Partisan Rift Stalls Health Reform, for Now

A partisan split over health care will likely stall all attempts at reform, at least until a new president takes office next year, the AP reports. Bush's health secretary, Mike Leavitt, opposes Dem ideas about negotiating drug prices and boosting dollars for children's care. “I’m not expecting too much cooperation or bipartisanship,” said Texas GOP Rep. Joe Barton.

Democrats plan another try at overriding Bush's veto on kids' health care, and say the plan can help 4 million children in poverty. Leavitt calls the program “government run health care,” but Dem Rep. Frank Pallone says the branding is unfair. The Bush administration is "into this ideological labeling of everything, even when there's no basis for it," he said. (More health care stories.)