Congressional committee chairs "are gearing up to play a leading role" in health care reform, which will require them to "overcome years of policy deadlock, ... keep their own committees in line, ... massage their leaders, ... deal with a GOP minority that wants its say and will probably oppose many ideas the Democrats try to push through" and "satisfy the Obama White House," CQ Today reports.

According to CQ Today, House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), House Ways and Means Committee Chair Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) and House Education and Labor Committee Chair George Miller (D-Calif.) "will have a primary hand in the health care overhaul" in the House. In a letter sent to President Obama on March 11, they promised to move to pass "similar" health care reform bills this year.

In the Senate, Senate Finance Committee Chair Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee Chair Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) will lead the health care reform effort (Epstein/Richert, CQ Today, 3/13). Baucus on Wednesday during a speech to the National Business Group on Health said, "I've served in the Senate for 30 years, and this is the hardest legislative challenge of my lifetime" (Lengell, Washington Times, 3/15).

Other senators who likely will participate in the health care reform effort include Senate Budget Committee Chair Kent Conrad (D-N.D.) and ranking member Judd Gregg (R-N.H.); Senate Finance Committee ranking member Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa); Senate HELP Committee ranking member Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.); and Sens. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.), Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) (Budoff Brown, Politico, 3/16).

Possible Obstacles
The "bulk of Democrats ... are likely to go along with any plan Obama endorses and help him rally support for it," but "most Republicans probably will vote against a health care overhaul, which likely will involve some expansion of public health programs," CQ Today reports. In addition, "Obama and his allies face problems among two other groups: liberals and conservatives within their party," according to CQ Today.

According to CQ Today, many liberals remain "adamant that the country should sweep away private health insurance companies and implement a single-payer, government-run health care system," a proposal not supported by Obama. In addition, fiscally conservative Democrats, such as members of the House Blue Dog Coalition, have concerns about the cost of health care reform (Wayne, CQ Today, 3/13).

Obama has sought to "pre-empt opponents of his plan" by "inviting a vast spectrum of stakeholders to collaborate with the White House on its health care reform push," Roll Call reports (Murray, Roll Call, 3/16).

Health Insurance Industry
The "health insurance industry is working on a transformation" to attempt to portray themselves "as indispensable partners in health care overhaul," rather than "villains for denying coverage or refusing to pay for treatment," the AP/Kansas City Star reports. According to the AP/Star, health insurers "say they are in a unique position to help improve quality and root out waste, saving money so everyone can be covered."

Health insurers have called for a requirement that all U.S. residents obtain health insurance as part of health care reform legislation. "If the industry's pitch succeeds, insurers will be guaranteed many more customers," according to the AP/Star. However, "if the overhaul that President Barack Obama has promised goes against them, insurers could find themselves trying to compete against a new government-run health plan offering cut-rate premiums to middle-class families," the AP/Star reports.

America's Health Insurance Plans President and CEO Karen Ignagni said, "We understand we need to come to the table with very specific solutions."

AARP public policy Director John Rother said of health insurers, "They are making inroads," adding, "They are getting past the rhetoric and starting to talk about more concrete ideas for improving quality and getting value" (Alonso-Zaldivar, AP/Kansas City Star, 3/15).