Medicare’s chief actuary says he won’t hesitate to correct anyone who twists his analysis of the controversial healthcare law.

President Obama said Tuesday evening that the American people "have greater health security than they did a year ago" thanks to the healthcare reform law that House Republicans plan to repeal Wednesday. 

Following a day of claims and counter-claims about the law's benefits and costs, Obama said he was "willing and eager" to work with both parties to "improve" his signature domestic achievement.

"But we can’t go backward," Obama said. "Americans deserve the freedom and security of knowing that insurance companies can’t deny, cap or drop their coverage when they need it the most, while taking meaningful steps to curb runaway healthcare costs.”

The White House has already warned that it would veto repeal legislation in the highly unlikely event that it clears the Senate.

The complete text of the president's statement is below:

Welcome to The Hill's evening roundup of the day's health policy news and advance look at tomorrow's schedule.

Tuesday's health news: 

Both parties and their supporters deluged the Internet with arguments, anecdotes and reports for and against the healthcare reform law as debate began prior to Wednesday's vote. 

The Department of Health and Human Services got off to an early start with a new report arguing that up to 129 million Americans could have a pre-existing condition and stand to lose if the law's repealed. http://bit.ly/gS6O8H

Democrats also argued that Republicans should have a lengthy debate about the law's merits because many of their freshmen don't know the law's benefits. http://bit.ly/hrxLjw

Republicans shot back with a letter signed by letter by 200 economists and other experts, including two former CBO and three former OMB directors, urging repeal because of the law's cost to the economy. http://bit.ly/ePEesT

Read more...

Florida is asking a federal judge in Florida to allow six more states — all with newly empowered Republican governors — to join a lawsuit challenging the healthcare reform law.

If accepted, the request to add Ohio, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Wisconsin and Wyoming would bring the number of states on the lawsuit to 26.

U.S. District Judge Roger Vinson, appointed by President Reagan, may rule as soon as this week on whether the reform law’s requirement for individuals to purchase health insurance is unconstitutional.

Florida’s new attorney general, Pamela Jo Bondi (R), said adding the states to the lawsuit, which also was filed by the National Federation of Independent Business, would not delay a decision.

“The only effect of granting this motion would be to expand from 20 to 26 the number of Plaintiff States joining together to seek both a declaration that the [reform law] is unconstitutional and injunctive relief for the benefit of themselves and their citizens and residents,” she wrote in the request, filed Tuesday. “Thus, the requested relief will not result in any detriment to Defendants in defending this action; and the Additional States, after being permitted to be named as Plaintiffs, will be in a position to benefit from any equitable remedies that may be entered in this cause.”

Two federal judges, both appointed by President Clinton, last year upheld the so-called individual mandate. However, a federal judge in Virginia — a President George W. Bush appointee — in December struck down the individual mandate, though he declined to block the law’s implementation.

Opponents of the reform law say the Constitution bans Congress from regulating “inactivity,” which in this case would be an individual’s decision not to purchase healthcare. However, the administration argues that everyone participates in the healthcare system, and failure to purchase coverage is an active choice affecting the insurance market.

The Florida case also challenges the reform law’s expansion of states’ Medicaid programs.

Oklahoma's incoming attorney general said earlier this month that the state would file its own lawsuit challenging the reform law.

Seniors who received $250 checks for prescription drug costs under the Democrats' law would not have to repay the money.

The House’s second-ranking Republican said his party will do everything to "delay and defund" the healthcare reform law, but there is still no timeline for how quickly the GOP will work on a replacement effort. 

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) told reporters Tuesday afternoon that his party will employ delaying and defunding tactics if Wednesday’s vote to repeal the reform law goes nowhere in the Senate. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has already pledged to block the repeal bill.

"We will do everything we can to delay and defund provisions of the bill so we can get some discussion going on how to replace it," Cantor said.

Democrats have been critical of the GOP’s plan to repeal the reform law without having a specific plan to replace one of President Obama's key legislative achievements. In particular, Democrats over the past few weeks have been highlighting the reform law’s numerous consumer protections, which would be stripped away if repeal succeeds.

Cantor was unable to predict when Republicans will propose an alternative to the reform law. The House will vote on a resolution Thursday that instructs several committees to consider replacement pieces.

"The Speaker has insisted — and I’m in full agreement — that we’re going to have a process on the efforts to shape an alternative, a replacement bill," Cantor said. "The committees need to get up and running before the debate begins."

On Tuesday, a Department of Health and Human Services report said up to 129 million individuals with pre-existing conditions will benefit from the reform law’s ban on insurers' discrimination against such patients. Democrats have been emphasizing the report on Tuesday to build support for the reform law.

Cantor said the new report shows that the GOP’s effort to replace the reform law is "imperative," saying that a Republican proposal on high-risk pools from last Congress would have extended healthcare options to people with pre-existing conditions.

"Let’s just say this — Republicans care about healthcare,” Cantor said. “We want to do it in a way that lowers costs, increases access and emphasizes the doctor-patient relationship, none of which we feel the ObamaCare bill does.”

Cantor also challenged Reid to allow a vote on the Senate floor.

“If Harry Reid is so confident that repeal will die in the Senate," Cantor said, “he should bring it up for a vote.”

A Medicare rights group filed a class action lawsuit against the federal government on Tuesday that could affect many thousands of Americans seniors.

The suit seeks to require Medicare to cover certain types of rehabilitative care even when it likely won't lead to an "improvement" in patients' condition.

"This has been the main barrier keeping people from getting the care and services they need," said Judith Stein of the Center for Medicare Advocacy, which filed the lawsuit in United States District Court in Burlington, Vt.

The lawsuit was brought on behalf of four individuals from Vermont, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Maine and five organizations. These include the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare; the National Multiple Sclerosis Society; Parkinson's Action Network; Paralyzed Veterans of America; and the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.

Plaintiffs say almost 78 percent of the 46 million or so Medicare beneficiaries have at least one chronic condition, such as multiple sclerosis or Alzheimer's. Denying them care if they don't meet the so-called "Improvement Standard," the advocates argue, can prevent them from performing routine daily activities or even cause their condition to deteriorate - leading to higher costs down the road.

Hours before the House is set to open debate a bill to repeal the healthcare reform law, the House's No. 2 Democrat and Republican said their party's members were not given special instructions to keep the debate civil. 

In light of this month's shooting tragedy in Arizona that left six dead and Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.) seriously wounded, many have been calling on lawmakers to keep the discourse on repeal civil, given that the original debate on the reform law sparked incidents of heated rhetoric. 

Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said members of his caucus did not receive special instructions to avoid inflammatory language, but he thinks that Democrats and Republicans will use factual arguments to make their respective cases.

"My expectation is that members will heed their own advice and the advice of others" to debate the repeal on its "merits," Hoyer said.  

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) said Republicans were not specifically instructed to avoid controversial language during the repeal debate.

"There's been no discussion of acceptable and nonacceptable language," Cantor said. "What we've said and the Speaker said is this — we're about policy-oriented debate here."

In the weeks since the GOP took control of the House, the parties have clashed over factual arguments, including whether the repeal bill will boost the deficit and if the reform law will hurt the labor market.

This post was update at 2:57 with Cantor's comments.

Minority Whip says Dems look forward to working with Republicans if GOP has ideas that are "improvements" to law.