Republican Senator Charles Grassley is praising state officials who plan to pursue a lawsuit against the federal government to get an increase in the state’s Medicare reimbursement rate for the health services elderly Iowans receive. Grassley says he “applauds efforts to move ahead in the courts.” Grassley doesn’t know if the legal approach will work, but he says “having one more ball in the air” to attack the problem helps. A fellow Republican, Doug Gross — the candidate for Governor, criticized the lawsuit, calling it a waste of money. Grassley has a different view. Grassley says if Iowa were to win the court case, it would make it easier to make dramatic changes in the Medicare system that’d benefit Iowa. Grassley will host a statewide meeting on Medicare this fall to discuss ways to get the system changed so Iowa will no longer receive much less than other states. Grassley says in September, Congress will put more money into Medicare for states like Iowa that’re on the bottom in terms of reimbursement rates for doctors, hospitals and other health care providers.