This Week in Health Care Reform

Lawmakers returned to Washington
this week after a heated August recess to continue to negotiate health
care reform. Americans remain sharply divided on legislation: In a
Gallup Poll released Tuesday, 39% of those polled say they would direct
their member of Congress to vote against a health care reform bill this
fall, while 37% want their member to vote in favor of a health care
reform bill.

Joint Session

President Barack Obama Holds
Joint Session on Health Care Reform: On Wednesday, in a televised
primetime speech before a joint session of Congress, President Obama
sought to build momentum for the health care overhaul by outlining a
specific blueprint of what he intends reform legislation to deliver. He
made the case for a government-run insurance option, citing it as the
best way to foster greater competition in the insurance market.
However, he also indicated that a public option is a means to an end
and encouraged consideration of other options. He said that his plan
would cost around $900 billion over 10 years, but would be deficit
neutral.

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Public Plan

House
Majority Leader Would Support Reform Legislation Without Public Option:
On Tuesday, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) said that he would
support health reform legislation without a public option . "If the
public option weren't in there, I could still support a bill, because I
think there's a lot in there that's good," he said. Just hours after
Rep. Hoyer's comment, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) insisted that a
public option is essential to reform legislation. In addition, Rep.
Mike Ross (D-AR), a Blue Dog congressman, said Tuesday that he could no
longer back the government-insurance option.

Senate Negotiations

Senate
Finance Committee Chair Unveils Compromise Plan: The "Gang of Six," a
subset of the Senate Finance Committee, met Tuesday to discuss a new
proposal from Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT) that reflects the
group's negotiations. The plan calls for non-profit cooperatives and an
individual mandate, but does not contain an employer mandate. A new tax
on insurance companies would raise about $6 billion a year to help pay
for health reform. The plan would also impose annual fees of $4 billion
on medical device manufacturers, $2.3 billion on pharmaceutical
manufacturers and $750 million on clinical laboratories. On Wednesday,
Sen. Baucus indicated that he plans to introduce a bill next week, with
or without Republican support.

Additional Activities

President
Obama Meets with Leading Democrats: In a private meeting Tuesday,
President Obama met with Democratic Congressional leaders to discuss
their health care reform strategy. Coming out of the meeting, Speaker
Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) commented that they
were re-energized and ready to press forward with reform legislation.
Speaker Pelosi reiterated that the House would not pass legislation
without a public option.

Iowa Senator Will Replace Late HELP
Committee Chairman: On Wednesday, a Democrat aide announced that Sen.
Tom Harkin (D-IA) will replace the late Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-MA) as
chairman of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee,
one of two Senate panels focused on health reform. A Senate aide
confirmed Tuesday that Sen. Christopher Dodd (D-CT) will not take on
the role, and will continue to instead lead the Senate Banking, Housing
and Urban Affairs Committee.

Medical Association Endorses
Obama-style Health Care Reform: In an open letter to President Obama
and members of Congress, the American Medical Association gave its
support to presidential health care reform efforts, stating, "On behalf
of America's physicians and their patients, we strongly urge you to
reach agreement this year on health system reforms." The letter, signed
by AMA President J. James Rohback, M.D, was posted on the AMA website
just before Wednesday's presidential address to serve as "a shot in the
arm" for President Obama as he attempts to salvage health care reform.

Looking Ahead

Sen. Baucus indicated that he plans to "mark up" a bill the week of September 21.