Sen. Ron Wyden, of Oregon, has a knack for linking up with Republicans to introduce innovative health care policy that can garner real bipartisan support. When the Affordable Care Act was but a glimmer in President Obama’s eye, Wyden and Republican Sen. Bob Bennett, of Utah, introduced the Healthy Americans Act. This health care reform …
Tomorrow, Don Berwick, the head of Medicare and Medicaid, will appear before the Senate Finance Committee. Republicans are, to put it mildly, looking forward to this. Berwick was installed via recess appointment, bypassing a Senate confirmation hearing. Expect a peek of what’s to come in 2011, once Republicans control the three …
Liberals are having a good chuckle today over a great little item in Politico today about a freshman congressman. Apparently, anti-Obamacare crusader and physician Andy Harris threw a bit of a fit yesterday when told his government-subsidized health insurance wouldn’t begin until 28 days after he starts his new job on Capitol Hill. At an …
An early proposal from President Obama’s deficit commission appears to have been leaked today. The commission was due to release recommendations in December and its findings and proposals were much anticipated.
It’s unclear if the “draft” unveiled today will mirror final recommendations from the commission, but at the very …
“I don’t think it’s in our society’s best interest to expend energy in repealing the law.”
—David Cordani, the CEO of Cigna, the fifth largest health insurance company in the U.S., commenting on Republican pledges to repeal the Affordable Care Act
Of course, health insurance companies got something very important out of health …
More states may sign on to the lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act. I spoke to Kathleen Sebelius, the Health and Human Services secretary, today and she said, “I’m sure with the turnover, there will be more states joining the lawsuit.”
Sebelius also said she still expects “pragmatic” governors to …
In the wake of last night’s election, President Obama and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid have both said they’re open to “tweaks” of the Affordable Care Act, but don’t think they have any interest in fundamentally changing the law.
Obama said today he thinks the 1099 provisions for small business in the ACA are too …
In the beginning, there was the 23rd district of New York. Sarah Palin shook up a 2009 special election in that district – left vacant when Obama appointed Republican John McHugh secretary of the Army – by endorsing conservative Doug Hoffman. The accountant who lived outside the district and who ran on the Conservative Party line had …
There’s no doubt that voting for the Affordable Care Act made lots of Democratic incumbents vulnerable this year. Still, it’s difficult to attribute losses to a single issue. Exit polls indicate jobs and the economy were far more important to voters this year. But there are clear signs that pundits who predicted high-profile losses for …
The Denver Post called it the most bizarre gubernatorial campaign in state history. Indeed.
In the end, Democrat John Hickenlooper, mayor of Denver, cruised to victory with a large margin. But it all could have gone very differently.
Republican Dan Maes’ campaign was a complete disaster. After knocking of the GOP favorite Scot …
While the balance of power in Congress is likely to undergo a seismic shift tonight, at least one thing won’t change – the legislative maneuvers lawmakers undertake purely to score political points. Case in point – repeal of the Affordable Care Act. This law will be on the books so long as Barack Obama is in the White House. But don’t …
Here’s Jay explaining how the Democratic leadership in the House is likely to look very different in 2011.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty has been making a show out of resisting implementation of the Affordable Care Act and the funding for states contained within. He’s not the only one, but his resistance has been noteworthy, in part, because of his presumed ambition to be the GOP nominee for president in 2012. If he does pursue the nomination, …
