The health care reform debate is fast becoming a thrilling political drama with non-stop action. As Democrats in Congress and the White House push for passage of reform legislation by the end of the year, some by August, the breakneck pace is hitting some significant roadblocks.
As reported in last week’s issue of Capitol Report, the Congressional Budget Office estimated that the initial bill proposed by Senator Edward M. Kennedy’s (D-MA) Health, Education, Labor and Pension Committee would cost over $1 trillion, and leave more than 37 million Americans uninsured after ten years. Since that report, the Senate Committee on Finance has delayed the release of its bipartisan bill in an effort to trim the costs of the plan before it is made public. The White House has been working very closely with Senator Max Baucus (D-MT) and the Finance Committee, as many observers believe that it is the best chance to produce bi-partisan support.
White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emmanuel, HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, and White House health reform director Nancy-Ann DeParle meet on Tuesday with Democratic Senators, from both committees to discuss the issue. Later today, President Obama will host a town hall meeting on health care at the White House after holding a meeting with five governors that hosted regional health care forums.
Meanwhile, the House held numerous hearings on health care reform this week. Introduced last Friday, the House legislation is the work of three House Committees. The bill lacks funding sources and has not yet been reviewed by the CBO.
- Breanne McGahey
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