Democrats score upset victory in NY election

2011-05-25T03:00:08Z

The Democratic Party scored an upset victory late Tuesday in a tight Congressional by-election seen testing Republicans' strategy on politically sensitive budget cuts ahead of 2012 nationwide vote.

The race in western New York's 26th Congressional District saw ...

Health cuts loom in new U.S. budget fights

2011-04-11T13:30:24Z

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - After a narrow escape from a potentially damaging government shutdown, even bigger budget fights lie ahead for President Barack Obama and leaders from both parties in the U.S. Congress.

Senior

Obama offers states flexibility on healthcare law

2011-02-28T14:00:08Z

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama extended an olive branch on Monday to U.S. states struggling to implement his healthcare law, offering support for a proposal that would give them some flexibility in carrying out its key parts.

Obama's signature healthcare reform plan aims to lower costs and extend...

Deficit a Wake-up Call for Washington

2010-12-07T11:30:26Z

Will Washington have the courage to truly tackle the deficit?

Bold action to tackle the deficit in the next couple of years doesn’t appear likely, despite pledges by veteran lawmakers in both parties, the Obama administration and incoming freshmen in Congress to ...

Clandestine Dealings From the White House

2010-11-29T15:03:00Z

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FACT CHECK: White House health savings challenged

2010-09-13T01:15:10Z

FACT CHECK: New White House stat on health savings called 'apples to oranges'

When a government report found that President Barack Obama's health overhaul would modestly raise the nation's total health care tab, the White House responded with a statistic suggesting costs would go down.

Health reform director Gov't forecast: Moderate spending increase as 32 million gain coverage under health overhaul

The nation's health care tab will go up — not down — as a result of President Barack Obama's sweeping overhaul. That's the conclusion of a government forecast Thursday, which also predicts the increase will be modest.

The average annual growth in health care spending will be just two-ten...

An Open Letter To President Obama on Health Care Reform and What It Means To My Family

2010-09-22T06:28:01Z

Mr. President:

I know that you are a very busy man so I will try to keep my questions about health care reform and the recently passed legislation as short and simple as possible.

- I could ask you why you think this is a good piece of legislation even though I truly believe that it will be a failure and will come very close to bankrupting the country. The basis for my conclusion has nothing to do with political partisanship (in fact, I have never voted for a Republican for nati...

Obama to bypass Senate to fill Medicare post: White House

2010-07-14T13:52:43Z

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama, frustrated by Republican obstruction of key administration staffing appointments, will use his power to appoint his pick to run Medicare and Medicaid while the U.S. Congress...

No pulse, no pay: How the 'Do Not Pay' list will work

2010-11-02T12:48:31Z

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White House moves to prevent payments to dead people

2010-11-02T12:48:31Z

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Cornhusker Kickback gets the boot in health bill

2010-03-18T17:30:30Z

Nebraska's Cornhusker Kickback gets the boot, while TN, ND make hay in revised health bill

Bye bye, Cornhusker Kickback. Hello, special treatment for Tennessee and North Dakota.

Democrats unveiling revisions Thursday to their health care overhaul bill decided to kill the extra $100 million in Medicaid funds...

Obama: half of my letters brand me an idiot

2010-03-10T16:16:29Z

US President Barack Obama joked on Wednesday that half of the 40,000 letters that pour into the White House each day brand him an "idiot."

Tongue-in-cheek, the president remarked that his staff did not spare him the wrath of his correspondents -- selecting a representative portion of 10 letters for him to read when he returns to the White House residence at night.

Health-care reform: The President's proposal

2010-10-27T07:50:42Z

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Negotiators shape final health care bill

2010-04-16T07:36:37Z

Final health care bill takes shape behind closed doors in White House talks

C-SPAN cameras haven't been allowed into the White House to record the final negotiations on health care overhaul, but details are starting to filter out. A look at what's likely to be in the final package, and what's likely o...

Obama resists as liberals attack health care bill

2010-06-25T19:16:36Z

Squeezed from the right and left, White House battles critics of health care bill

The White House and its allies scrambled Thursday to quash a growing liberal assault on a much-compromised health care proposal, hoping to keep President Barack Obama's top domestic priority from being crushed between the political left and right.

In Senate spee...

Senate Dems seek expansion of Medicare, Medicaid

2010-06-25T19:27:06Z

With time growing short, Senate Democratic liberals are seeking expansion of two large federal programs, Medicare and Medicaid, as part of a compromise that drops a government insurance option from health care legislation sought by President Barack Obama, several lawmakers said Monday.

Under the potential trade-off with party modera...

White House targets insurers over healthcare premiums

2010-04-16T10:11:56Z

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House kept insurance companies squarely in its sights Tuesday in the push for healthcare reform by releasing research showing that health insurance premiums have risen far faster than inflation in every U.S. state.

U.S. states have experienced premium growth of 90 percent to nearly 150 percent in the past decade, while wage...

'Special interests' on both sides in health fight

2010-06-25T21:00:17Z

Obama relies on some special interests, assails others in fight over his health care overhaul

As public pitchman, President Barack Obama accuses special interests of fighting to block his health care overhaul. "They run their ads. And let's face it, they scare people," he told one weekend audience.

Yet Obama has spent months assembling a formidable lineup of special interests of his own, an essential el...

Obama tries to rally support for health revamp

2010-06-25T21:22:08Z

Six months in office, President Barack Obama sought to rally support for sweeping health care legislation Wednesday night as Congress struggled to find agreement on a historic overhaul. He vowed to reject any measure "primarily funded through taxing middle-class families."

At a prime-time news conference, Obama defended his decision to set a midsummer deadline for the House and Senate to act, even if it isn't met. "I'm rushed ...

Major hospital groups pledge $155 billion savings in deal

2010-11-02T12:42:30Z

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White House wants more power to set Medicare rates

2010-04-16T11:17:40Z

White House asks Congress for more power to set Medicare rates

The White House is asking Congress to give the executive branch more power to limit Medicare's rising costs.

A White House letter to top lawmakers on Friday said the move would be "a critical step forward" in controlling health care costs and providing better care.

The proposal woul...

U.S. health insurers discuss $100 bln savings

2010-06-25T21:31:44Z

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. health insurers are in talks with the Senate Finance Committee to reach savings in the federal Medicare program of $100 billion over a decade, a source familiar with the talks said on Monday.

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THE INFLUENCE GAME: Business, health split forming

2010-04-16T11:25:59Z

EDITOR'S NOTE — An occasional look at how behind-the-scenes influence is exercised in Washington.

By ALAN FRAM

Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — Health care providers have been crowing in recent days about deals they've cut with lawmakers to help pay for President Barack Obama's health care overhaul. Those agreements have been announced...

House Dems look at surtax on the wealthy

2010-06-25T21:34:33Z

An income tax surcharge on highly paid Americans emerged as the leading option Wednesday night as House Democrats sought ways to pay for health care legislation that President Barack Obama favors, several officials said.

As discussed in the tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee, the surtax would apply to individuals...

White House, hospitals reach deal on health care

2010-06-25T21:36:30Z

White House, hospitals reach deal to help pay for Obama's overhaul of health care

The nation's hospitals will give up $155 billion in future Medicare and Medicaid payments to help defray the cost of President Barack Obama's health care plan, a concession...

Baucus, hospitals said near deal

2010-04-16T11:28:48Z

Officials say the nation's hospitals are near a deal with the White House and a key lawmaker to pick up part of the cost of President Barack Obama's plan for expanded health coverage.

These officials say under the emerging agreement, the hospitals would accept lower-than-anticipated payments under Medicare and

Even Paid-For Health Care Plan Would Entrench Budget Woes

2010-10-22T07:48:59Z

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Drug deal valid if Congress overhauls health care

2010-06-25T21:47:38Z

Industry pledge to narrow drug coverage gap contingent on health care overhaul

Hailed by President Barack Obama, a multi-billion-dollar promise by drug companies to narrow a Medicare drug coverage gap for seniors is valid only if Congress succeeds in passing a comprehensive health care bill encounteri...

"Make or break" time for health reform: Obama

2010-06-25T22:06:28Z

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama stepped up efforts to build public support for a broad revamp of U.S. healthcare on Tuesday, saying the country could no longer afford the soaring costs of the current system that leaves millions without medical coverage.

"We cannot avoid bringing about change...

White House Report Sees Economic Gains in Health Overhaul

2010-10-24T09:56:24Z

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Medical providers get 'homework' to find savings

2010-04-16T12:07:50Z

A homework assignment from President Barack Obama is turning into a credibility test for medical providers.

Obama, once a law professor, has instructed the health care industry to come back with specifics on its pledge to slow rising costs, helping to save the nation $2 trillion over 10 years.

If the ideas are solid enough to persuade government bean counters, Obama could be well on his way to closing a deal with Congres...

BIO Didn’t Make the Cut for White House Health Care Confab

2010-10-24T09:55:51Z

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Obama unveils new plan to slash healthcare costs

2010-04-16T12:22:31Z

US President Barack Obama on Monday unveiled what he billed as a "historic" tie-up with healthcare providers to slash rises in medical costs by up to two trillion dollars over 10 years.

"Costs are out of control, reform is not a luxury to be postponed but a necessity that can't wait," Obama said after meeting representatives of healthcare insurers, hospital groups and physicians at the Obama praises industry for offering to slow growth of health care spending, overhaul system

President Barack Obama on Monday portrayed the health care industry's promise to cut $2 trillion in costs over 10 years as "a watershed event" in the long search for a solution to the millions of uninsured. Whether that is true won't be readily known as debate begins in Congress over sweeping health care legislation.

White House Releases Excerpts of Obama’s Remarks

2010-10-23T22:23:38Z

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Obama: Every voice must be heard on health reform

2010-06-26T01:53:13Z

Obama signals he may compromise on health care reform, but says every voice must be heard

President Barack Obama pumped health care allies and skeptics alike for ways to overhaul the nation's costly and frustrating system Thursday and heard only applause and agreement when he told them there's "a clear consensus that the need for health care reform is here and now."

However, he conceded at a President Barack Obama vowed Thursday to forge a new US healthcare system this year by confounding entrenched interests which crushed the hopes for reform of several of his predecessors.

"This time is different," Obama said as he opened a White House "summit" on healthcare with doctors, nurses, lawmakers and ...

Bold Obama vows healthcare reform in a year

2010-04-16T16:12:20Z

President Barack Obama vowed Thursday to forge a new US healthcare system this year by confounding entrenched interests which crushed the bold hopes for reform of several of his predecessors.

"This time is different," Obama said, as he opened a White House 'summit' on healthcare with doctors, nurses, lawmaker...

Obama welcomes allies, skeptics to health summit

2010-06-26T01:53:28Z

The time is right to overhaul America's broken health care system, Barack Obama declared. And he got no disagreement from a roomful of health care insiders — some of whom fought to kill previous attempts.

The new president pumped health care allies and skeptics alike for ways to revamp the nation's costly and frustrating system Thursday and heard only applause...

Highlights of the White House health care summit

2010-04-16T16:12:27Z

The White House health care summit included breakout sessions where lawmakers and stakeholders in the health care debate explored ways to expand coverage to uninsured Americans and rein in spiraling medical costs. Highlights of the discussions in each session:

Moderator Nancy-Ann DeParle, selected Monday to lead the President Barack Obama, with first lady Michelle Obama and daughters Malia, 12, left, and Sasha, 9, right, returns to the White House in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2011, after a family vacation in Hawaii. (AP Phot...

APTOPIX Obama

2010-12-22T15:34:09Z

President Barack Obama laughs during a news conference on the White House complex in Washington, Wednesday, Dec. 22, 2010. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

Obama GOP Big Deal

2010-12-20T11:01:37Z

President Barack Obama, left, shakes hands with Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., right, after signing the $858 billion tax deal into law in a ceremony in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the Wh...

Obama Tax Cuts

2010-12-19T09:01:23Z

Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., walks on stage before President Barack Obama signing of the$858 billion tax deal into law in a ceremony in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House ...

Disastrous Year YE

2010-12-19T08:30:35Z

FILE - In this Feb. 10, 2010 file photo, a pedestrian walks down Pennsylvania Ave., in front of the White House as the snow continues to fall in Washington. The strong early year blizzards _ nicknamed Snowmageddon _ paralyzed the U.S. mid-Atlantic. (AP Photo/Pa...

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