The Fox News personality is pushing an inaccurate interpretation of the reform law's so-called "1099" provision.

Berwick fireworks fizzle: The first Finance Committee hearing on healthcare reform turned out to be pretty subdued Wednesday. Expected fireworks never materialized: Medicare administrator Don Berwick made a strong case for the new law and Republicans were given only a few minutes to interrogate him.

The Finance panel hearing on "Strengthening Medicare and Medicaid" was the first chance for Republicans to grill Berwick since his July recess appointment to head the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Berwick has become a lightning rod for healthcare reform legislation that passed without a single Republican vote, but the short hearing — about an hour and a half — and the lengthy opening statements left little time for any aggressive back-and-forth.

Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) called the hearing "pathetic" and said the time constraints made any real questioning difficult. http://bit.ly/by6Yxb

Food-safety bill clears key Senate hurdle: After a year of waiting in line, legislation to promote food safety on Wednesday moved toward passage during the Senate’s lame-duck session. The long-stalled food-safety bill by Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) passed on a 74-25 procedural vote and could pass as early as today. http://bit.ly/aQGXmq

Early start to health reform waivers sought: Sens. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Scott Brown (R-Mass.) plan to introduce legislation today allowing states to opt out of provisions of the health reform law as early as Jan. 1, 2014 instead of 2017, Politico reports.

Wyden has long advocated for state flexibility and sponsored a provision in the bill that in his words "would allow states to gain an exemption from certain federal requirements - such as the individual mandate, the employer penalty and the exact standards for designing the exchanges, subsidies and basic health insurance policies - if they could find a way to do a better job of covering their state's citizens."

Gays get visitation rights: The Department of Health and Human Services on Wednesday adopted regulations that protect the rights of patients to choose their own visitors during a hospital stay. The new rule, which takes effect in 60 days, directs the 6,200 hospitals that receive Medicare or Medicaid funds to have written visitation policies that prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. http://bit.ly/9MPdV6

The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force immediately applauded the decision.

"Of all the things same-sex couples have to worry about, of all the discrimination and pressures we face, not being able to see our partner or spouse shouldn’t be one of them," task force executive director Rea Carey said in a statement. "Today’s announcement honors our relationships, our love and our basic humanity. An end to this discrimination can't come soon enough. We thank the administration for taking this critical stride forward and will continue to work with Health and Human Services as it issues future guidelines to ensure full and clear implementation of this rule."

CBO scores Medicare vouchers: Rep. Paul Ryan's (R-Wis.) proposal to turn Medicare into a voucher program would save the federal government $280 billion over 10 years, according to the Congressional Budget Office. Critics say the vouchers wouldn't keep up with healthcare costs and leave seniors worse off. http://bit.ly/95JONY

Shimkus reaffirms his pursuit of E&C gavel: Hoping to clarify mistaken press reports, Rep. John Shimkus (R-Ill.) reaffirmed on Wednesday that he is actively pursuing the Energy and Commerce gavel. http://bit.ly/97U4pC

DEA nominee grilled on pain medications: Sen. Herb Kohl (D-Wis.) said Wednesday he wants the nominee to lead the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) to make it easier for seniors to get access to their pain medications. http://bit.ly/brqp7R

Enzi, Barrasso join the party: The two Republican senators are the latest lawmakers to announce their intention to file an amicus brief in support of the 20-state challenge against the health reform law.

"The health care law is a wolf dressed in sheep's clothing," Enzi said in a statement Wednesday. "Cleverly disguised as the 'Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act,' the law’s true colors and devastating effects have been unfolding. This bill is a job-killer, threatens our small businesses and further throws our budget into a downward spiral."

Added Barrasso: "President Obama used every trick in the book to pass the health care law and force all Americans to buy a product they may not want. Republicans in the Senate won’t sit back and allow the White House to manipulate the Constitution to fit its agenda."

The big number: Health insurers last year gave the U.S. Chamber of Commerce $86.2 million that was used to oppose the health-care overhaul law, Bloomberg News reports. http://bit.ly/cVPJxt

Hoping to clarify mistaken press reports, Rep. John Shimkus (R-Ill.) reaffirmed on Wednesday that he is actively pursuing the Energy and Commerce gavel.

He also reiterated that he is not his first choice for the job.

Shimkus has thrown his support behind Rep. Joe Barton (R-Texas) to lead the committee in the next Congress. But if term limits prevent Barton from serving, Shimkus has raised his hand for the post.

A quartet of senior Senate Democrats on Wednesday introduced a bill for a lame-duck session vote to cut off planned Medicare rate increases scheduled to hit 12 million senior and disabled Americans.

Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.), Chris Dodd (D-Conn.), Jeff Bingaman (D-N.M.) and Robert Casey (D-Pa.) unveiled the Medicare Fairness Act, which would extend a current “hold harmless” provision to cover Medicare recipients who would otherwise see rate hikes.

“We have a responsibility to protect all Medicare beneficiaries from unfair premium increases,” Kerry said. “Every penny counts right now, and 12 million seniors and individuals with disabilities are depending on us to restore fairness to the Medicare system.”

“Without a Social Security Cost-of-Living Adjustment increase, many of our country’s senior citizens will not be able afford an increase in their monthly Medicare Part B premiums,” said Dodd.

The federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced 2011 Medicare rates this month, under which most beneficiaries will pay the same $96.40 premium rate — unchanged since 2008. However, a little under one-third of beneficiaries will see their rates skyrocket by at least $225.

A hold-harmless provision in federal law currently protects most Medicare patients during years when Social Security benefits do not receive cost-of-living increases. However, new enrollees, low-income enrollees and seniors who do not receive Social Security are not covered by the provision, and could see their premiums disproportionately increased.

The Democratic bill would extend the current hold harmless policy equally to all Medicare enrollees.

Similar legislation passed the House by a vote of 406 to 18 in 2009, but the Democratic senators say the GOP has blocked it in the Senate.

Sen. Herb Kohl (D-Wis.) said Wednesday he wants the nominee to lead the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) to make it easier for seniors to get access to their pain medications.

Healthcare providers have complained that nursing-home patients are sometimes left in pain without their drugs because facilities don't want to run afoul of the country's strict drug laws. Kohl and Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) asked the DEA to fix the problem in an October 2009 letter, but both lawmakers say they're unhappy with the progress since. 

"I would like to see much more progress made on this issue before you are confirmed," Kohl told nominee Michele Leonhart at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on her nomination.

Leonhart has been the acting administrator at DEA since 2007.

Kohl acknowledged that the DEA released new guidelines last month allowing physicians to authorize nurses at long-term care facilities to phone in prescriptions for certain medications. But Kohl wants further changes that would give nurses, who are responsible for the day-to-day care of patients, the ability to transmit prescriptions for more medications, including morphine.

Kohl has also been working on legislation that would grant nurses the authority to call in orders for pain killers after consultation with a patient's doctor. The bill would create a federal registration category for nursing homes under the DEA's jurisdiction and require special training for nursing-home staff members.

Kohl reminded Leonhart that he asked the DEA for comment on his draft legislation back in August, and has yet to receive a reply.

The White House on Wednesday threw its support behind a ban on beverages that infuse alcohol and caffeine.

Wednesday's first Senate Finance Committee hearing on healthcare reform turned out to be pretty subdued.

Expected fireworks never materialized: Medicare administrator Don Berwick made a strong case for the new law and Republicans were given only a few minutes to interrogate him.

The Finance panel hearing on "Strengthening Medicare and Medicaid" was the first chance for Republicans to grill Berwick since his July recess appointment to head the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Berwick has become a lightning rod for healthcare reform legislation that passed without a single Republican vote, but the short hearing — about an hour and a half — and the lengthy opening statements left little time for any aggressive back-and-forth.

After a year of waiting, legislation to promote food safety moved Wednesday toward passage during the Senate’s lame-duck session.

State funding for tobacco prevention and cessation programs has hit its lowest level since 1999, even as states continue to receive hefty annual payments from the tobacco industry for anti-smoking initiatives.

According to a report released by health groups Wednesday, states will spend an average of two percent of their tobacco-related revenue, or $518 million, on anti-tobacco programs in 2011.

That revenue comes from a combination of tobacco taxes and settlement payments — expected to total $246 billion by 2024 — from a 1998 lawsuit against four leading tobacco companies. The payments, officials promised in 1998, would be used largely for anti-smoking programs.

The overall rate of funding for such programs has dipped 28 percent over the last three years, Wednesday's report states. Some recipients of settlement funds — like Missouri, Tennessee, New Jersey and Connecticut — now allocate only one percent of the amount recommended by the Center for Disease Control (CDC), while three others — Nevada, New Hampshire and Ohio — allocate no money at all. 

The federal government continues to supplement states' efforts with CDC grants, as well as with funds from March's healthcare overhaul and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. 

The national rate of smoking among adults remains firm at 20.6 percent. 

The report was issued by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, American Heart Association, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Lung Association and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.