Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Sanders Continues To Beat Single-Payer Drum As Congress' Attention Shifts Toward Tax Reform
It looked just like a campaign launch, from the line winding around the Fellowship Chapel Church, to the tailgaters giving away hot dogs, to the 2,000 voters who eventually packed inside. But when Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt) and Rep. John Conyers Jr. (D-Mich.) arrived, there were no waving signs. They were there to kick off the push for universal health care, with legislation queued up for September, and no expectation that the Republican-controlled Congress would pass it. 鈥淓very major country in the world, they鈥檝e already got it,鈥 said Conyers. (Weigel, 8/26)
Sen. Dean Heller is trying to walk a fine line on ObamaCare ahead of his tough reelection race next year. (Sullivan, 8/27)
And Republicans in Congress are feeling the heat about getting things done after their failure to pass repeal-and-replace聽鈥
Tensions between President Donald Trump and Senate Republicans are rising, as lawmakers are being blamed by the president, House colleagues and many voters for the party鈥檚 failure to pass a major legislative initiative. 鈥淚鈥檓 sick of them,鈥 said Matthew Walters, a 58-year-old construction worker who lives in Shelbyville, Ky., and has been eager for the GOP to repeal the Affordable Care Act as his wife鈥檚 insurance premiums jump. 鈥淭hey鈥檝e said for six years if we get a Republican in the White House we鈥檙e going to get this repealed. What is the problem? What are the excuses? I鈥檓 sick of it. We elected Donald Trump for change.鈥 (Hughes and Peterson, 8/27)