In need of business skills
Healthcare reform is high on the agenda in the US, but MBA programmes focusing on the sector are relatively few in number
Bitter disputes are hindering President Obama’s attempts to reform the US healthcare system
Barack Obama faces the next big test of its push for healthcare reform Saturday evening when the Senate meets to decide whether to proceed to a debate on its $848bn draft legislation
The Obama administration’s push for a health reform received a boost when the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office said the latest legislative proposals would reduce the federal deficit
The US Senate could start debating its final healthcare reform bill as early as Tuesday, pitting Democrat against Democrat over the controversial question of abortion coverage.
Passage through the House is only the first step. A much tougher test lies ahead, writes Edward Luce
Backing the biggest health policy changes in four decades and handing President Barack Obama a crucial victory, the House of Representatives approved a sweeping reform bill on a 220-215 vote
Healthcare reform is high on the agenda in the US, but MBA programmes focusing on the sector are relatively few in number

One thing this bill will not do if passed is end the controversy over US healthcare. The argument over paying for it would become even more intense, writes Clive Crook
Political reality is that a ‘right to health’ is a trump card to get more resources – and it is rarely the poor who play it most effectively, writes William Easterly
Steady employment growth in medical and related industries may be the next stage in the evolution of advanced economies, writes Michael Lind of the New America Foundation
Cost matters if per capita, America has five times more CT scans than Germany and five times as many coronary bypasses as France, says Peter Peterson
As he seeks the passage of healthcare reforms that have eluded predecessors, Barack Obama faces the biggest test so far of his presidency. The road has been long and troubled, writes Edward Luce
It will take weeks, possibly months, of wrangling within – and between – the five congressional committees that are dealing with healthcare reforms to determine whether President Barack Obama has succeeded in this task
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
It is deplorable that Republicans are being so obstructive. Their intransigence has increased the risk that the bill will get worse not better, if it passes at all
The White House has mismanaged the selling of healthcare reform. But if Barack Obama can focus on essentials, and make a more honest and consistent case, this much-needed reform can still happen
The president needs to bang Democratic heads together, so that he and the party can finally start making a coherent case to the public
Instead of promising something for nothing, President Obama should have called from the beginning for healthcare security together with the means to pay for it
A consensus backs rules that would stop insurers from denying coverage because of pre-existing conditions and cap out-of-pocket expenses. Dropping the public option to get that done would be a triumph