Health Groups Fail to Find agreement on Ways to Expand Coverage in US

President Barack Obama’s pledge to overhaul the U.S. health system to provide coverage for everyone has spurred lawmakers, insurers and advocates to develop plans to accomplish it.

broken health-care system is a critical part of fixing the economy, but it will not happen overnight, and it won't be easy," Lavizzo-Mourey said. "Fortunately, a lot of people are working together this time -- government and business, doctors and patients, Democrats and Republicans -- so that we can achieve real reform."

A consensus on divisive issues in the debate over health-care reform, including whether to require Americans to purchase insurance, failed to emerge from six months of private meetings among insurers, consumer advocates, hospitals and other health-interest groups.

Support grew on Friday for insurance industry demands that all Americans be required to obtain coverage as part of a planned healthcare system overhaul, with a senior Senate Democrat and a coalition of business and consumer groups promoting the idea.
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, a Democrat who is helping write healthcare legislation, said an insurance requirement, or mandate, would help the market function better and reduce premium costs for everyone.

Panel agrees on need for universal health care, though approache differ.

Is America ready for health care reform?
Are caregivers, patients and insurers willing to make the sacrifices to support quality health care for all?
Maybe not yet.
A panel of health care professionals and analysts who discussed health care reform at Baldwin-Wallace College on Monday evening could agree on one point, though: America needs a universal health care system.
But their discussion showed the reluctance of most people to give up something to arrive at that goal