A bill to freeze cuts to doctors’ Medicare payments – one that should have been heavily bipartisan – is now in serious danger of passing. The American Medical Association (AMA) promised Majority Leader Harry Reid (D) 27 Republican votes, but now it appears there are as few as two. Undoubtedly, 27 is an ambitious number for any bipartisan bill, but the enormous drop in support is indicative of an overwhelming feeling in Washington. It is a sentiment against any healthcare reform, one that has grown within the Republican party and continues to spread across the aisle to conservative Democrats. Though we at Election Stocks still believe something will pass reforming the healthcare system, these kind of let downs are still quite alarming.

Highlights include WellPoint, Inc. (WLP), Humana Inc. (HUM), Coventry Health Care, Inc. (CVH), Health Net Inc. (HNT), Molina Healthcare, Inc. (MOH), Amerigroup Corporation (AGP) and Aetna Inc (AET).The private sector is now partners in healthcare reform.Key healthcare stakeholders met yesterday with President Obama to pledge their support in slowing the rising cost of healthcare over the next decade.  In a letter addressed to the President and signed by the American Medical Association, the Service Employees International Union, and the main trade groups from the drug, hospital, medical-device and health-insurance industries, healthcare industry representatives vowed to stem the rate of increase in future health and insurance costs by 1.5% per year for the next 10 years, or approximately $2 trillion.Although lacking detail, the letter did propose a co-ordinated industry effort in developing strategies toward the following: administrative simplification ...