NEWS

Obama backers try to control health care debate - MSNBC

Supporters seek to recapture energy from last year’s triumphant campaign

Health Bill Would Cut Drug Spending for Many on Medicare, Budget Office Says - New York Times

Medicare beneficiaries would often have to pay higher premiums for prescription drug coverage, but many would see their total drug spending decline, so they would save money as a result of health legislation moving through the House, the Congressional Budget Office said in a recent report.

Liberals Target Grassley on Public Option - Washington Post

Two liberal groups are going after Republican Sen. Charles Grassley in his home state of Iowa for refusing to endorse a public insurance option as part of health-care reform.

Burner Helping House Liberals Hold Firm on Public Insurance Option - Roll Call

An organizer for liberal House Democrats says the bloc “isn’t bluffing” as it prepares to take a reputation-defining stand to protect a public insurance option in the health care overhaul.

Grassley says campaign contributions hold no sway - Des Moines Register

Sen. Charles Grassley last week called lobbyists for the American Hospital Association "economic parasites," accusing them of failing to consult Iowa hospitals before agreeing to proposed Medicare cuts that could hurt them.

Stronger Prospects for the President on a Health Care Bill - New York Times

If sentiment ever ruled the United States Senate, it does not now. Advocates of health care overhaul should not expect a big boost in memory of Senator Edward M. Kennedy.

Senior Groups Reject Health Care 'Scare Tactics' - NPR

At high noon on one of the hottest days of the summer, a small group of senior citizens sweated it out in front of state GOP headquarters in Raleigh, N.C., asking the Republican Party to stop using what they called "scare tactics" to turn senior citizens against overhauling the health care system. It could be the start of a silver backlash against what some say is a misinformation campaign about health care reform.

OPINION

Majority Rule on Health Care Reform - New York Times

The talk in Washington is that Senate Democrats are preparing to push through health care reforms using parliamentary procedures that will allow a simple majority to prevail in their chamber, as it does in the House, instead of the 60 votes needed to overcome the filibuster that Senate Republicans are sure to mount.

Stop subsidizing health insurance for the wealthy - Baltimore Sun

It's the elephant in the room that the health reform committees haven't decided whether to take on. Yet Congress must address the dysfunctional federal tax subsidy for health insurance if it is serious about eliminating excessive health insurance and health care costs, extending health care coverage to most of the 46 million uninsured Americans, and paying for it in a fair and sensible way.

Health Care Costs in the Federal Budget Are Heading for Disaster - Change.org

Since the White House Office of Management and Budget and the Congressional Budget Office released the latest numbers on our budget deficit, we have predictably been treated to a host of opinions on why now is not the time for health care reform. This analysis has it backwards. We can’t afford not to reform health care. Doing so spells certain doom for the future of our federal budget.