Health Reform Still Urgent Despite No Bill Before Recess Say Senate Dems

By Laura Woodhead - Talk Radio News Service

Although the Senate may not vote on health care until after the August recess, passing reform is still an urgent priority said top Democrats on Thursday. Speaking at a press conference, Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) said while it's unlikely that a bill would be up for debate on the Senate floor before September, the Senate has no excuse to take its time on finding solutions for our nation's health care problems.

"That does not excuse our committees from doing everything we can during these weeks before the August break, and during the August break to try and meld our ideas and bills together in order so that when we return in September we will be prepared." Dodd said. "We do not have the luxury of not dealing with this."

Dodd said that the President's leadership on health care reform has been strong.

[President Obama] is committed, as committed as any president I have ever seen to a single issue. He has said over and over again that he will expand whatever capital in order to achieve the goal of national health care reform in the nation" Dodd said.

Sen. Thomas Carper (D-Del.) explained that the health care bill is moving slowly through committee because of the multitude of problems being addressed.

"This is probably the hardest legislative lift that any of us will make whether we are here for four years or forty," said Carper. "If it takes a couple of extra days, a couple of extra weeks or even a couple of extra months its worth the wait."

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius joined the Senators, and stressed that health care reform must help not only Americans who are uninsured, but also those who do already have insurance.

"The current cost curve cannot be sustained by business owners or by families," Sebelius said. "Those who have health insurance are a day, a week, a month away from losing it."

Dodd said that there would be a bill on the President's desk by the end of the year.

"We have a mandate from the American people to address this issue," he said. "I still believe very strongly that we are going to achieve that goal."

"I'm willing to wait, spend the time, do it right, but we need to get it done."

Late Night Health Care Discussions Bring Historic Progress, Says Pelosi

By Courtney Ann Jackson-Talk Radio News Service

Two more House committees have passed versions of health care reform legislation following discussions that stretched into the early hours of Friday morning. That brings the total up to three out of the five House and Senate Committees that have now reported legislation. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) noted in Friday’s press conference that this is the farthest comprehensive health reform has ever gotten in Congress.

The House Committee on Ways and Means chaired by Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) completed their discussion and reported legislation at around 2 AM Friday. The Committee on Education and Labor chaired by Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.) had an even longer discussion which lasted till 6 AM and came back at 9 AM to complete the votes.

Pelosi said, “Congress has made historic progress on health insurance reform that will put patients and doctors back in charge and ensure quality, affordable, accessible health care for America’s middle class.”

Pelosi also noted the recent endorsement from the American Medical Association (AMA) of America’s Affordable Health Care legislation.

“This legislation includes a broad range of provisions that are key to effective, comprehensive health system reform...The AMA wants the debate in Washington to conclude with, real, long overdue results that will improve the health of America’s patients.”

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) joined the Speaker and two Chairmen to announce the “historic progress.”

“These next pivitol months will finally be our chance to deliver-and we will,” said Hoyer.

Health Care Is In The House

By Courtney Ann Jackson-Talk Radio News Service

Democratic Representatives say there is a rapidly closing window for passing health care. A health care bill, known as the Dingell bill, will come out Tuesday. Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich.) mentioned that the bill is not exactly what he would have put together, but that he believes if the U.S. is going to do something about the problem, it must be better addressed.

“This is a great opportunity. If we waste it, I can’t tell you when it will return,” said Dingell.

Dingell was joined by Rep. Ron Kind (D-Wis.) and Rep. Jason Altmire (D-Pa.) for a health care discussion Tuesday. The Representatives agreed that health care brings a “unique American challenge” that requires an “American solution.”

Kind used a different analogy than that of Dingell and said they were trying to get healthcare “across the finish line.” No matter what the analogy, the point was clear that Democrats want to get the debate going, now.

Altmire said Republicans and Democrats are not that far apart in their ideas but a systematic reform is necessary. He said it would be nice to have Republican support and it would be a chance for them to be part of an important piece of legislation.

“It will not be a perfect bill but we hope it’s one that advances in the right direction which will lead to increased quality [health care] at a lower cost for all Americans,” said Altmire.

The Representatives highlighted aspects of the debate that bring about concerns such as: the costs, a level playing field for insurance companies, and a public option.

At this time, the New Democratic Coalition has not put out a position on a public option, according to Kind. He said it would be a tough sell for some members but that failure is not an option.

GOP Senators Say Dems Ignoring Republican Health Care Ideas

By Courtney Ann Jackson-Talk Radio News Service

Sens. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and Judd Gregg (R-N.H.) said Wednesday that Republicans want the nation's healthcare system revamped this year, and they’re proposing several ideas as to how to achieve this goal. The proposals all address what Alexander called the two biggest problems with the Democrats' plan; Too much debt, and a “Washington take-over.”

“The Republican caucus has a whole handful of lollipops [ideas about healthcare reform] and we keep offering them to the Democrats saying, you know, here’s the red one, here’s the blue one, here’s the green one,” said Alexander. “Why don’t you [the Democrats] take one and let’s go to work on it?”

Alexander noted that there are many alternative bills that have much in common but Democrats must take more Republican proposals into consideration in order to create a bipartisan bill. The Senators mentioned that despite the absence of formal agreements, they are in agreement with the President and the Democrats on many points within the debate. Specifically, the Republicans said they support preventing the loss of healthcare insurance for American people, not allowing for massive amounts of debt to run up and allowing Americans to keep their existing healthcare coverage if they are satisfied with it.

Gregg said he does not think the healthcare bill will be passed in the Senate before the August recess. When asked for his reasoning, he said Finance won’t complete its mark-up in time. He also said the health bill is being rewritten on a weekly basis, but the one consistency is that it is “extremely expensive and it’s not paid for.”

In terms of Medicaid expansion, Alexander said, “the debt is running up in Washington. So to lower that debt a little bit, they’re shifting it onto other people and the new version shifts it on first to employers across the country who are struggling to create new jobs, and second it shifts it in a big way to states through the Medicaid program.”

He highlighted the idea of “dumping low-income people into the Medicaid program” and pointed out that it is going to cost the states “huge amounts of money” in new tax increases.

The Senators said that above all else, Republicans want healthcare plans that average Americans can afford.

Sen. Cornyn Criticizes Democrats' “Power Grab” In Health Care Debate

By Learned Foote- Talk Radio News Service

Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) harshly criticized the health care reform proposals put forward by the administration and Democratic congressmen.

“[There is a] continued power grab out of Washington, starting with the financial institutions, leading to car companies, and now to health care,” said Cornyn during a conference call with reporters Wednesday. He warned that the American government might take up policies practiced in England, the United Kingdom, and Canada, where “government ultimately makes a calculation on the value of individual lives" in rationing health care.

Cornyn, who serves on the Senate Finance Committee’s subcommittee on Health Care, said that reform should lower the costs of health care and make coverage accessible to more people, but argued that the proposals will not sufficiently address these needs. Instead, the Senator argued, they will “create a huge command-and-control infrastructure.”

Cornyn said that the government will undercut private insurance providers, and cited statistics from The Lewin Group, a health-care policy research firm. The groups’ report estimates that 119 million individuals, two-thirds of those currently privately-insured, will end up on a public plan.

Cornyn also criticized a proposal floated by some Democrats to tax health benefits, a practice he said Obama “derided” during the Presidential campaign.

Cornyn praised Senator Max Baucus (D-Mont.), the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, for attempting to work in a bipartisan fashion, but said that Baucus is “being dictated to” by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), who favors a public option.

“My hope is that common sense will prevail and that we will listen to the stake-holders, including the millions of Americans whose health care will be forever changed should some of these proposals pass without an opportunity for bipartisan input,” said Cornyn.