Latest KFF Health News Stories
Health On The Hill – February 22, 2010
Just days before a bipartisan White House summit on health care, President Obama unveiled a proposal that closely tracks the Senate-passed health legislation with some modifications.
Full Text: Obama’s Health Care Proposal
Read the full text of President Obama’s health care proposal, which he will bring to his Thursday health ‘summit’ with Congressional leaders.
Health On The Hill – February 16, 2010
President Obama has scheduled a bipartisan summit for Feb. 25 to discuss ways to pass health care overhaul legislation this year. On Capitol Hill, Democratic leaders in both chambers are trying to resolve differences between House and Senate-passed health care bills and make progress on the issue once lawmakers return from the President’s Day recess.
The Health Reform That Scares Both Parties
Twenty-seven years ago, President Ronald Reagan and a Congress split between Republican and Democratic control agreed to a radical new payment scheme for Medicare. The resulting legislation trimmed billions of dollars from the federal budget and caused medical inflation to plummet, yet still maintained quality of care.
Will Health Care Savings Be Used To Reduce The Deficit?
As health care legislation falters, health groups worry that proposed spending cutbacks might be used to narrow the budget gap, not expand coverage.
Too many Democrats seem not to grasp the choice before them – the legislation simply has too much to offer to believe for a minute that doing nothing is the better choice.
How Health Overhaul Would Affect The Uninsured
As a part of our “Are You Covered?” series, KHN and NPR also examine how the health overhaul would impact the uninsured.
Sebelius To GOP: ‘Don’t Get Wrong Impression’ About Obama Health Summit
HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said that President Obama’s Feb. 25 bipartisan summit is to “get Republicans to re-engage in the process. It is not acceptable that half the legislative body pushed away from the table months ago and said ‘we do not want to participate.'”
Transcript: Health On The Hill – Obama’s Budget Proposal, Continuing Negotiations On Health Reform
President Obama’s budget request for fiscal 2011 would give states an additional $25 billion in Medicaid funding to help cover rising program costs.
Health On The Hill – February 1, 2010
President Obama’s budget request for fiscal 2011 would give states an additional $25 billion in Medicaid funding to help cover rising program costs. Meanwhile, House and Senate Democratic leaders continue negotiations on how to pass health care overhaul legislation this year, although lawmakers’ focus has shifted in part to finding ways to improve the economy and increase jobs.
High-Ranking House Democrat Predicts Health Bill Approval This Year
House Education and Labor Committee Chairman George Miller says Congress will pass health overhaul legislation this year even though Democratic leaders are increasingly focusing on the economy and jobs.
Obama On Health Care: What A Difference A Year Makes
In his first State of the Union speech, President Obama called on Congress to get health reform “done.” While he acknowledged obstacles, his call for health reform was just as impassioned as his first address to a joint session of Congress 11 months ago.
Highlights From Obama’s State Of The Union
President Barack Obama gave his first State of the Union address on Wednesday, reiterating the country’s need for health care reform and stating Congress “should not walk away” from the issue.
Lessons From Massachusetts: Campaigning Beats Governing Into Submission, Again
Legislators should gather together to pass health reform legislation, even with all the structural impediments to governing created by our separation of powers and frequent elections.
GOP Struggles For Consensus On Health Care
Republicans have some ideas for how their stalled health overhaul can get started again: Find some bipartisanship. The problem is that most Republicans don’t agree on many of the proposals fellow party members are shopping around Capitol Hill. This story comes from our partner NPR News.
Health On The Hill – January 25, 2010
Congressional Democrats continue to debate their next step on health care overhaul legislation, with some urging that Congress move quickly on a scaled-back approach. President Obama and administration officials have stressed that they do not want Congress to abandon the issue and the president is expected to discuss health care during his State of the Union address.
The Bipartisan Trap – And How Democrats Fell Into It
Every special interest knew that the Democrats had a razor-thin margin for success–and that gave them maximum leverage. They understood early on that, by trying in good faith to reach deals with Republicans and conservatives, Democrats were falling into a trap–the one that’s ensnaring them now.
Health Care Overhaul May Be Mortally Wounded
A political change of temperature has lawmakers scrambling for a new strategy on a health overhaul. This story comes from our partner NPR News.
A Smaller, Bipartisan Health Care Bill: Where to Start
A few modest first steps could do a lot to begin to build some bipartisan trust — and actually help some Americans who need it.
Audio: Health On The Hill – January 21, 2010
The fate of congressional health overhaul legislation is uncertain after Republican Scott Brown’s win in Massachusetts’ special election on Monday and Democrats’ loss of a filibuster-proof majority.
