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The overhaul swirl of late has been focused largely on medical costs, insurance regulation, coverage mandates and the like. One pivotal issue has gotten less attention: abortion.

The clock is running out before a 21% cut in Medicare payments to doctors kicks in. Plans to block the reductions have gotten hung up in Congress.

The morning papers are full of speculation about what the Democrats will do with their health-care bill if Scott Brown, a Republican, wins the senate seat formerly held by Ted Kennedy. Massachusetts is holding a special election for the seat today; if Brown defeats Martha Coakley, a Democrat, the Dems will lose their filibuster-proof majority in the Senate.

Some health-care news out of Washington this afternoon:

More fees may be coming for drug and device makers, the WSJ reports. Dems may add $10 billion in fees for device makers over 10 years, on top of the roughly $20 billion already included in the House and Senate bills. The final health-care bill may also cut reimbursements or increase fees on drug makers by an additional $10 billion over 10 years, beyond the $80 billion the industry agreed to last year.

Regulators don’t seem to like it much when big drug companies pay generics shops in deals that determine when branded drugs will face generic competition.

Today, for example, the head of the FTC and a few lawmakers will call on Congress to crack down on the deals as part of the pending health-care legislation. (The House health-care bill does this; the Senate bill doesn’t.)

If, like a kid after summer vacation, you’ve forgotten everything you learned before the holiday break, allow us to suggest a quick re-entry to the health-care debate.

The Senate passes a historic health bill, a measure that would expand coverage to more than 30 million Americans. WSJ’s Janet Adamy discusses what needs to happen for a health-overhaul bill to become law.

See original here: What’s Next for Health-Overhaul Bill?/a>

The Senate’s vote on the health-care bill this morning set off an avalanche of responses from key interest groups. The short version: The AMA, drug industry and AARP backed the bill; health insurers and the Chamber of Commerce did not.

Here are some highlights culled from our inbox; links to the complete statements are included for the statements we could find online.

AHIP, the health insurance trade group:

The smart money has been saying this week that the final health-care legislation will look a lot like the Senate bill that is very likely to pass tomorrow with 60 votes.

The health bill narrowly passed the Senate last night, setting up a Christmas Eve signing by the White House. The News Hub panel discusses what this means for consumers.

View original here:  AM Report: Senate Passes Health Bill/a>