What editorial writers are saying about accomplishing health reform

Newspapers across the country provide thoughts about stumbling blocks and what legislators should do after their August break. Here is a sampling of opinion.

Dishonest debate mars bid to overhaul health care

It's hard to imagine how anyone could take an honest look at this system and not see urgent reasons why it should be fixed, but increasingly opponents of reform counsel that doing nothing is preferable. There's an honest debate to be had about precisely what to do, but an honest debate is not what the nation has been getting. USA Today, July 31

Getting reform right

Merely reaching this point in the House -- while the Senate moves more slowly -- is a big step forward. It follows a split and reconciliation with conservative Blue Dog Democrats who fought for greater cost restraint, helping to put the House plan on a stronger footing. Indeed, whatever plan emerges from Congress will rise or fall, first and foremost, on whether it's sustainable over the long haul and, as the president says, "bends the curve" on spending. Philadelphia Inquirer, Aug. 2

ObamaCare's real price tag

Democrats will return in the fall with various budget tweaks that will claim to make ObamaCare "deficit neutral" over 10 years. But that won't begin to account for the budget abyss it will create in the decades to come. Wall Street Journal, Aug. 6

Health-care reform

Members of Congress need to spend their August recess truly listening to the funding and access problems Americans are experiencing. They -- and their constituents -- need to acknowledge there is no system so perfect it cannot be improved. They need to take the time -- and yes, spend the money -- to thoroughly research potential solutions. Then, and only then, they should craft the legislation necessary to begin straightening out this mess. Durango (Colo.) Herald, Aug. 4

Health care debate so far is an unhelpful war of words

The most important transformation will be crafting national policies that reward doctors and hospitals for delivering high-quality care. The plan has to fund continual research on comparative treatment for conditions and diseases and distribute the information widely for review. San Jose Mercury News, Aug. 4

Prudent slowdown on health reform

Lawmakers need to err on the side of moving carefully, not speedily. Overhauling our $2.4 trillion health care system is one of the most complex challenges the nation has ever tackled, in some ways even more difficult than the 1960s moon shot push. This is a complex, fragmented public/private system with wealthy entrenched interests, decades-old industry practices and more than 307 million stakeholders -- the current U.S. population. It's important to get it right. Minneapolis Star Tribune, Aug. 1