WASHINGTON -- The Obama administration yesterday backed away from a ban on insurance-company mailings to seniors warning of dire Medicare cuts if health-care overhaul legislation is approved.
In a late afternoon memo to health plans, Medicare said that insurance companies may lobby seniors, provided they first get permission from beneficiaries, and no federal funds or data are used. Last month, Medicare had ordered a halt to such mailings after a Democratic legislator complained about a misleading flyer.
The controversy quickly escalated, with Republicans calling the ban a "gag order" that violated free-speech rights. GOP senators threatened to block Obama's health nominees unless Medicare withdrew the ban.
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