Will a publicly-financed health care system be a further burden on the economy, or can President Obama get a bill passed that doesn’t increase the federal deficit?

President Obama discusses his health care reform initiative, bipartisanship and deadlines in an exclusive interview with NewsHour’s Jim Lehrer.
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The MediaBistro blog FishbowlDC reported that Lehrer was also doing his part to make a child feel better — by inviting a 17-year-old leukemia patient to a NewsHour taping.

At WNYC, a different Lehrer — Brian Lehrer of The Brian Lehrer Show — also focuses on health care reform and spoke with New York Congressman Charlie Rangel about whether he thinks a health care bill will be passed before Congress’ August recess.

But lobbyists are still at the center of the game. Marketplace looks at how any public plan could affect private insurers and drug companies, along with the people who pitch for them.