First Edition: January 26, 2010

Today's headlines indicate that Democrats still appear to be considering the next steps for their health overhaul plan while Republicans are pondering plans of their own.  

Innovative Alaska Health Plan Outperforms Many Others In Lower 48
The buzzwords of health reform can sound abstract and confusing. Yet ideas like patient-centered medical homes, integrated care teams and chronic disease management are already reality in what some might consider an unlikely setting for a health-care innovator - Southcentral Foundation, a nonprofit health provider owned by, led by, and serving Alaska Natives (Kaiser Health News).

Health On The Hill
The Kaiser Family Foundation's Jackie Judd talks with Kaiser Health News staff writer Mary Agnes Carey and NPR's Julie Rovner about recent events as Congressional Democrats continue to debate their next step on health care overhaul legislation (Kaiser Health News). Read the transcript.

Decision Looms On Advancing Health Care Bill
Seeking to avert the collapse of major health care legislation, the White House and Democratic leaders in Congress face a crucial decision about whether to use a procedural maneuver that would allow them to advance the bill despite the loss of their 60-vote majority in the Senate (The New York Times).

Democrats Ponder Health Care Tweaks To Appease House
Seeking to salvage a health care overhaul, congressional leaders are considering a plan to pass the Senate bill with some changes to accommodate House Democrats, senior Democratic aides said yesterday. Leaders will present the idea to the rank and file this week, but it is unclear whether they have enough votes to carry it out (The Associated Press/The Boston Globe).

GOP Struggles For Consensus On Health Care
Now that Democrats have lost their 60-vote, filibuster-proof majority in the Senate, Republicans have some ideas for how their stalled health overhaul can get started again: Find some bipartisanship (NPR).

Health Care Progress Unlikely By State Of The Union
Senate Democratic leaders said Monday that they don't expect to have a decision on how to move forward with health care reform in time for President Barack Obama's State of the Union address on Wednesday (Politico).

Daschle: House Dems Should 'Do The Right Thing,' Pass Senate Healthcare Bill
House Democrats should "do the right thing" and approve the Senate's healthcare bill, former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) said Monday (The Hill).

Poll Shows Growing Fears On Health Care Overhaul
Fears about President Barack Obama's health care overhaul increased significantly in December, according to a new poll released as the legislation's future hangs in doubt. The monthly poll out Monday from the nonpartisan Robert Wood Johnson Foundation measured consumers' views of how a remake would affect their own finances and access to care, among other things (The Associated Press).

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