First edition: September 15, 2009

Sep 15 2009

Today's headlines zero in on the soon-to-be unveiled Baucus health bill. Reports indicate it likely will address many GOP concerns but also raising new issues for some Democrats.

Checking In With Dr.Abraham Verghese On The Importance Of The Bedside Manner Dr. Abraham Verghese, a professor and senior associate chair at Stanford University's School of Medicine and a best-selling author, often writes about the magic of the doctor-patient relationship. In the health care debate, he offers a distinct voice shaped by his experiences as a practicing physician, medical educator and storyteller -- that voice champions the art of medicine (Kaiser Health News).
Listen to excerpts of the interview.

Senate Health Bill On The Floor Within Two Weeks Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., will unveil his long awaited health care overall bill by midweek and told reporters this morning that the overall cost would come in below $880 billion over the next 10 years, about $20 billion less than the price tag used by President Barack Obama in a major speech to Congress last week (Kaiser Health News).

Health Care Bill Has Steep Hill To Climb A USA TODAY/Gallup Poll taken after the president's dramatic address to a joint session of Congress last week shows Americans almost evenly divided over passing a health care bill and inclined to think it would make some of the system's vexing problems worse, not better (USA Today).

Reform Bill Will Address GOP Fears The chairman of the Senate Finance Committee said Monday that he will propose an overhaul of the nation's health-care system that addresses a host of GOP concerns, including blocking illegal immigrants from gaining access to subsidized insurance, urging limits on medical malpractice lawsuits and banning federal subsidies for abortion (The Washington Post).

New Objections To Baucus Health Care Proposal Two of the three Republicans in a small group trying to forge a bipartisan compromise on health care have requested numerous major changes in a proposal drafted by the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, reducing the chances that he can win their support (The New York Times).

Bipartisan Baucus Plan May Leave Democrats Cold Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus has been trying for months to write a health care bill that could win Republican support. If he succeeds he may find it's fellow Democrats he has to worry about (The Associated Press).

Baucus Crafts Health Care Plan, But Senate Democrats Have Concerns Some rank-and-file Senate Democrats are voicing concerns about sweeping health legislation being crafted by Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, citing what they describe as excessive burdens placed on some families and concerns over financing for the $880 billion package (The Wall Street Journal).

Dems Ready To Amend Baucus Health Bill Democrats on the Senate Finance Committee are poised to demand changes to the healthcare legislation being drafted by their chairman. Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) plans to introduce his proposal for healthcare reform on Wednesday with a committee mark up to begin the following Tuesday. Based on the comments by several committee Democrats after a meeting Monday evening, that mark up could be a lengthy one (The Hill).

Immigration, Health Debates Cross Paths As Congress's debate over health-care legislation lumbers toward a defining test for the Obama presidency, partisans on both sides of another issue -- immigration -- escalated their own proxy war this week, concluding that the fates of the two issues have become politically linked (The Washington Post).

Politics Trumps Policy In Health Debate The left-vs.-right battles that dominate American politics — and that President Barack Obama has sought desperately to avoid — are about to move center stage in the health care debate (Politico).

Healthcare Reform Wins Over Doctors Lobby The American Medical Assn., after 60 years of opposing any government overhaul of healthcare, is now lobbying and advertising to win public support for President Obama's sweeping plan -- a proposal that promises hundreds of billions of dollars for America's doctors (Los Angeles Times).

Poll Finds Most Doctors Support Public Option
Among all the players in the health care debate, doctors may be the least understood about where they stand on some of the key issues around changing the health care system. Now, a new survey finds some surprising results: A large majority of doctors say there should be a public option (NPR).

For Speech-Impaired, Insurance Fights Remedy Kara Lynn has amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or A.L.S., which has attacked the muscles around her mouth and throat, removing her ability to speak. A couple of years ago, she spent more than $8,000 to buy a computer, approved by Medicare, that turns typed words into speech that her family, friends and doctors can hear (The New York Times).

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