This summer, in the humid thicket of the nation's capital, members of Congress toiled to sow the seeds of health care reform, introducing bills and proposals and rolling up their sleeves to slog through the pros and cons of the different plans. By late August, reform appeared to be withering on the vine, so President Barack Obama convened a rare meeting of Congress and urged members and the American public to come together and get behind reform. As summer turned to fall, cooler weather brought cooler heads, and Republicans and Democrats sat down together to try to hammer out their differences. This article was written in the midst of that debate, and by publication, it's difficult to say whether the country will have health care reform--and if so, what form it will take. To some, any change from the status quo will be viewed with suspicion--a weed to be plucked out. To others, reform might be seen as a beautiful flower that will help the country.
