As House Republicans plan to expose what they call flaws in the new healthcare reform law, a key Senate committee announced Thursday afternoon plans to highlight the law's consumer protections.

Starting Jan. 27, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee will host a series of hearings on how the reform law provides new benefits to consumers.

The first will examine how the law protects consumers against health insurers. The committee also will examine how the law requires insurers to be transparent about rates and spend at least 80 percent of premiums on healthcare services; benefits small business owners; reduces the deficit; increases quality of care; reduces waste, fraud and abuse; invests in prevention and wellness; provides portable insurance; and expands coverage.

House Republicans, including Energy and Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-Mich.), have promised to shine a light on the law's weaknesses. They will vote next week to repeal the entire law, and the committees will work to find "common-sense" solutions to replace popular consumer protections included in the reform law.

House Republicans are rejecting a Congressional Budget Office analysis that says repealing last year's healthcare reform bill would increase the budget deficit by $145 billion through 2019, $230 billion through 2021, and add to deficits in the decade after that (although CBO does not have a firm estimate for the second decade).

In Thursday's Rules Committee hearing on a pending healthcare reform bill, Chairman David Dreier (R-Calif.) said Republicans have a "response" to that CBO analysis: a new House Budget Committee report that says enactment of the healthcare law will add $701 billion to the deficit in 10 years and will cost $2.6 trillion when fully implemented.

Rep. James McGovern (D-Mass.) said Dreier's comments worry him because they imply CBO estimates will be ignored when Republicans disagree with them and will be replaced by Republican estimates. Dreier responded by saying Republicans want to look at the cost of legislation beyond a 10-year timeframe in order to ensure Congress does not pass legislation that might save money early on but lead to an "explosion" in spending in later years.

The Rules Committee hearing began at 10 a.m. and is expected to take up much of the rest of today, after which a vote on the rule for the repeal bill, H.R. 2, is expected.

Two federal departments teamed up Thursday to help people with disabilities retain their independence.

The housing and health departments announced a partnership aimed at helping 1,000 non-elderly people with disabilities leave nursing homes and other institutions through a combination of rental assistance vouchers and healthcare and related support services. The Department of Housing and Urban Services is providing $7.5 million in rental assistance vouchers, while the Department of Health and Human Services will provide health and social services through its "Money Follows the Person" grant program.

"Through our collaboration with the Department of Housing and Urban Development, I know that we will be able to dramatically change peoples' lives," HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said in a statement. "Individuals with disabilities can have a life in the community that serves their needs and supports them in leading productive, meaningful lives."

Republicans argue that the agency's estimates of cost-savings under the healthcare law are based on "accounting gimmickry."

Groups opposing healthcare reform are urging 13 House Democrats who voted against the reform law to support the repeal bill next week. 

"If you are really against ObamaCare, then you will vote yea for repeal," according to the letter from DeFundIt.org, Americans for Prosperity, Independent Women's Voice and the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons.

Five Democratic "no" votes have already told The Hill they will vote against repeal, with some dismissing the repeal effort as a political stunt. Centrist Democratic Rep. Larry Kissell (N.C.) said he is opposing repeal so Congress can focus on the economy and jobs.

Other Democrats who told The Hill they will vote against repeal include Reps. Stephen Lynch (Mass.), Collin Peterson (Minn.), Daniel Lipinski (Ill.) and Heath Shuler (N.C.).
 
Rep. Dan Boren (D-Okla.) told Fox News earlier this week he will likely vote for repeal, making him the only "no" vote to publicly throw his support behind the Republican bill.

Only 13 of 34 Democrats who voted against the bill remain in Congress. Others include Reps. Jim Matheson (Utah), Mike McIntyre (N.C.), Ben Chandler (Ky.), Jason Altmire (Pa.), John Barrow (Ga.), Tim Holden (Pa.) and Mike Ross (Ark.).

Shane D'Aprile contributed.

A pro-reform physicians group is asking leading House Republicans to strengthen — not repeal — last year’s healthcare overhaul.

Doctors for America on Thursday morning delivered a petition, signed by more than 2,000 physicians and medical students, to the offices of Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) that urged the new House majority to improve the healthcare reform law. The petition, delivered less than a week before the GOP is set to vote on a measure to repeal the reform legislation, emphasized the law’s consumer protections.

"We believe repealing or weakening the Affordable Care Act will move our healthcare system backward — and we strongly urge against it," the petition said. "Instead, we ask you to work with us in building upon the Affordable Care Act, making it stronger, and ensuring that we can create a healthcare system that works for all Americans."

Democrats ramping up their defense of the reform law over the past week have touted its consumer protections. Republicans said they will work to replace the law's popular elements after they vote on repeal.

The nation's spending on healthcare grew 4 percent, to $2.5 trillion, in 2009, according to a new report from the Medicare agency's Office of the Actuary — the slowest rate of growth since the federal government began keeping track in 1960.

Despite the slowdown in insurance payments and out-of-pocket spending, the increase in healthcare spending still outpaced the overall growth of the economy, which contracted by 1.7 percent. On average, Americans spent $8,086 per person on healthcare in 2009, far more than any other country.

Democrats have pointed to the unsustainable rate of growth as a key reason to move ahead with healthcare reform that rewards quality rather than quantity of care. Republican critics counter that the law itself does little to cut costs and could make the situation worse by extending coverage to more people.

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

Wednesday’s health news:

McCaskill 'hopes' for individual mandate alternatives: Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.), expected to face stiff competition from Republicans in the 2012 election, said she “hopes” lawmakers can find other ways to encourage people to buy health insurance besides the individual mandate. McCaskill said the provision, which is being challenged by more than 20 states in federal courts, is unpopular in her home state. Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.), who is also facing a tough 2012 reelection, already said he would propose an alternative to the individual mandate. http://bit.ly/fA939G

Kissel makes five: Rep. Larry Kissel (D-N.C.) is the fifth Democrat who voted against the healthcare reform bill to tell The Hill that he won't vote for repeal. Reps. Stephen Lynch (Mass.), Collin Peterson (Minn.), Daniel Lipinski (Ill.) and Heath Shuler (N.C.) have also told The Hill they will not vote for repeal. http://bit.ly/dRPJIQ 

House Democrats on Wednesday filed amendments in a bid to force an up-or-down vote on patient protections in the bill.