Health Reform Faces Senate Stonewall

Lead Senate Democrats Face More Daunting Challenge than Colleagues in House in Finding Party Parity

(CBS/AP)  The glow from a health care triumph faded quickly for President Obama as Democrats realized the bill they fought so hard to pass in the House of Representatives has nowhere to go in the Senate.

Speaking from the White House about 14 hours after the late Saturday vote, Mr. Obama urged senators to be like runners on a relay team and "take the baton and bring this effort to the finish line on behalf of the American people."

The problem is that the Senate won't run with it. The government health insurance plan included in the House bill is unacceptable to a few Democratic moderates who hold the balance of power in the Senate.

If a government plan is part of the deal, "as a matter of conscience, I will not allow this bill to come to a final vote," said Sen. Joe Lieberman, the independent whose vote Democrats need to overcome Republican maneuvers to kill the bill. He spoke on the Fox television network.

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"The House bill is dead on arrival in the Senate," Sen. Lindsey Graham, a Republican, dismissively told CBS' "Face the Nation" host Bob Schieffer.

Mr. Obama has made reforming the U.S. health care system a priority for his administration.

The United States is the only developed nation that does not have a comprehensive national health care plan for all its citizens.

The government provides coverage for the poor, elderly and military veterans, but most Americans rely on private insurance, usually provided through their employers.

With unemployment climbing, many Americans are losing their jobs - and their health insurance. Some employers don't offer insurance. As a result, there are nearly 50 million uninsured Americans.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has yet to schedule floor debate and hinted last week that senators may not be able to finish health care this year.

CBS News correspondent Nancy Cordes reports rumors are circulating on Capitol Hill that Reid may even hold rare Saturday sessions in December for lawmakers to try and find a compromise suitable to all party members.

The House vote provided an important lesson in how to succeed with less-than-perfect party unity, and one that Senate Democrats may be able to adapt. House Democrats overcame their own divisions and broke an impasse that threatened the bill after liberals grudgingly accepted tougher restrictions on abortion funding, as abortion opponents demanded.

In Senate, the stumbling block is the idea of the government competing with private insurers. Liberals may have to swallow hard and accept a deal without a public plan to keep the legislation alive. As in the House, the compromise appears to be to the right of the political spectrum.

Republican Sen. Olympia Snowe, who voted for a version of the Senate bill in committee, has given the Democrats a possible way out. She's proposing to allow a government plan as a last resort, if after a few years premiums keep escalating and local health insurance markets remain in the grip of a few big companies. This is the "trigger" option.

That approach appeals to moderates such as Sen. Mary Landrieu, a Democrat. "If the private market fails to reform, there would be a fallback position," Landrieu said last week. "It should be triggered by choice and affordability, not by political whim."

Lieberman said he opposes the public plan because it could become a huge and costly entitlement program. "I believe the debt can break America and send us into a recession that's worse than the one we're fighting our way out of today," he said.

For now, Reid is trying to find the votes for a different approach: a government plan from which individual states could opt.

The Senate is not likely to jump ahead this week on health care. Reid will keep meeting with senators to see if he can work out a political formula that will give him not only the 60 votes needed to begin debate, but the 60 needed to shut off discussion and bring the bill to a final vote.

Toward the end of the week, the Congressional Budget Office may report back with a costs and coverage estimate on Reid's bill.

Reid has pledged to Mr. Obama that he will get the bill done by the end of the year and remains committed to doing that, according to a Senate leadership aide.

Both the House and Senate bills gradually would extend coverage to nearly all Americans by providing government subsidies to help pay premiums. The measures would bar insurers' practices such as charging more to those in poor health or denying them coverage altogether.

All Americans would be required to carry health insurance, either through an employer, a government plan or by purchasing it on their own.

[tdgiffis]

FDR sought and succesfully skirted the balance of power our founders built into the constitution and power shifted from the states and the people to the federal government. We have been the victim of Federal power ever since.
With each law, each tax, each regulation your freedom is washed away. If we allow this unabashed usurpation of our freedom called health care reform to happen we will be a free people no more.
America will have become the property of the oligarchy in Washington and our Republic will be lost.

[mapjo11]

Congress is stealing from the poor to give to the rich! Congressional leaders get unlimited healthcare for $503/year. Do YOU? Fight back. Sign the petition at http://bit.ly/2nrapo

[rockcutr]

Must be nice to have a congressmans job. Ya go to work,,piddle around with useless drivel then call it a healthcare bill which really does no thing but raise costs, and move money from one place to another. There really are no cuts. Pharms, and Dr's and insurance really should have no voice in how any of this works. Other than that lack of performance is unacceptable. Insurance is unneeded if indeed the costs of care are held somewhere in reach of all citizens. It has been long over due that the $8000 broken leg or the $4000 broken finger get tossed out. Right along with the $20 for one tylenol just because it is administered in ICU. The fox has been guarding the henhouse for way too long. It would be one thing if the actual service provided was perfect. Alas, tis not. It is less than acceptable. A failing grade infact. The greatest flaw is in medical being able to say,,,we cannot treat you because you have no money or insurance. This is just retarded. Insurance only actually pays out 3% of it's income for services. The rest goes to golf and doughnuts. All so that we may sit until 5pm for a 9am appointment. There are way too many chiefs and not enuf indians in this lack of health care. If in fact we could remove the profit factor. We then may see how it is actually supposed to be done. But, we would then have to deal with a million crying and whining overeducated drs and nurses. Yet the question looms, "Does anyone really think this can be fixed?"
For those that do,,,a free pass to the insane assylum.

[JayAdlerMusic]

Nancy Pelosi looked like she was making a toast at her 30 year old daughter's wedding when she announced that the House had passed a health care reform bill with a margin of five votes. The article above is perfectly and fundamentally right, the bill by design will fail in the Senate, Senators are much more high profile and visible being only two to a state. Being out there in a bigger way, Senators are much more aware of the overwhelming outcry against the public option which is synonymous with socialized medicine on the way. Americans know what "government anything" means and realize the missed work days as we wait around jammed offices waiting to be relieved of sinusitis episodes. A bill like the one passed will cause American life expectancy to plummet as we will be forced to consume cheaper drugs and rationed treatment with our previous doctors as retirees. Mitigating fraud and corruption as a means to pay for this is Mary Poppins economics and speculative to say the least. We would have been able to insulate the uninsured with all the money we have already blown and even with this doomed bill there still would be those under insured. I think as for me and a big chunk of this country as well, we all feel that something out there is not working right.

[legacyABQ2]

Everybody forgot about high prescription drug costs..

Incredibly high; beyond belief..

[The_One_King]

Health care reform is one thing. Government take over and control is another. Obama wants total control. Wake Up America. Before it's too late.

[legacyABQ2]

total control of what?

Please tell us.

[liberalme]

The need for a Healthcare bill is due in most part, to the level of unemployment, the level of unemployment is due to the years our elected politicians allowed greedy large corporation outsource their production to swetshops overseas, thus tripling their profits and paying wages deemed illegal here, with tax breaks to the extent where some corporations haven't paid any taxes in years.

These Senators don't have to worry about their healthcare--WE pay for it.
Time for term limits---even 4 years is too long---2 years and if they don't work for us (US) they're out.

We need to plant chips in all politicians just to keep track of what they're doing--man I would love that!!!

[starleo146]

The problem with getting anything done is the stonewalling of the republican end of the senate. I think we should have term limits, are they any better than the president who can only serve two terms, get the old bums out, anyone who filibusters this, and cuts it back till there will only be WHAT left.Everything the republicans can do to save the insurance agency they will do. Term limits will cut out the lobbyist, and only voting for what they can get out of it. Instead of TEA Parties we need to go out and make this statement loud and clear. They voted for there raise they will down the term limit vote we do have the power at the polls to do it.VOTE THEM OUT

[element51]

All of you who are against health care reform need to relax. There is no way in hell that this will ever pass the Senate. The Republicans may be in the minority but they are much stronger than the majority Democrats. The Republican party is and has always been the party of big business and that is who they represent. It is not their mission to do what is in the best interest of the people. They have unlimited funding available and they know how to frighten the public into supporting whatever it is that they want to do. In addition they have the support of the traitor Lieberman and the awesome power of talk radio and Faux News. And finally they have the Southern Democrats in their pocket because those so called democrats know that the religious reich will not send them to Washington if they do not cave in to the Republicans. So stop worrying and make sure your insurance premium checks are on time. Just keep in mind that if you have a claim you could find that you actually don't have the coverage that you thought you were paying for. Let's make sure that the insurance companies continue to stick it to us for years to come. Medical care should only be available to the wealthy since those of us who are not rich do not deserve to live.

[crikeytx46]

Well..Ok then..consider it done!!!

[starleo146]

Yes you are so right, and look at the people that will still go out and vote them in, a statement should be made in 2010 get the republicans out. They are so mad they and big business can't do business as usual, look at wall street holding hostage money to lend to banks so jobs can start up again, all to make sure Obama doesn't win. We have to stop this.

skyk-2009 - Liberals posses subreptilian intellect and they speak with phonetically memorized speech as described by Dennis Miller. You appear to be one of them since you are one of the ALgore zombies, drinking koolaid, and attacking anyone you don't agree with. You are arrogant, intolerant and incapable of analyzing the facts and facing the truth, you suffer from a DNA defficiency, you are missing a chromosome. Keep it up rock0267!

[crikeytx46]

rock0267....you hit the nail on the head!!!

[superdem1]

I'm totally in favor of a public option, but I'm beginning to think the Democrats should just throw in the towel - this bill is really starting to stink, now that the anti-abortion crazies got their absurd restrictions into it. I guess people just haven't been hurt bad enough by the insurance companies, just look at the blogs here. People are actually bad mouthing Medicare ! Good lord, if it weren't for Medicare, when my dear mom had a stroke and took a year and a half to die in a $6,000 a month nursing home bed, we'd have lost everything we have. So the Dems pull back, let the bill die. Then when Americans ask why - just point the finger of blame where it belongs - the crowing paid-off Republicans, who are doing their masters' bidding, and letting their constituents suffer at the hands of the insurance monoliths in their glass highrises in New York and Connecticut. When they've had enough they will vote even MORE Republicans out. By the way, my doctor just prescribed Lipitor for my cholesterol, but my insurance company would not pay for it - they will only pay for cheap knockoffs. So now I'm taking a drug my doctor knows about but did NOT prescribe for me - but of course, the Republicans don't want anyone between you and your doctor !

I am an Indpendent and I certainly don't want a Government Bureaucrat between my doctor and I. Think about it do you want the Government running our Healthcare? Corrupt politicians and paper pushers telling our doctors what they can prescribe or not? What kind of procedures the Government will approve and which ones they will not? Do you want rationing of medicines and services and long waiting lines for surgeries and emergency treatments? AARP is backing Pelosi because they are a very large corporation with a lot of power and they stand to make a lot of money on this, they have never cared for seniors and they are not about to start now.

[crikeytx46]

Why should I be made to pay an abortion premium every month just because you agree with it. They should have taken it completely out. If a person wants the procedure then that same person should be responsible for paying for it themselves.

Different people have differing opinions, morals, whatever you want to call it.