FoxNews.com reported today that the number two Senate Democrat, Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, has somewhat conceded Democrats’ efforts to include a public plan in the health care reform bill.  The Illinois Senator said Sunday he is “open” to a bill that does not include a government-run option. 

This comes in response to the countless protests at town hall meetings throughout the country by Americans who are trying to combat a government overhaul of health care.  The Senate Finance Committee is trying to complete a bipartisan bill by mid-September.

Democrats are worried that liberals in the Senate and Congress may not vote to pass the bill in mid-October if it does not include a public plan. 

As September approaches, we will soon have a concrete plan in place that will surely change health care in the future.

Click here to read the entire FoxNews.com article: No. 2 Senate Democrat ‘Open’ to Health Care Bill With No Public Option

Stephanie Condon, a blogger for the Political Hotsheet of CBS News, said the White House is not living up to some of their promises made during the campaign.  Specifically, at a town hall meeting in August 2008, Obama said, “I’m going to have all the negotiations around a big table.  We’ll have doctors and nurses and hospital administrators… Insurance companies, drug companies…we’ll have the negotiations televised on C-SPAN, so that people can see who is making arguments on behalf of their constituents, and who are making arguments on behalf of the drug companies or the insurance companies…that approach, I think is what is going to allow people to stay involved in the process.” In fact, the President has held private meetings in the White House with several representatives about the reform bill.

There has been misinformation on both sides of the aisle.  Many Americans, whether they generally agree or oppose the reform proposals, don’t really have all the facts to make an educated decision.  The White House’s effort to correct ‘fishy’ information is generating anger from the Republicans.  They say that this will discourage Americans from voicing their opinions on the issue for fear of it being reported directly to the White House.  The Obama administration says the reason why it is in place is to shoot down misinformation and tell the American people the facts. 

There have been ongoing secret meeting within the Senate Finance Committee between three Republicans and three Democrats vying for a bipartisan bill.  Democrats across the board complain that these three Democrats are conceding too much to the Republicans, including scrapping the controversial government-run insurance option, even though it is the Democrats who have the majority in both the House and the Senate. 

Ms. Condon contends that if there were more C-SPAN broadcasts on health care legislation, there would be room for more understanding and make for real debate.

Click here to read the entire post: Transparency Lacking in Health Care Reform Battle

According to a recent New York Times article, the majority of protests on health care reform have come from conservative interest groups.  However, democrats will begin protests of their own at town hall meetings run by republican representatives.  Thus far, angry crowds have gathered at town hall meetings held by democrats across the country.  Senator Arlen Specter and heath and human services secretary Kathleen Sebelius were booed on Sunday in Philadelphia when Specter admitted he hadn’t read the bill in its entirety. 

At the meeting with Specter and Sebelius, one constituent who opposes the plan said, “I look at this health care plan and I see nothing that is about health or about care. What I see is a bureaucratic nightmare, senator. Medicaid is broke, Medicare is broke, Social Security is broke and you want us to believe that a government that can’t even run a cash for clunkers program is going to run one-seventh of our U.S. economy? No sir, no.”

Other public gatherings have gone poorly for Democrats.  Independent groups are taking a page out of the Obama 2008 campaign by utilizing social networking sites such as Twitter to alert constituents about politicians’ town hall meetings.  Many are showing up in crowds to protest the reform bill. 

Democratic leaders insist that these groups are being disruptive and are harming efforts to move health care reform in the right direction.  Democrats are planning on being at Republican leaders’ town hall meetings in the near future to advocate for health care reform.  However, Michael Steel, a spokesman for the House Republican leader John A. Boehner of Ohio said, “The more the American people hear about the Democrats’ plan, the less they like it.”

Politicians are asking constituents to be respectful during these critical town hall meetings. 

Click here to read the entire New York Times article: Health Plan Opponents Make Voices Heard

In an article published August 1st, the Associated Press reported that town hall meetings across the country have already begun discussing President Obama’s proposed health care reform bill.  Although House members and Senators are technically on a break, they have little time for fun as their constituents demand their concentration be focused on reading and understanding the 1,000-plus page bill. 

The reform legislation cannot be voted on until mid-October.  Communities across the country should expect plenty of ads both advocating and trashing the bill.  While the Democrats have the number necessary to pass the bill, some remain unconvinced that the current plan is right for the country.  Some parts of the bill are expected to be changed and tweaked over the next couple of months.  The major dispute arises from Democrats wanting a nationalized health care option for every American who cannot afford health care.  This option does not sit well with Republicans as well as fiscally conservative Democrats. 

There is urgency and anxiety on both sides of the aisle.  House Republican leader John Boehner of Ohio said his party intends to creatively reach out to the public.  He plans to utilize social media websites like Twitter to warn the public about the devastation this bill could bring to the country.  Boehner said in the article: “A flurry of surveys over the last couple of days demonstrate that the American people now oppose the Democrats’ government takeover of health care, and any time the president talks about it, they like it even less.” Indeed, recent polling has shown the public is worrisome that the bill will actually raise their costs and restrict their benefits.  According to a new TIME Magazine poll, 62% said they believe the final health reform bill is likely to raise health care costs in the long run, 65% said it would make everything about health care more complicated, and 56% said it would offer less freedom to choose doctors and coverage.

Robert Blendon, a professor at Harvard’s School of Public Health, said Obama and the Democrats have not been able to explain the program at a level that the average American can understand.  Professor Blendon suggested the president focus on, “…five or six things that would lower people’s future premiums, and describe them over and over again”.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi took Professor Blendon’s advice and distributed a talking points memo to lawmakers that succinctly describes some of the benefits the health care bill will bring to people who are already covered.  Pelosi understands the importance of the next two months, proclaiming she will be focusing on the bill full time over her August break. 

The question remains: How will we afford such a massive overhaul of the health care system? The House bill would pay for the $1.5 trillion 10-year cost by cutting spending on government health programs and raising taxes on the nation’s top 1%.  Yet some politicians say this won’t be enough, and the middle class will also have to pay for some of it. 

Come mid-October, we will see if Obama’s promise to the nation for a health care overhaul reigns true, or if it will fade away like President Clinton’s did in the early 1990s. 

Click here to read the entire Associated Press article: Health Care Debate Shifts to Main Street

According to FOX News’ Chad Pergram and Megan Whittemore along with the Associated Press, 52 “Blue Dog” Democrats remain the only barriers to passing a health care reform bill.  This group is known for its fiscally conservative ideology and wants to make sure the bill that is passed solves relevant issues.  Most recently, the Blue Dogs have demanded that the health care reform bill include an affordable government option for small businesses as well as competitive pricing to avoid private insurers going bankrupt. 

Last night, the group met with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel for almost 7 hours.  Although a compromise has yet to be reached, the two sides remain confident.  Representative Mike Ross (D-Arkansas) is content that with each meeting, progress is made. 

The problem seems to be time and the deadline set by President Obama that has representatives like Jane Harman (D-California) anxious.  She explains that the negotiations have been “very, very hard” and that even though both sides agree of broader areas of concern, such as lowering drug prices, they disagree on “specifics”. 

As polls continue to show declining confidence in Obama’s health care plan, the Blue Dogs have gained leverage and are now able to better negotiate with the rest of Congress.  If the group of 52 disagree with the final proposal and vote against it, it will not pass. 

On Monday, Henry Waxman (D-California), House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman offered a revised proposal for the group.  However, Blue Dogs have asked for cost specifics that were not immediately available.  It looks as if the bill will not be put to a vote by the deadline that Obama had first given. 

Click here to read the entire article: ‘Blue Dog’ Vote Pivotal in Passage of Health Care Reform Bill