U.S. House Democratic leaders, struggling to reach an accord with party dissidents on health care, said they\u2019re likely to miss President Barack Obama\u2019s August deadline for legislation overhauling the medical system.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt doesn\u2019t look like it to me,\u201d\u009d House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel said in an interview. \u201cI really hoped that we could have gotten a bill out of here by now,\u201d\u009d he said, adding that he has a \u201cheavy political heart.\u201d\u009d<\/p>\n
Obama, who has made revamping health care the centerpiece of his domestic agenda, had urged the House and Senate to each pass versions of the bill before their monthlong August recess so negotiations on a compromise could begin when they return. He\u2019s seeking to provide health coverage to tens of millions of Americans who lack it and curb the soaring cost of care.<\/p>\n