NPR 2009-10-14

President Obama's effort to restructure the nation's health care system got a major boost today. The Senate Finance Committee voted to send its overhaul 1 measure to the full Senate. One Republican, Maine’s Olympia Snowe, was among 14 committee members who voted to move the bill to the Senate floor. NPR's David Welna has more.

Every one of the Democrats 2 voted for this bill. There were several who had voiced reservations about provisions in the bill or things that were not in the bills, especially the fact that this bill, unlike the four other Congressional bills, has no public option, no government-backed insurance program in it. And they say that they are gonna work further on the Senate floor and also when this bill goes to conference with the House Bill, which is expected to have a public option in it to include a pubic option in the bill. But of course, in doing so, they may be putting in jeopardy 3 the support of Senator Snowe and possibly the support of some more conservative Democrats. NPR's David Welna.

Swine flu is making generally healthy people severely 4 ill at nearly the same rate as it does those with health problems. NPR's Richard Knox has details.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says 45% of adults hospitalized with the new H1N1 flu don't have underlying 5 diseases. The others have asthma 6, chronic 7 lung disease, diabetes 8, impaired 9 immunity 10 or other disorders 11. Six percent are pregnant women, six times the numbers in the general population. The new data come from more than 1,900 hospital cases of confirmed swine flu in ten states and localities. Doctor Anne Schuchat of the CDC says the numbers tell a sobering story. "This virus can be serious even in healthy people with no underlying conditions. Some totally healthy people suffered this very rapid deterioration 12." She says people with severe flu symptoms, such as difficulty in breathing, should get medical help fast. Richard Knox, NPR News.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says the US and Russia have agreed to pursue vigorous diplomacy 13 to get Iran to fulfill 14 international obligations regarding its nuclear program. Clinton made the comments after meeting in Moscow today with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, who said, sanctions against Tehran may be inevitable 15 but would be counter-productive at this time. Clinton said the US and Russia are transforming their relationship and have found common ground on nuclear disarmament and missile defense 16.

Pakistani jets bombed militant 17 targets in the northwestern region bordering Afghanistan after insurgents 18 carried out four deadly attacks within eight days. Today's bombings come in advance of an expected ground operation in South Waziristan. Pakistan says most Taliban attacks in Pakistan are planned in that region.

On Wall Street just before the close today, the Dow was down 14 points at 9,871. The NASDAQ was up a fraction at 2,139. The S&P was off two.

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 Iran's official news agency says the government is mounting a legal case against a former pro-reform presidential candidate. Mehdi Karroubi angered hardliners when he charged that some protesters detained after June's disputed election were raped 19 and abused in prison. A special committee looking into the claims has reportedly sent its findings to prosecutors 20.

 The US Supreme 21 Court said today it will review the conviction of former Enron CEO Jeffrey Skilling. He was convicted three years ago on 19 counts of conspiracy 22, securities fraud, insider trading and lying to auditors 23, contributing to the demise 24 of the former energy giant. And he's serving a 24-year prison sentence. NPR's Nina Totenberg reports.

 The Justices has agreed to review two issues. First, whether Skilling was denied a fair trial in Houston, Enron's home base where he maintains that he was subjected to a blistering 25 daily attacks in the media, following Enron's collapse 26. The second issue involves his conviction under a federal statute 27 that makes it a crime for a company executive to deprive investors 28 and employees of "honest services", regardless of whether the executive personally profited from the conduct. The court is examining the same issue in two other cases that will be argued later this fall. Skilling is the highest Enron executive to serve time for the shady business dealings that led to the company's demise. Company founder 29 Kenneth Lay died two months after his conviction on similar charges. Nina Totenberg, NPR News, Washington.

The struggling CIT Group, a major business lender, says its chairman and CEO will step down at the end of the year. Jeffrey Peek 30 is blamed for not protecting company from the financial crisis.