Viewpoints: Health care system doesn't live up to its billing for many Americans; Romney woos seniors with 'clever Medicare gambit'

CNN: As Supreme Court Arguments Near, Does The U.S. Really Have The Best Health Care System?
If you like your doctor, if your insurance works, if you feel that you're getting good value for your health care dollar, then in your view the U.S. system may rank high. If you don't have a regular doctor, if you're without insurance or underinsured, if you're swamped by medical bills, then in your view the U.S. system may not rank so high. And this is aside from debate over the role of government in the health care system (David Schechter, 3/15).

The Wall Street Journal: An ObamaCare Briefing
The constitutional challenge to President Obama's health-care plan lands at the Supreme Court later this month, and however the justices rule the precedent will be history-making. One of the attorneys who will be arguing major parts of the case gave reporters a preview and his inside take at a briefing yesterday (Joseph Rago, 3/15).

Bloomberg: Romney Woos Seniors With Clever Medicare Gambit
(Mitt) Romney has repeatedly endorsed Wyden-Ryan, which he thinks will let him argue in debates with Obama that he favors a bipartisan plan that won't make future seniors give up Medicare if they don't want to…. Facts are oh so confusing. Getting them through the clatter will be tough for Obama this fall. By embracing Wyden-Ryan and attacking the president on the Democrats' turf, Romney has a good shot to fuzz up the issue enough to keep seniors firmly in the Republican column (Jonathan Alter, 3/15).

San Francisco Chronicle: Obamacare Drives Up Health Care Costs For Everyone
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services recently released their annual report on health care spending in America…. With all these data in the mix, it's hard to see how the White House could crow about "keeping costs down and making health care more affordable." Instead, Obamacare is driving up health costs for Americans today -- and saddling the next generation with trillions of dollars in new health care liabilities (Sally C. Pipes, 3/16).

The Washington Post: Catholics, Contraceptives And John Locke
But opinion is not really "split" on the question of whether "religiously affiliated employers, such as a hospital and university" should be able to opt out of offering coverage. Women support this proposition by 53 percent to 38 percent (Michael Gerson, 3/15).

Arizona Republic: Should Birth Control Be A Firing Offense?
Do you have birth control pills in your purse or a condom in your wallet? Careful, that might get you fired. The Republicans who control the Arizona Legislature are pushing through a bill that would make it OK for both religious and secular employers to deny health-care coverage for contraception if the employers object for moral or religious reasons. But apparently that's not all (E.J. Montini, 3/16).

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Abortion Measure Misguided
Responsible medicine requires that patients and health care providers make treatment decisions together, based on medically accurate, unbiased information. The state Senate should not allow the personal ideologies of some abortion opponents to trump credible scientific evidence (Vicki Saporta, 3/15).