Obama’s healthcare reform in the dock
Should the nine US Supreme Court justices strike down the law, it could provoke a showdown between two of the three branches of US government
After sweeping election gains, Republicans opposing President Barack Obama’s healthcare reforms are pushing for congressional repeal, funding cuts and court challenges
Two senior lawmakers offered a bipartisan plan to overhaul Medicare, the government health plan for the elderly
’Enormously consequential’ decision on mandatory insurance expected from the Supreme Court in the middle of the presidential campauign next year
The timing of the request for the Supreme Court to consider the law has surprised many
Headed into a fight for the Republican presidential nomination Romney’s involvement in the legislation was seen as a black mark on his record
With a vote of 219 to 212, the US House of Representatives gives final approval to a sweeping healthcare overhaul, handing Barack Obama a landmark victory
Lawmakers vote on historic legislation
Should the nine US Supreme Court justices strike down the law, it could provoke a showdown between two of the three branches of US government
One can understand the administration’s desire to postpone this moment of reckoning, but that does not justify delay. Too much is at stake. The question should be resolved as soon as possible

The establishment has not changed to reflect the new post-crash mood. Almost all of today’s leaders are yesterday’s men. Their main skill is divvying up surpluses, writes Christopher Caldwell
Healthcare investors should be wary as there is likely to be more confusion and underperformance because Republican plans are no clearer than the Democrats’ ones
With work under way to implement Barack Obama’s voluminous reform measures, Americans find the cost is becoming clear sooner than the benefits
Massive investments and reordering of government activity will be required as the healthcare law takes effect. The legal challenges that could derail this need to be resolved quickly

As it became plain that the reform was failing to win the public’s confidence, they should have campaigned for it – as the president repeatedly promised he would. Instead, they ran away, writes Clive Crook
Polls suggest that the public wants the US healthcare reform to be mended, not scrapped. That should indeed be the goal. Whether Democrats and Republicans can pursue it together will decide whether progress or paralysis marks the remainder of Mr Obama’s term
It has taken the US much too long to do what other rich countries did decades ago and pass a healthcare reform. The Democrats have made history, but will they come to regret it?
The Democrats’ healthcare proposal, though flawed, would move the US much closer to universal health insurance and take steps towards better control of costs. Neither should be postponed
Sadly, it now looks too late for Barack Obama to exercise the leadership that was missing this past year – in guiding the effort, in uniting his own party around a plan, and above all in assuring the public that it all made sense
For some of them, supporting healthcare reform will mean losing in November. But, remembering what is at stake, it is a sacrifice they must be willing to make
A possible Senate compromise has emerged on the bill to reform US healthcare. Democrats in the House of Representatives must choke down their reservations and go along
Reformers need to build US public support by acknowledging and responding to voters’ concerns, which they have patently failed to do. Until that changes, the project is in jeopardy