shifting health-insurance costs to workers, offering high-deductible health plans and imposing restrictions on prescription-drug coverage to save money in the recession, according to a new survey by area human resources managers to be released today. But to keep good workers from jumping ship, according to the survey, more employers are offsetting the restrictions by beefing up other perks -- giving staff more flexibility in taking time off and working from home, and extending benefits to domestic partners."

23 Jun 2009