AARP objects to Obama invoking group's support during debate

The AARP, which put itself in the middle of the health care debate by endorsing ObamaCare, now is telling President Obama to keep the group out of his political talking points. 

The nation's leading senior advocacy organization objected after the president during Wednesday's debate twice mentioned the AARP while defending his health care plan and attacking Mitt Romney's plans for Medicare. 

The AARP posted a blog saying that while the group is "grateful" the candidates had a "robust" debate on health care, the organization is not aligned with either candidate. 

"While we respect the rights of each campaign to make its case to voters, AARP has never consented to the use of its name by any candidate or political campaign. AARP is a nonpartisan organization and we do not endorse political candidates nor coordinate with any candidate or political party," the group said. 

Obama invoked the AARP during the Denver debate because the group had endorsed his health care overhaul earlier in his term. He used that endorsement to challenge Romney's claims that the law's cuts to Medicare would weaken the health care system. 

"And this is not my own -- only my opinion. AARP thinks that the savings that we obtained from Medicare bolster the system, lengthen the Medicare trust fund by eight years. Benefits were not affected at all," Obama said. 

He went on to say that Romney's plan, which he describes as a "voucher system," would put seniors "at the mercy" of insurance companies. 

"And this is the reason why AARP has said that your plan would weaken Medicare substantially. And that's why they were supportive of the approach that we took," Obama said. 

The AARP, while having gotten involved in the health care debate, stressed that it is trying not to take sides in the presidential race itself. 

Some, though, have questioned the AARP's objectivity. 

Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., in a recent op-ed in Politico, said the group "poses as a disinterested senior advocate" while taking positions that "just happen to coincide with its financial interests." 

He claimed that group's support of the health care law could yield "windfall profits" by forcing seniors off Medicare Advantage and into a separate supplemental coverage program. 

"AARP knows it can protect its financial interests by aligning with Democrats, no matter what its members think," DeMint wrote. 

Romney said during Wednesday's debate that his plan for overhauling Medicare would give seniors a decade from now a choice between traditional Medicare and private insurance. 

"And by the way, if the government can be as efficient as the private sector and offer premiums that are as low as the private sector, people will be happy to get traditional Medicare or they'll be able to get a private plan," Romney said.

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Feds: Sebelius violated federal law by campaigning for Obama

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius violated federal law when she campaigned this winter for President Obama, federal investigators announced Wednesday.

Sebelius broke the law by making “extemporaneous partisan remarks” during a speech in February at a Human Rights Campaign Event in Charlotte, N.C., according to the Office of Special Counsel (OSC). She made the comments in the city that would later host the Democratic National Convention.

"One of the imperatives is to make sure that we not only come together here in Charlotte to present the nomination to the president, but we make sure that in November, he continues to be president for another four years," Sebelius said, according to the agency and reported first by The Hill newspaper.

The agency said Sebelius’ comments violated the Hatch Act, which prohibits public officials from campaigning in an official capacity.

The agency said the Department of Health and Human Services after the event reclassified the trip from official to political and that the federal government was reimbursed for related costs.

However, the OSC still concluded Sebelius had violated federal law and has sent the report to the president -- the procedure for a government official appointed by a president and confirmed by the Senate.

OSC spokeswoman Ann O’Hanlon said there is no formal rule for dealing with an appointed official in violation of the act. However, the agency investigates at least 100 cases such cases annually with “a great majority” of them being resolved internally and violators getting a suspension.

O'Hanlon said the remaining cases are sent to the Merit System Protection Board, which can decide to terminate the employment of non-appointed federal employees or give them a 30-day suspension.

Still, Maureen Ferguson and Ashley McGuire of the Catholic Association are calling for Sebelius’ resignation. 

“Throughout her tenure at Health and Human Services, most of Secretary Kathleen Sebelius' actions have advanced the president's political interests,” they said in a joint statement.

Sebelius could not be reached late Wednesday afternoon, but her response to the findings is supposed to be in the report forwarded to the  president.

She also discussed state politics in the Feb. 25 speech, urging voters to defeat a ballot proposal opposing gay marriage and to elect a Democratic governor, according to The Hill.

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NYC big-soda crackdown plan goes to vote

NEW YORK –  One of New York City's most ambitious efforts to prod residents to live healthier appears poised to pass as a health panel takes up a plan to cut down sales of big sodas and other sugary soft drinks.

The Board of Health was set to vote Thursday on the proposal, which would bar sales of sugar-heavy drinks in more than 16-ounce cups or bottles in restaurants, movie theaters and some other settings.

The plan was expected to pass what could be a final vote, but it may not be the final word on a proposal that has drawn intense public interest. The Health Department has received more than 38,000 oral and written comments about the cola crackdown, proposed less than four months ago.

Championed by Mayor Michael Bloomberg, the unprecedented regulation would follow other ambitious health moves on his watch. Some have proven to be national pacesetters, such as making chain restaurants post calorie counts; McDonald's announced Wednesday that it would start displaying the information nationwide next week, before a federal requirement that could force all major chains to do so next year. New York City also has barred artificial trans fats from restaurant food and taken aggressive steps to discourage smoking. Starting this month, dozens of city hospitals are asking mothers of newborns to listen to talks about why they should breast-feed instead of using formula.

Bloomberg and other advocates for the soda plan -- who include a roster of doctors and such food figures as chef Jamie Oliver -- see it as another pioneering step for public health.

They say the proposal strikes at a leading cause of obesity simply by giving people a built-in reason to stop at 16 ounces: 200 calories, if it's a regular Coke, compared to 240 in a 20-ounce size. For someone who drinks a soda a day, the difference amounts to 14,600 calories a year, or the equivalent of 70 Hershey bars, enough to add about four pounds of fat to a person's body.

Beyond the numbers, some doctors and nutrition experts say the proposal starts a conversation that could change attitudes toward overeating. While there are many factors in obesity, "ultimately it does come down to culture, and it comes down to taking some first steps," said Dr. Jeffrey Mechanick, a Mount Sinai School of Medicine professor who has studied the effect of government regulation on the obesity epidemic.

Soda makers and sellers say the plan unfairly singles out soft drinks as culprits for the nation's fat problem, represents an overweening government effort to regulate behavior and is so patchy as to be pointless. Because of the web of who regulates what, it would affect a belly-buster regular soda sold at a sports arena but not a 7-Eleven Big Gulp, for instance.

An average New Yorker goes to the movies about four times per year and buys concessions only twice, said Sun Dee Larson, a spokeswoman for the AMC Theatres chain.

"We firmly believe the choices made during the other 363 days have a much greater impact on public health," she said in a statement.

The plan is expected to be approved by the Bloomberg-appointed health board and then could take effect next March. It's unclear what the prospects are for last-minute changes before the vote. Health Commissioner Dr. Thomas Farley has noted that the board has been reviewing the public comments.

A soft-drink industry sponsored group called New Yorkers for Beverage Choices -- which says it has gathered more than 250,000 signatures on petitions opposing the soda plan -- is considering a lawsuit and exploring legislative options for challenging the plan if it passes, spokesman Eliot Hoff said. It's not clear what legislative routes there may be: City Council Speaker Christine Quinn said Wednesday she's not interested in trying to block the expected health board vote, though she has said she isn't a fan of the soda idea.

The rule wouldn't apply to lower-calorie drinks, such as water or diet soda, or to alcoholic beverages or drinks that are more than half milk or 70 percent juice.

Enforcement would be conducted by an existing corps of city restaurant inspectors. A violation would lead to a $200 fine.

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West Nile virus not backing down

Human cases of West Nile virus disease are continuing to increase. 

As of Tuesday, state health departments have reported at least 2,636 cases; 118 of them fatal, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

These figures are the highest they've been through the second week of September for any year since 2003 in terms of total cases reported. Public health officials say aggressive random testing in 2003 boosted the overall figures for that year, but the number of severe cases in 2012 is the highest reported this time of year since West Nile virus was first detected in the U.S. in 1999.

"We still believe that this year's outbreak is the largest to date and certainly the most serious," said Dr. Lyle Petersen, director of the CDC's Division of Vector-Borne Infectious Diseases.

Although the exact reasons behind the severity of this year's outbreak remain unclear, experts believe unusually high temperatures may have been a contributing factor.

The numbers are up more than 30 percent from last week, when public health officials reported 1,993 cases of West Nile virus in people and 87 fatalities.

Although the total case numbers continue to increase, CDC officials say they believe this year's outbreak may have already peaked in mid- to late-August, and they expect it to taper off during or after October, following the course of previous West Nile outbreaks.

Four out of five people infected with West Nile virus do not show any symptoms. However, up to 20 percent develop flu-like symptoms, and about one in 150 develops severe symptoms such as high fever, paralysis or other neurological disorders.

Public health officials say people can reduce their risk of exposure to West Nile by maintaining screens on windows and doors, draining standing water, using bug repellant and wearing long pants and sleeves, especially during dusk and dawn when many mosquito species are most active.

According to the CDC, mosquitoes initially contract the virus by feeding on infected birds and then spread the disease to humans they bite. Although the virus is not transmissible through casual human contact, such as touching or kissing, there are rare instances of its spread through blood transfusions, organ transplants and from mother to baby during breastfeeding or pregnancy.

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West Nile virus not backing down

Human cases of West Nile virus disease are continuing to increase. 

As of Tuesday, state health departments have reported at least 2,636 cases; 118 of them fatal, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

These figures are the highest they've been through the second week of September for any year since 2003 in terms of total cases reported. Public health officials say aggressive random testing in 2003 boosted the overall figures for that year, but the number of severe cases in 2012 is the highest reported this time of year since West Nile virus was first detected in the U.S. in 1999.

"We still believe that this year's outbreak is the largest to date and certainly the most serious," said Dr. Lyle Petersen, director of the CDC's Division of Vector-Borne Infectious Diseases.

Although the exact reasons behind the severity of this year's outbreak remain unclear, experts believe unusually high temperatures may have been a contributing factor.

The numbers are up more than 30 percent from last week, when public health officials reported 1,993 cases of West Nile virus in people and 87 fatalities.

Although the total case numbers continue to increase, CDC officials say they believe this year's outbreak may have already peaked in mid- to late-August, and they expect it to taper off during or after October, following the course of previous West Nile outbreaks.

Four out of five people infected with West Nile virus do not show any symptoms. However, up to 20 percent develop flu-like symptoms, and about one in 150 develops severe symptoms such as high fever, paralysis or other neurological disorders.

Public health officials say people can reduce their risk of exposure to West Nile by maintaining screens on windows and doors, draining standing water, using bug repellant and wearing long pants and sleeves, especially during dusk and dawn when many mosquito species are most active.

According to the CDC, mosquitoes initially contract the virus by feeding on infected birds and then spread the disease to humans they bite. Although the virus is not transmissible through casual human contact, such as touching or kissing, there are rare instances of its spread through blood transfusions, organ transplants and from mother to baby during breastfeeding or pregnancy.

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Romney, Ryan sound bipartisan tone on taxes, health care

Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan are moving to define what they plan to do and what they stand for on the hot-button issues of health care and taxes, after enduring a week in which Democratic convention-goers tried to define that for them.

Both candidates signaled room for compromise on those issues in interviews over the weekend. The remarks follow a convention in Charlotte where speaker after speaker accused Republicans of favoring the wealthy in the tax code and imperiling Americans' access to care. 

On health care, Romney said Sunday he wants to keep parts of the health care overhaul spearheaded by President Obama. Though Romney vows to repeal the law, he said: "I'm not getting rid of all of health care reform." 

Romney said "there are a number of things that I like" in the law. The Republican presidential nominee said he wants to make sure people with pre-existing conditions can still have guaranteed coverage. And he said he wants to make sure young people can stay on their parents' plan "up to whatever age they might like" -- currently, that age is 26. 

The comments may be part of the natural and traditional outreach to the political middle that candidates embark on after sealing their party's presidential nomination. With the 2012 presidential race consistently so close as to be within the margin of error, independents and undecided voters are key to victory in the November election. The pre-existing condition and young adult provisions Romney mentioned in his interview on NBC's "Meet the Press" are among the most popular in the health care overhaul, though the law itself is divisive. 

Romney and Ryan also challenged the narrative that they want to cut benefits to seniors in order to finance tax cuts for the wealthy. Romney said Sunday he does not intend to cut taxes for the well-off. 

"I can tell that you people at the high end, high income taxpayers, are going to have fewer deductions and exemptions. Those numbers are going to come down," Romney said. "Otherwise, they'd get a tax break. And I want to make sure people understand, despite what the Democrats said at their convention, I am not reducing taxes on high-income taxpayers." 

Romney stressed that while he's proposing a reduction in the tax rate, he wants to close deductions and exemptions "at the high end so the revenues stay the same." Romney said he also wants "to lower the burden on middle income people." 

However, Romney did not detail specifically which deductions or loopholes he'd shave back -- a lack of specifics that has opened the door to charges that his plan would in fact benefit high-income earners and end up taxing the middle class more. 

The Obama campaign on Monday accused Romney of "unapologetic evasiveness," again citing a study that claimed the plan could raise taxes on the middle class by roughly $2,000 a year. 

"He couldn't name one (loophole that he'd close)," Vice President Biden said Sunday in Ohio. "He didn't name one. Ladies and gentlemen, look, all this has a giant price tag, and it's not going to come from closing loopholes for millionaires. ... Folks, when you give these kinds of tax breaks out to the very, very wealthy, the money's got to come from somewhere. And guess who? You." 

Ryan, in a separate interview, challenged the notion that the ticket is only interested in doling out tax cuts. And, speaking on ABC's "This Week," he challenged Romney's prior opposition to a hypothetical deficit-reduction deal that would include 10 parts spending cuts and 1 part tax hikes. 

Asked if he could accept such a deal, Ryan said: "It depends on the quality of the agreement. It depends on the quality of the policy." He did not rule it out. 

Ryan went on to reiterate that he thinks Washington's budget problem is that is spends too much -- not that it doesn't tax enough.

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