Pennsylvania House poised to pass health plan

More than a year after Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell tried to gain approval for a plan to provide healthcare coverage to nearly 800,000 uninsured state residents, a scaled-down version of his plan is moving through the General Assembly. The measure, expected to get final House approval, would provide coverage to close to 300,000 uninsured residents. The bill would extend malpractice-insurance subsidies by 10 years in an effort to keep doctors from leaving the state because of high premiums.