Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
GOP Readies Strategy To Hobble Health Law
The Republican Congress is getting ready to ramp up the Obamacare hearings, firing up enough investigations to keep Obama administration officials visiting hearing rooms on both sides of the Capitol for the next two years. They鈥檒l shine the spotlight on everything from cable-friendly scandals to tried-and-true complaints about the law鈥檚 side effects. They鈥檙e going to investigate premium increases for individuals and small businesses, the impact on the federal deficit, payments to insurance companies that attract too many sick people, and the threat of huge tax headaches for some Obamacare customers next spring. (Nather, 11/14)
Sylvia Mathews Burwell was brought in to run HHS with one big goal: make sure the second round of Obamacare goes a whole lot better than last year鈥檚 disaster. After months of distractions 鈥� Ebola, a border crisis, an unusual enterovirus that sickened hundreds of children 鈥� the new HHS secretary will be the person who either pays the price or wins the praise when HealthCare.gov reopens Saturday for business and potentially millions of people look to enroll in health insurance. President Barack Obama hired her not for her political savvy or public profile but because she is thought of as one of the most skilled technocrats in the bureaucracy. (Haberkorn, 11/15)
Although Americans are signing up for health insurance on the Obamacare exchanges for the second year, there is some uncertainty in the law's future, with legal and legislative challenges ahead. Here are five things to know about the law's future in the current political climate. (Kaplan, 11/17)