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Key healthcare players to do lunch

Posted by Foon Rhee, deputy national political editor March 3, 2009 12:06 PM

By Lisa Wangsness, Globe Staff

WASHINGTON -- Senator Max Baucus said this morning he plans to have lunch with Senator Edward M. Kennedy this week to discuss a major healthcare overhaul, the top priority for both senators, who chair the Finance Committee and the Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, respectively.

The news is significant because Kennedy, who is suffering from brain cancer, has mostly been in Florida since Inauguration Day, when he experienced a seizure during a Senate luncheon. He returned to Capitol Hill briefly to cast a key vote on the economic stimulus package.

Baucus, speaking to reporters at a Kaiser Family Foundation breakfast, said he has been speaking frequently with Kennedy about healthcare, which is the subject of a summit President Obama is convening on Thursday. He did not say whether Kennedy would attend the summit, but he said the two are working together closely. They recently co-authored a Wall Street Journal opinion piece about the need for a health overhaul.

Obama, making healthcare a priority, put $634 billion in his 10-year budget plan as a downpayment and on Monday named two key aides to push an overhaul: Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius as health and human services secretary, and former Clinton administration official Nancy DeParle as director of the White House Office of Health Reform.

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the answer to our "problem"is...MEDICARE FOR ALL!...the system is already in place,and will be cost-effective when compared to the catastrophy that we now have.

Posted by lenny ruderman March 3, 09 01:00 PM
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Obama's health plan is going to a wrong direction.
1.Many countries' successful health care system, which is higher outcome with lower cost is worth to learn.
2.Our profiting insurance company with the policy that, year by year, keeps raising coverage rate from patient while lowering the payment to health care clinic is killing our health care system.
3. Alternative health care and prevention is another key to reform this sick health care system in this nation.

Posted by NSNJJ March 3, 09 01:50 PM
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Lenny Ruderman is right! If our decisions about health care are truly "data-driven", then single-payer beats the private insurers. What's the hold-up? Could it be that the smokescreen of "socialist" or "European model" is just cover for trying to protect higher costs, which means profiting from the unplanned medical needs of all of us. Please, step back and look at the data ... which system provides the most health care for our money?

Posted by Dwight Miller March 3, 09 02:51 PM
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Universal Healthcare for all...a cruel hoax!

Posted by XENOPHON March 3, 09 08:17 PM
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Judging by the name of Lenny Ruderman I can guess that he himself or his folks most definitely have had a chance to live under "Medicare for all" run by nice boys from Kremlin. It makes me sick to think that somebody like that wants to repeat it here! There're many ways to fix the system, but please, don't pretend that "equality" and "everybody equally poor and screwed" are the same things. Why should somebody who is smart and hardworking have the same coverage for his family as a lazy, stupid no-good drunkard?

Posted by MikeR March 4, 09 04:05 PM
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The overall review of military budget framework based on the antiquated cold war, oil war is going to be imperative along with the review of contracting process, after that, the adjusted funding need to be redirected to the medical costs and peaceful purpose, I think. To be sure, sound mind guarantees healthy life.

Posted by hsr0601 March 5, 09 06:55 AM
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to MIKE R: how about coverage for those people who are hard-working citizens, but can't get coverage from any insurance company? does your fertile brain have an answer for them.?

Posted by lenny ruderman June 20, 09 01:59 PM
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