Democrats prepare final push for health reform

In Washington, Senate Democrats say it’s the last leg of the journey on health care reform. They...  More »

In Washington, Senate Democrats say it’s the last leg of the journey on health care reform. They’ve unveiled their plan, the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office has reviewed it, and the first votes could come this weekend. Sounds easy, right? President Obama released a statement from Asia, saying that the Senate plan for health care reform meets his goals. Critics are vowing to fight to the end: Utah Republican Orrin Hatch says prepare for a quote “holy war”. The Senate’s top Democrat however, sounded confident that reform is close. "The finish line is really in sight", said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. Hope has been raised in part by numbers. The measure extends insurance to 94 percent of eligible Americans and would cost $848 billion, according to non-partisan estimates. This plan would also cut the deficit by $130 billion over the next ten years. House Republicans are skeptical to say the least. "The long-term liabilities are enormous. These bills will blow a hole through the deficit", said Rep. Dave Camp (R) of Michigan. Hot button issues within the debate are already generating heat. The measure would enact a Medicare payroll tax on Americans earning a quarter million or more, and it would also include a public option. "This is going to be socialized medicine if we don't stop here", warned Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison of Texas. Democrats such as Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa on the other hand, can’t understand what’s not to like with this plan. "Number one we cover more people; we make insurance more affordable; we take away a lot of the abuses of the insurance companies with a lot of the reforms that we have", said Harkin. The bill will not be a study in brevity, warned self-proclaimed “Dr. No” – Republican Senator Tom Coburn of Oklahoma. "The American people ought to know what's in the bill and I suspect this is a ever bit a 2,000, 2,500 pages." Coburn says he plans to read the entire bill on the Senate floor, which is bound to elicit responses from both sides of the aisle. Just to open debate, Democrats need all of their members and two Independents to vote yes. Majority Leader Harry Reid says he is cautiously optimistic.  « Less