Reform Questions Continue to Loom

KDHPR

Reuters reports that "President Barack Obama's drive to overhaul the U.S. healthcare system may be back on track thanks to Senate efforts to cut the price tag to $1 trillion, but a bipartisan deal on the sweeping proposal still is far from certain ... Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus was upbeat last week after announcing that panel members had found ways to bring the price tag to about $1 trillion over 10 years, down from an earlier estimate of a staggering $1.6 trillion ... Instead, the core group of negotiators -- three Democrats and four Republicans -- issued a tepid statement on Thursday merely affirming their commitment to continue negotiations."
But bipartisan support has not been entirely evident. "Several Senate Republicans, including Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, have been speaking out daily in opposition to Obama's healthcare ideas. They are expected to continue the effort in July when Democratic leaders hope a bill will be ready for Senate consideration. 'We have some problems with access and with cost which can be addressed without wrecking the best healthcare system in the world,' McConnell said on FOX News Sunday'" (Smith, 6/28).
The effort also faces incoming attacks from more liberal lawmakers attacking members of the Democratic party, The Washington Post reports: "In the high-stakes battle over health care, a growing cadre of liberal activists is aiming its sharpest firepower against Democratic senators who they accuse of being insufficiently committed to the cause. ... The rising tensions between Democratic legislators and constituencies that would typically be their natural allies underscore the high hurdles for Obama as he tries to hold together a diverse, fragile coalition. Activists say they are simply pressing for quick delivery of 'true health reform,' but the intraparty rift runs the risk of alienating centrist Democrats who will be needed to pass a bill" (Connolly, 6/28).

New Polls Find Support for Health Reform, Fear of Costs

KDHPR

A series of new polls this week show support for major health care reform, but trepidation about certain policy proposals, and anxiety about quickly growing health care costs, the possibility of losing coverage, and the federal budget deficit in general.
Associated Press: A poll by the University of Michigan has found that "nearly half of all Americans worried about paying for future [health] care," while one-quarter fear losing their insurance coverage, and about as many said they had delayed care this year because of cost concerns. The poll was funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (Kerr, 6/17).
Wall Street Journal: "On health care, the public remains open to persuasion. Without being told anything specific about [President Obama's] plan in the survey, about a third of people said it's a good idea, about a third said it's a bad idea and the rest had no opinion. When given several details of his approach, 55% said they favored it, versus 35% who were opposed," according to a new Wall Street Journal/NBC poll. Support for a public health insurance plan reached nearly 75 percent when no details were given, but less than half preferred specific arguments supporting the plan to those critical of it (Meckler, 6/18).

Massachusetts, Tennessee Health Plans Might Offer Ideas on U.S. Health Care System Overhaul

KDHPR

Congressional lawmakers who are crafting a plan to overhaul the U.S. health care system might be able to look to state health insurance programs in Massachusetts and Tennessee for ideas, the AP/Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.
Health reform legislation modeled after Massachusetts' near-universal health insurance law "is likely to emerge" in Congress, "although details remain unsettled," the AP/Star Tribune reports. The plan also could include components of Tennessee's CoverTN program, which charges beneficiaries who smoke or are overweight higher premiums. Lawmakers in the Senate already have discussed a lifestyle tax funding mechanism, such as taxes on alcohol and sugary beverages. According to AP/Star Tribune, Massachusetts "chose to cover virtually everyone," while Tennessee "chose to get just a few more people bare-bones insurance at a budget price with limits on how much plans would pay for hospital stays."