Selected stories from the daily newsletter CQ HealthBeat from the week of February 15, 2010. Provided as a service under rights licensed by The Commonwealth Fund. The full-text version of this newsletter is available in the Health Reform section of
commonwealthfund.org.
President Obama invited Republican leaders to "show me what you got" at a health care summit with congressional leaders set for Thursday.
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Four House Democrats in a call with reporters used a proposed Anthem Blue Cross insurance hike in California as an example of the kind of development they hope will stoke public rage over health care costs and breathe life back into the overhaul. Read more »
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid issued a warning to Republicans not to obstruct Democrats' latest efforts to enact a health care overhaul, by threatening to use expedited budget reconciliation rules to force a vote on legislation that includes a public insurance option.
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Conservative opponents of Democrats' health care overhaul plans touted their success in Massachusetts and vowed at a Washington political conference to continue their drive to ensure the demise of a "big government takeover" of the system. Read more »
HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius seized on a study showing double-digit premium increases charged by Medicare Advantage plans as a new example of punitive pricing by insurers.
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At least 30 states are contemplating cutbacks to Medicaid, the health entitlement for the poor, beginning in July, unless Congress acts to keep extra money flowing into the program, the health consumer interest group Families USA said. Read more »