Senate Republicans have vowed to use procedural tactics to sidestep Democrats and force a vote on repeal. 

Healthcare reform supporters have begun to seek alternatives to the unpopular individual mandate at the heart of Monday’s surprising decision.

The fallout from federal district judge Roger Vinson's decision to strike down the entire healthcare reform law will continue to resonate for the days and weeks to come. Vinson's ruling in Florida is the highest-profile decision yet since the challenge was brought by 26 states and the National Federation of Independent Business. 

Vinson was the second judge to rule unconstitutional the law's requirement for individuals to purchase health insurance, but he was the first to say the entire law cannot stand because the so-called individual mandate is central to making the law work. 

Appeal coming: The administration will appeal the ruling to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, the Justice Department announced Monday evening. It has already appealed last month's decision by a Virginia federal judge to strike down the individual mandate.

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A federal judge in Florida threw out Democrats' entire healthcare reform law, saying the individual mandate exceeds congressional power.

Not long after a federal judge struck down Democrats’ healthcare reform law Monday for exceeding congressional power, Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said he would chair a hearing this week about the law’s constitutionality.

"Durbin, one of the law’s biggest proponents, will argue that the bill is constitutional and that legal challenges to the legislation are driven by partisan opposition to its reforms," his office said in a statement.

Durbin will hear testimony on Wednesday from legal scholars, Oregon Attorney General John Kroger and former solicitors general Walter Dellinger and Charles Fried.
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Freshman Rep. Renee Ellmers (R-N.C.) was named Monday as chairwoman of the House Small Business Committee's Healthcare and Technology subcommittee. 

Ellmers was the clinical director of a wound care center before her election to Congress. She beat Democrat incumbent Bob Etheridge, who voted for healthcare reform, by about 1,500 votes.

"As a nurse and small business owner," Small Business chairman Sam Graves (R-Mo.) said in a statement, "Renee Ellmers will be a great resource as the Committee examines ways we can improve the healthcare law without creating new problems for American entrepreneurs."

The subpanel's prerogatives include reviewing healthcare policies to see if they help or hinder economic growth and job creation. Members are tasked with oversight of the healthcare reform law's implementation as well as improving small business' access to affordable health coverage.

The other Republicans on the subcommittee are:

• Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa)

• Rep. Mick Mulvaney (R-S.C.)

• Rep. Scott Tipton (R-Col.)

• Rep. Chuck Fleischmann (R-Tenn.)

• Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler (R-Wash.)

• Rep. Joe Walsh (R-Ill.)

Americans should switch to fat-free or low-fat milk, eat soups and frozen meals with the least sodium and replace sugary drinks with water if they want to reduce their risk of developing diet-related chronic disease, federal officials said Monday.

The recommendations are part of the seventh annual Dietary Guidelines for Americans. This year, the federal government's nutritional guidance places stronger emphasis on reducing calorie consumption and increasing physical activity to help the U.S. combat its obesity epidemic.

"The 2010 Dietary Guidelines are being released at a time when the majority of adults and one in three children is overweight or obese and this is a crisis that we can no longer ignore," Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said Monday. "These new and improved dietary recommendations give individuals the information to make thoughtful choices of healthier foods in the right portions and to complement those choices with physical activity. The bottom line is that most Americans need to trim our waistlines to reduce the risk of developing diet-related chronic disease. Improving our eating habits is not only good for every individual and family, but also for our country."

The guidelines include 23 key recommendations for the general population and six additional ones for specific groups, such as pregnant women. A "next-generation" Food Pyramid is scheduled to be released in the next few months.

The guidelines, for example, recommend that Americans reduce their daily sodium intake to less than 2,300 milligrams a day (1,500 mg for people older than 51 and for African-Americans or people who have hypertension, diabetes or chronic kidney disease); consume less than 10 percent of calories from saturated fatty acids by replacing them with monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids; and consume less than 300 mg per day of dietary cholesterol.

During the State of the Union, Obama made reference to two beneficiaries sitting in the first lady’s box.

President Obama has renominated Don Berwick, who avoided a Senate Finance Committee hearing before his recess appointment in July.