NEWS

Democrats Agree To Tentatively Trade Opt-Out For Trigger, Medicare Buy In, And More - TPM

An aide briefed on the negotiations among the gang of 10 offers up the rundown of the most important aspects of the public option compromise being sent to CBO.

Democrats' Ideas To Expand Medicare Raise Hackles Of Doctors, Hospitals, Insurers - Kaiser Health News

Hospitals, doctors and insurers lined up in opposition Tuesday to allowing people under 65 to join Medicare – an idea being debated as Senate negotiators struggle to put together the 60 votes needed to pass sprawling health care legislation.

Aetna Overstated Spending on Patient-Care Category - Wall Street Journal

Aetna Inc. spent less money on patient care for some small businesses than it originally reported in regulatory filings, according to a Senate committee scrutinizing insurers' profits as Congress pushes to overhaul the health-care system.

Labor unions lobby against ‘Cadillac’ tax - The Hill

Unions are ramping up lobbying efforts to remove an excise tax on high-cost insurance plans in the Senate healthcare reform bill.

Drug-import backers worry Obama may scuttle plan - Associated Press

A long-running effort to allow the import of lower-cost prescription drugs faces a new twist — President Barack Obama's administration is raising safety concerns that could effectively scuttle it, even though Obama backed the plan as a senator.

Senate Rejects Strict Abortion Curbs In Health Bill - NPR

The Senate on Tuesday rejected an effort by abortion opponents to tighten restrictions in the health care overhaul bill on taxpayer dollars for the procedure, but it was unlikely to be the last word on the divisive issue.

OPINION

What's up with this "ping pong" thing, anyway? - Congress Matters

The hot procedural news out of the Hill yesterday was the prospect of "ping ponging" the health insurance reform bill to passage.

Selling Insurance Across State Lines–Now the Dems Are Pushing the Idea–Why It Won't Work - Health Care Policy and Marketplace Review

A favorite Republican health care soundbite calls for making the health insurance system more efficient by letting health plans sell across state lines.

Health Care Reform: Compromise or Compromised - Huffington Post

This most recent proposal caught my eye because, in September, a retired federal employee called me to ask for help regarding her health care benefits. She had received a letter from her insurer–Blue Cross' Keystone Health Plan East–that for years offered the Federal Health Benefits Program, informing her that Keystone was cancelling the federal employees program. The retired employee, whom I will call Mary, had read some of my Huffington Post pieces on health care reform and thought I might be able to get information for her about why the program was cancelled–and what her options were for another insurer. Mary is a breast cancer survivor and was afraid that she would not be able to find another plan because her cancer would be considered a pre-existing condition, and because of her age.