One of the chief complaints about the health care bill the House of Representatives passed on Saturday is that it's too expensive, with a staggering price tag of $1.1 trillion over ten years. While the House bill admirably extends coverage to an additional 36 million Americans, it's a lot to spend on a law that doesn't adequately address the spiraling costs of health care.

Under the House plan, more Americans would have health insurance coverage, which would mean they'd have greater access to medical services and would likely seek care earlier. That would save money, as would other aspects of the House and Senate bills, such as reducing Medicare payments. But if we really want to contain costs over the long haul, we have to shift our efforts toward prevention.

Senior citizens are worried. The insurance lobby recently began running ads claiming that seniors enrolled in private Medicare plans could lose some benefits. Last week brought news that basic Medicare premiums could rise 15 percent next year for some beneficiaries. Finally, the Senate voted, also last week, to allow Medicare payments to doctors to be reduced next year, which in turn could prompt some doctors to stop accepting Medicare, the U.S. insurance program for people 65 and older.

Given the discouraging news, should seniors be concerned that they will be forced to finance the health care overhaul and that their medical care will suffer as a result?

The Senate Finance Committee voted this week to pass its health care reform bill, paving the way for Congress to approve landmark legislation this fall.

While no one is saying the bill is perfect, it's clearly a step in the right direction. "Is this bill all that I would want?" asked Olympia Snowe, the lone Republican who voted for it. "Far from it. Is it all that it can be? No. But when history calls, history calls. And I happen to think that the consequences of inaction dictate the urgency of Congress to take every opportunity to demonstrate its capacity to solve the monumental issues of our time."

If you haven't seen the new video produced by the political advocacy group, MoveOn.org featuring Will Ferrell, it's worth watching -- and not only because it's hilarious. While the video is a spoof intended to muster support for the ailing "public option," the hyperbole contains a grain of truth.

A group of actors make the case that "As the health care debate heats up, we need to remember who the real victims are: health insurance executives." Asks Ferrell: "Why is Obama trying to reform health care when insurance companies are doing just fine making billions of dollars in profits?"

A familiar face appeared on the television screen while I was watching Anderson Cooper 360º last week. An obstetrician, who had delivered the babies of a friend of mine and his wife (both physicians), was telling the story of a patient whose uterus had burst during labor -- a medical emergency that can result in death if not handled immediately and properly.

The doctor performed a hysterectomy and, after what sounded like a harrowing experience, both mother and baby were fine. The doctor described how she was so concerned for her patient's well-being that she cancelled her office appointments for several days to spend time at the patient's bedside and monitor her care.

Nine months after taking office, President Obama outlined his plan for overhauling the nation's health care system in a speech before Congress on Wednesday. It was long overdue.

Sixty-seven percent of respondents to a CBS News poll released last week said they didn't have a clear understanding of health care reform ideas because they found them too confusing. One of the reasons Americans are so puzzled is that President Obama hasn't done a good job explaining why we need reform or how his strategy will help fix the problem. His message got lost in translation.

In the beginning, there was Sarah Palin. who warned that the proposed health care reform bill called for the creation of "death panels" to decide whether an elderly patient gets to live or die. Then, along came Rush Limbaugh, who referred to the bill as "a Hitler-like policy." Now, critics of the plan are barnstorming town hall style meetings during the congressional recess to protest "Obamacare."

It's one thing for angry citizens to interrupt civic meetings and another for well-known public figures to grossly distort the facts. I am reluctant to use the word "lies," but it's hard to avoid the l-word when talking about the accusations that there is a covert governmental plan to kill off the elderly. I guess the accepted word for this sort of gross misrepresentation is "spin."

Medicare, which insures the elderly and disabled, had 45 million beneficiaries and total expenditures of $468 billion in 2008. As baby boomers age, and more adults become eligible for Medicare, costs will expand further and some have predicted that the program will go bankrupt. But it's already in trouble.

If you really want to get a handle on how much Medicare is contributing to the rising costs of health care, Dr. Atul Gawande's thought-provoking New Yorker article is a must-read. When Gawande visited McAllen, Texas, one of the most expensive health care markets in the country, he learned that per capita spending on Medicare is $15,000, more than twice the national average. Gawande compared the costs in McAllen with those near the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota -- which were less than $7,000 per person.

The health care debate heating up in Washington makes most people really nervous, and rightfully so. At this point, the plan is complicated and the benefits have not been clearly conveyed, which is one reason Americans seem to be less pleased with the way President Obama is handling the issue, judging by recent polls.

During last night's prime time news conference, the president made a convincing argument for spending a trillion dollars on health care reform in the midst of a severe recession, after already committing to an enormous economic stimulus package. He explained how health care reform is crucial to his plan to rejuvenate the economy, and he made it clear that "health insurance reform will not add to the deficit." While that's reassuring, many people will likely remain wary until they learn how the plan relates to their own lives.

Of all the problems with the current health care system, perhaps the most insidious is that the system is fueled by special interest groups, whose chief concern is their own bottom line.

There are a lot of hands in the pot: insurance companies, drug makers, hospitals, device and equipment manufacturers, and yes, doctors. They all pay lobbyists huge sums of money to convince legislators to maintain the status quo, or to draft legislation in their favor. But unless these groups agree on a solution that will overhaul our system, costs will continue to rise and the quality of care will fall.