Unplugged Truth Panel: Health Care Myths Dissected

Politicians and activists alike have taken the confusing issue of health care reform and misconstrued the language of pending legislation to fit their agenda. So "Washington Unplugged" decided to demystify the reform and debunk the top six health myths.

CBS News' Bob Orr was joined by the Director of FactCheck.org, Brooks Jackson and the Wall Street Journal's Alicia Mundy for some straight talk Tuesday. We hope this conversation clears up this messy debate for you.

Some Republicans claim the House bill either mandates or encourages Euthanasia…

Jackson: "No mandate. What it does is say that end of life counseling...will be covered by Medicare. But look, Medicare covers hip replacements. It doesn't mean you have to get a hip replacement."

Mundy: 'It's optional, and it's a voluntary thing, and it's a very nice offer."

Health Care will be rationed. "In other words, you won't get what you need"

Jackson: "It depends what you call rationing. Look, you've got rationing now. If you want a heart transplant you go on a list...if what people mean by rationing is that there is going to be some government official somewhere passing on every claim that you put on and deciding whether you, a patient, can get a particular treatment or not -- No. There is not going to be anything like that in any of the bills that are now before Congress."

Mundy: "The pharmacutical industry in particular has launched themselves practically physically against the idea that comparative effectiveness research would translate into cost effectiveness research because they want to promote the most expensive treatments...and that is where you are starting to hear the word 'rationing.'"

Democrats and the president claim health care reform will be "deficit neutral"

Mundy: "I don't know that that's possible right now. The way it is scored by the Congressional Budget Office, it looks as though they are missing billions of dollars that they have to account for."

Jackson: "What they are promising doctors is that they won't institute these deep and severe costs in Medicare payments to doctors so that's an added cost. That's not a savings. That is something that they are going to have to pay for before they start paying for any health care overhaul."

Orr: "So, if it's going to be deficit neutral they are going to have to account for that plus the stuff we know we have to pay for."

Jackson: "Exactly and we are not there yet...right now it is not paid for as things stand."

Health care legislation mandates taxpayer dollars be use to pay for abortions.

Jackson: "There is no mandate in the [House] bill...[it] is actually neutral as to whether a federal plan, a new government or public plan, would cover abortion services or whether the government would require private plans to cover it to qualify as a basic plan. It's neutral. It doesn't say anything."

Orr: "So, if the language is loose enough it could be interpreted and by Executive Order I suppose..."

Jackson: "That's the concern and what the anti-abortion side is seeking very vigorously is specific language..."

Cuts to Medicare? Dems say they won't happen…Republicans say they will

Mundy: "They are going to try and cut Medicare expenses without trying to cut service...I don't think they have been specific yet, and perhaps its something that they do not want to be specific on yet, about where those cuts come in."

Jackson: "The shoe has shifted feet here. It was only last October when John McCain was proposing that he could finance his health care plan in part by what they called savings in Medicare. This was immediately spun into two ads...by the Obama campaign. Now, Obama and the Democrats are proposing to get even bigger savings out of Medicare. They call it savings when they do it they call it cuts when the other side does it."

Private plans and private insurance. Can we keep them?

Mundy: "I had a doctor who is actually at a hospital here in Washington, D.C. I am having coffee with last week and he leans over and says to me, "so under this plan can I keep my insurance that I have through the hospital?" And I thought, okay we are in real trouble if the White House can't clarify it this far."

Jackson: "There will be new regulations of health care...Yes, you an keep your plan. However your plan my have to change over time to meet the new federal standards."

You can watch the full discussion above. Click here for past epsidoes of "Washington Unplugged".

And for more on health care myths, check out this report from CBSNews.com's Stephanie Condon.