An article in today's Washington Post credits the AHA and its hospital members with helping to kill "in a mere six days" a proposal to include a Medicare buy-in provision in the Senate health reform bill. The proposed Medicare expansion, which emerged as senators negotiated the bill last week, would have allowed adults age 55-64 to buy into the program as part of a public health insurance option. Aided by the AHA, hospital leaders quickly urged their representatives to reject the plan, which could hamper hospitals' ability to maintain essential services because Medicare pays less than the cost of care.