Innovation, influence and business in America's medical cities.

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Highlights of the important and the interesting from the world of healthcare:

Which way will Joe go? Democrats suffered a surprise setback this weekend when Joe Lieberman said he’d vote against health overhaul legislation in its current form. Democratic leaders had earlier said they’d secured Lieberman’s vote, but now Joe says it ain’t so. Lieberman, I-Conn., says he’ll only support the bill if it drops the idea of reducing Medicare’s age of eligibility, as well as the idea of a government-run insurance plan, or public option.

With Ben Nelson, D-Neb., joining Lieberman in proclaiming that the bill in its current form doesn’t have the 60 votes needed to close debate, there’s serious doubt as to whether Senate Democrats will be able to pass a bill by Christmas. Behind closed doors, Democratic leaders are no doubt once again cursing Lieberman’s name.

A Senate Democratic aide, perplexed by Mr. Lieberman’s stance, said, “It was a total flip-flop, and leaves us in a predicament as to what to do.”

Coverage for clinical trials: Dr. Douglas Blaney of the American Society of Clinical Oncology makes a strong case for a bipartisan Senate amendment that would require health insurers to cover patients’ routine care provided in clinical trials. The amendment, Blaney writes at The Health Care Blog, would encourage patients with life-threatening diseases to seek out potentially effective new treatments while promoting research into cures for such diseases, Blaney writes.

Only 3 percent to 5 percent of adult cancer patients enroll in clinical trials and one of the main factors driving that is a lack of guaranteed insurance coverage for care received as part of the trials. Because many insurance companies define clinical trials as “experimental,” they don’t cover the costs of treatment received in clinical trials, according to the National Cancer Institute. The Senate amendment, sponsored by Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, and Kay Bailey Hutchinson, R-Texas, would help change that, as least when it comes to routine care in trials.

Too much H1N1 vaccine? Government health officials could be faced with a scenario that seemed highly unlikely just a month or two ago: Having too much H1N1 vaccine on hand, according to a report in the Columbus Dispatch. With holiday-related activities occupying people’s time, and others who may believe the virus’ threat has passed, local government officials could end up having to dispose of doses of the vaccine if too few people want it. Could this be a problem cities around the nation will face in the coming months? Columbus Health Commissioner Dr. Theresa Long issued a warning to anyone who think H1N1 has passed them by:

“History tells us there’s often a third wave, and it can be more severe,” Long said. The first wave of H1N1 illness came in the spring; the second has dropped off somewhat in recent weeks.

Atlanta’s biocorridor? Cities like Cleveland and Minneapolis that like to think of themselves as biotech hotbeds could have a little competition from Atlanta, though it’s still a big “if” at this point. The Atlanta Business Journal reports that the city will commission a feasibility study for a 100-acre, downtown biocorridor to be anchored at one end by Georgia Tech University. Officials also hope the development would also attract renewable energy, defense, electronics and communications companies.