Today's OpEds: Harkin, Coleman, Leavitt and others

New Health Reform Law Will Benefit Americans Des Moines Register
Despite all the talk recently about how our nation has become divided and ungovernable, we have proved not only that we are governable, but also that we still have the capacity to act with boldness and vision (Sen. Tom Harkin, 4/6).

Obama's Bait-And-Switch Campaign Politico
What the American people want is the kind of president Obama sold them: a post-partisan consensus-builder. They are justifiably angry at the massive bait-and-switch on health care reform, the most important public policy debate in our lifetime (Norm Coleman, 4/6).

We Call That Double-Dipping The New York Times
Republican critics are continuing to pummel health care reform. Their newest charge is that the elimination of one generous tax deduction for retiree benefits would take such a bite out of corporate profits that companies may have to cut back on hiring, drop that retiree benefit, and shift added costs onto the taxpayer. What is really going on? It is true that, starting in 2013, the new law eliminates a corporate tax advantage on retiree drug benefits that amounts to double-dipping (4/5).

The Separation Of Health And States The Wall Street Journal
Now that U.S. health care has been annexed by Washington, every medical question will soon become a political question too, and the British elections are foreshadowing what that will mean in practice (4/6).

Health Care Law No Threat To States' Rights The Hartford Courant
State officials have numerous ways to check and balance the federal government when they feel it has overstepped its bounds. (John Nugent, 4/6).

Unfunded Mandates Force States To Fight The Arizona Republic
Under the new federal mandates, we'll have to cut even more from the state budget. The problem is that even if we cut everything except education, public safety and state-shared revenues, we still couldn't pay for the new health-care mandate (Nancy Barto, 4/6).

Medicare's Future National Journal
Medicare's problems are deep. Real reform will require big scale change. This bill is small-ball value demonstration projects attached to a massive [expansion] of the same-old problems. (Mike Leavitt, 4/5).

New Approaches Will Ease Shortage The Tennessean
Most medical schools have started to take steps to increase the size of their classes, and several new schools have either opened or are in the planning process (Dr. Barrett Rosen, 4/6).