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Nation
Health Law Fate Hinges on States Report: Politicians are hoping to use the issue for ’14 elections
So Who’s Buying It?
The greatest threats to the ultimate success of the health-care law come not from the technical problems that have plagued its rollout, but from a hostile political climate in many individual states and from potentially serious weaknesses in its design. Those are the conclusions of a cautionary report just published by the Brookings Institution’s new Center for Effective Public Management. The authors are center director Elaine C. Kamarck, who served as a top policy adviser in the Clinton administration, and Sheila P. Burke, who was chief of staff and top health-care adviser to former Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole, R-Kan. “The highly politicized environment in which this law takes effect means that in the short-term, people will see what they want to see,” Burke and Kamarck wrote. To an extraordinary degree,
J. DAVID AKE (AP)
Washington
The Obama administration hasn’t released estimates on the expected enrollment in 2014 for the health-care marketplaces. But unpublished internal estimates obtained by The Associated Press say 7 million people will gain coverage. The draft, dated Sept. 20, broke down the figure of 7 million among states. It estimated the expected enrollment in California, for example, at 1. 3 million people in 2014. The estimate for Maryland was 150,000, 127,000 for Virginia and 43,000 people for the District of Colombia. (AP)
A new Brookings report raises concerns about how the new health-care law will fare.
they argued, the Affordable Care Act’s fate has been put in the hands of individual states — and therefore, will be subjected to political forces within those states. Its launch also coincides with an election year, which means that the agendas of the two parties will come into play. The law that is the signature achievement of Barack Obama’s presidency was passed by a Democratic-led Congress without
a single Republican vote. “Going forward, politicians are hoping to use the health-care issue to impact the midterm elections of 2014,” Burke and Kamarck wrote. “For Republicans, the hope is that the longstanding skepticism about the law will be reinforced as it is implemented and yield a political bonus in the 2014 midterm elections. Democrats obviously hope that a positive start will help reduce bar-
riers to implementing the law and improve their political prospects.” State elected officials have moved in partisan directions as they have exercised their options within the law. Among those choices: whether to expand their Medicaid programs to cover the poor, whether to set up their own health insurance exchanges or rely on the federal one, and how aggressively to promote the new coverage options. K AREN TUMULT Y (THE WASHINGTON POST )
Heart of the Matter: Former President George W. Bush had heart surgery in August because of artery blockage, but people now say the condition was more serious than previously thought. CNN reported Tuesday that Bush, 67, had a stent put in a day after the blockage was discovered but says that two sources, speaking anonymously, said Bush had a 95 percent blockage. Bush said last month that he was “doing fine.” (AP)
In Brief
HARTFORD, CONN.
Newtown to Keep School Razing Under Wraps When demolition begins next week on the old Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., every effort will be made to eliminate every trace to prevent exploitation of any remnants of the building, Newtown First Selectman E. Patricia Llodra said Tuesday. The razing will be finished before the Dec. 14 anniversary of the shootings. (AP) SAN DIEGO
Former San Diego Mayor Pleads Guilty to 3 Charges
Former San Diego Mayor Bob Filner, driven from office by sexual harassment allegations, pleaded guilt y Tuesday to Filner a f el ony and t wo misdemeanors for unwanted physical contact with three women at public events. Sentencing was set for Dec. 9. (AP)
Correction A quote in the Local story “D.C.’s License Makeover” on Monday’s page 7 incorrectly described the District’s flag. It has two bars and three stars. Spot an error? Let us know at corrections@readexpress.com.
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