HEALTHCARE

Congressional Democrats on Tuesday cast doubt on their chances of meeting the White House's March 18 deadline for voting on a stalled healthcare overhaul, but said they are moving as fast as they can.

President Barack Obama, making a final push for healthcare reform, will back bipartisan plans to stamp out waste in government-run medical programs for the old and needy, the White House said on Tuesday.

The leader of the House of Representatives -- a persuasive arm-twister and deal maker -- faces her toughest challenge yet in the coming weeks: getting 216 votes to pass final legislation revamping the U.S. healthcare system.

Hitting the road to rally support in the final push for healthcare reform, Obama used a campaign-style speech to urge Democrats to approve a bill and quickly end the political wrangling that has consumed Washington since July.

U.S. stocks barely budged on Monday as hopes stirred by AIG's sale of a unit and McDonald's upbeat sales were offset by falling healthcare shares after President Barack Obama's criticism.

Portugal's long-term budget austerity plan encompasses spending cuts via reducing tax breaks and containing public sector wages, but entails no Greece-style wage cuts or tax hikes, local media said on Sunday.

Kevin Rudd, the Prime Minister has presented the Government's National Health and Hospital Network for Australia's future report, saying that it is the most significant reforms to health and hospitals since the introduction of Medicare.

By pushing Congress for final passage of U.S. healthcare reform, President Barack Obama is gambling voters will reward Democrats for the accomplishment rather than punish them in November congressional elections.

A dozen House of Representatives Democrats opposed to abortion are willing to kill President Barack Obama's healthcare reform plan unless it satisfies their demand for language barring the procedure, Representative Bart Stupak said on Thursday.

President Barack Obama said on Wednesday it is time to pass his sweeping healthcare overhaul using only a slim Democratic majority in Congress if necessary, saying the issue is too important to be delayed by politics after a year of debate.

U.S. stocks lost gains and were trading little changed on Wednesday as the White House stepped up its efforts to overhaul healthcare and bank regulation, sparking concerns about the potential impact on profits in those sectors.

Republicans have called on President Barack Obama and his fellow Democrats to scrap their legislation overhauling the U.S. healthcare system and start over with some Republican ideas.

A key figure in the battle to revamp U.S. healthcare may soon be the U.S. Senate's little-known, mustachioed and highly respected umpire, Alan Frumin.

President Barack Obama is preparing a final push for a healthcare overhaul and is expected to announce a plan on Wednesday to move the ambitious legislation forward without support from opposition Republicans.

President Barack Obama said on Tuesday he would explore adding more Republican ideas to his healthcare plan, even as congressional Democrats prepared for a final push to pass the overhaul without Republican backing.

U.S. President Barack Obama made a last-ditch bid on Tuesday to overcome Republican opposition to his stalled healthcare overhaul, saying he was ready to consider several of their proposals for crafting final legislation.

After a healthcare summit last week failed to win Republican converts, Obama and his fellow Democrats have been expected to launch a final push for an overhaul of the $2.5 trillion healthcare industry using a process known as reconciliation to move the measure through the Senate without opposition support.

Greece's debt crisis may end up helping Europe in the long run if it pressures governments to start addressing the potentially colossal costs of pensions and healthcare in coming decades.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democratic leaders in the Congress voiced confidence on Sunday they will have the votes, possibly within a couple of months or so, to pass landmark legislation to overhaul the healthcare system.

President Barack Obama sought on Saturday to spark momentum for a final push to revive his stalled healthcare overhaul, insisting that Americans cannot wait another generation for us to act.

Joe Jimenez, the new chief executive of Swiss drugmaker Novartis, is targeting bolt-on acquisitions as the group digests the multibillion dollar acquisition of eyecare group Alcon.