Next Stab at Health Reform Looks More Promising

Because of recession, even more people need help now

(NEWSER) - It’s a pity Tom Daschle couldn’t stick around, notes the Economist, because his experience would be useful in navigating health reform through Senate straits. The recession is depriving more of care, and though President Obama’s short-term moves are good, a big fix is needed. Absent Daschle, “the wrangling seems likely to go on for some time.” A shame, the magazine writes, because dithering is what killed earlier efforts. More»

(NEWSER) - President Obama has begun wading into the murky details of health care reform. In a letter to Democratic leaders, the president said he could accept a law that requires all Americans to buy insurance—provided it has a "hardship waiver" for those who can't afford it, reports the New York Times. That's a shift from his campaign stance, when he opposed the idea of a so-called individual mandate (as pitched by Hillary, among others). More»

Obama nominee pledges bipartisan effort despite controversial plan

(NEWSER) - Barack Obama’s pick for Secretary of Health and Human Services promised today a bipartisan effort to reform health care, the New York Times reports. “When it comes to health care, we really are in it together,” Tom Daschle said during Senate confirmation hearings, where chairman Ted Kennedy praised the former South Dakota Democratic senator as “just the person for the job.” More»

Dems should be ashamed of bill, but pass the damn thing

(NEWSER) - The Democrats should hurry up and pass their sorry excuse for a health bill, but they should stop calling it "health care reform," writes Michael Moore. The president and Democratic leaders should apologize to the American people for coming up with a bill that leaves 12 million people still uninsured and leaves the "greedy, private insurance industry" in charge of the plan, Moore writes in the Daily Beast. More»

Compromise looking more distant than ever

(NEWSER) - President Obama's health care summit left pundits from across the spectrum feeling more pessimistic than ever about the chances of crafting a bipartisan agreement on reform.

• "It was a talking-point festival," writes Peggy Noonan at the Wall Street Journal. The Republicans put forth seemingly unconnected statements, and the "boorish" Democrats appealed to sentiment in an effort to win support for a bill that they obviously plan to "bully through Congress."