WASHINGTON, Sept 16 (Reuters) - U.S. Senator Max Baucus made public a healthcare overhaul on Wednesday that would dramatically reshape the $2.5 trillion industry, but it faces grumbling from Democrats and has no Republican support.
At a cost of $856 billion over 10 years, the long-awaited plan is slightly cheaper than four other proposals in Congress, which all cost at least $1 trillion. It does not include a government-run insurance option favored by liberal Democrats and President Barack Obama.
Here are a few questions and answers about U.S. healthcare reform and the bill offered by Baucus, the Democratic chairman of the Senate Finance Committee.
WHAT ARE THE NEXT STEPS ON HEALTHCARE AND THE BAUCUS BILL?
The Senate Finance Committee will begin consideration of the chairman's proposal on Tuesday and a vote to approve it is expected after several days of debate and amendments.
Senate leaders will merge it with a healthcare measure passed by the Health Committee and the full Senate will take up the issue, probably in early October.
In the House of Representatives, leaders are merging three bills passed in committee, and the full chamber will consider the new bill in the next few weeks. House leaders have been waiting to see Senate action before moving on their version.
IS THERE ANYTHING REPUBLICANS AND DEMOCRATS AGREE ON?
Republicans and Democrats agree on a few broad ideas -- the current system is broken, it is too costly and it cannot be sustained. Beyond that, it gets a little murky.
There is broad agreement on reforms for Medicare, the health plan for the elderly, that would reward quality of care rather than quantity.
There is also general agreement on reforms that would prevent insurers from discriminating against those with pre-existing conditions or long-term illnesses, and to improve care for those with chronic conditions.
But political considerations could derail agreements even on issues where lawmakers have common ground, as many Republicans are reluctant to hand a political victory to Obama on his top domestic priority.
WHAT ARE THE CHANCES FOR A GOVERNMENT-RUN PUBLIC OPTION?
It's not dead yet but it's not feeling too well.
Baucus and Democratic Senator Kent Conrad repeatedly have said there is not enough support to push a public insurance option through the Senate, where Democrats must muster 60 votes to break Republican procedural roadblocks.
With the recent death of Senator Edward Kennedy, Democrats control 59 votes in the 100-seat chamber. Several moderate Democrats have voiced doubts about the public option, although they have not said they would be willing to filibuster it. The option was not included in the Baucus bill.
Liberal Democrats in the House have demanded the public option be included in that chamber's measure and all three House bills include it. The initial version passed by the House is almost certain to have it, while the Senate's version probably will not.
The differences in the two bills will be worked out in a conference committee, where the White House and lawmakers can weigh in with a compromise that could include the non-profit cooperatives envisioned in the Baucus bill or a provision to trigger a public option if insurance competition does not meet certain standards.
DOES OBAMA HAVE THE VOTES TO GET A HEALTHCARE BILL PASSED?
Democrats have majorities in both chambers of Congress. They control 59 of the 100 Senate seats, with one vacancy after Kennedy's death, and hold 256 of 435 seats in the House.
The problem for Obama is that Democrats have been unable to agree on an approach. In the House, a big bloc of liberals has demanded the inclusion of the government-run insurance option, while a smaller bloc of conservative Democrats opposes it. Both factions have the votes to block eventual passage.
If the healthcare plan attracts no Senate Republicans, moderate Democrats such as Ben Nelson, Mary Landrieu, Jim Webb and Evan Bayh could take on big roles as Democrats try to keep their coalition intact.
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR INSURERS AND HEALTH COMPANIES?
The bill could be a double-edged sword for the insurance industry. It faces new restrictions, fees and taxes but also would get millions of new customers, subsidized by the government, courtesy of the new mandate requiring coverage for all citizens and legal residents.
Hospitals and other medical care providers will deal with fewer uninsured patients, meaning they will have to shift fewer costs to insured patients. Drugmakers and medical device manufacturers also will have to pay new fees but gain new consumers with the addition of millions more insured patients.
WHAT ABOUT OTHER KEY LEGISLATION LIKE FINANCIAL REGULATORY REFORM AND CLIMATE CHANGE?
Obama and Democrats still hope to move on both issues this year but the healthcare debate has consumed most of the political oxygen in Washington for two months and will do so until it concludes, probably in December.
Congressional analysts increasingly expect legislation on financial regulatory reform and climate change to be pushed off until next year, when Obama has said he also wants to take up an immigration bill and members of Congress will be up for re-election.
(Writing by John Whitesides; Additional reporting by Donna Smith and Thomas Ferraro; Editing by John O'Callaghan)
((Washington newsroom, +1 202-898-8300) Keywords: USA HEALTHCARE/
COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
At a cost of $856 billion over 10 years, the long-awaited plan is slightly cheaper than four other proposals in Congress, which all cost at least $1 trillion. It does not include a government-run insurance option favored by liberal Democrats and President Barack Obama.
Here are a few questions and answers about U.S. healthcare reform and the bill offered by Baucus, the Democratic chairman of the Senate Finance Committee.
WHAT ARE THE NEXT STEPS ON HEALTHCARE AND THE BAUCUS BILL?
The Senate Finance Committee will begin consideration of the chairman's proposal on Tuesday and a vote to approve it is expected after several days of debate and amendments.
Senate leaders will merge it with a healthcare measure passed by the Health Committee and the full Senate will take up the issue, probably in early October.
In the House of Representatives, leaders are merging three bills passed in committee, and the full chamber will consider the new bill in the next few weeks. House leaders have been waiting to see Senate action before moving on their version.
IS THERE ANYTHING REPUBLICANS AND DEMOCRATS AGREE ON?
Republicans and Democrats agree on a few broad ideas -- the current system is broken, it is too costly and it cannot be sustained. Beyond that, it gets a little murky.
There is broad agreement on reforms for Medicare, the health plan for the elderly, that would reward quality of care rather than quantity.
There is also general agreement on reforms that would prevent insurers from discriminating against those with pre-existing conditions or long-term illnesses, and to improve care for those with chronic conditions.
But political considerations could derail agreements even on issues where lawmakers have common ground, as many Republicans are reluctant to hand a political victory to Obama on his top domestic priority.
WHAT ARE THE CHANCES FOR A GOVERNMENT-RUN PUBLIC OPTION?
It's not dead yet but it's not feeling too well.
Baucus and Democratic Senator Kent Conrad repeatedly have said there is not enough support to push a public insurance option through the Senate, where Democrats must muster 60 votes to break Republican procedural roadblocks.
With the recent death of Senator Edward Kennedy, Democrats control 59 votes in the 100-seat chamber. Several moderate Democrats have voiced doubts about the public option, although they have not said they would be willing to filibuster it. The option was not included in the Baucus bill.
Liberal Democrats in the House have demanded the public option be included in that chamber's measure and all three House bills include it. The initial version passed by the House is almost certain to have it, while the Senate's version probably will not.
The differences in the two bills will be worked out in a conference committee, where the White House and lawmakers can weigh in with a compromise that could include the non-profit cooperatives envisioned in the Baucus bill or a provision to trigger a public option if insurance competition does not meet certain standards.
DOES OBAMA HAVE THE VOTES TO GET A HEALTHCARE BILL PASSED?
Democrats have majorities in both chambers of Congress. They control 59 of the 100 Senate seats, with one vacancy after Kennedy's death, and hold 256 of 435 seats in the House.
The problem for Obama is that Democrats have been unable to agree on an approach. In the House, a big bloc of liberals has demanded the inclusion of the government-run insurance option, while a smaller bloc of conservative Democrats opposes it. Both factions have the votes to block eventual passage.
If the healthcare plan attracts no Senate Republicans, moderate Democrats such as Ben Nelson, Mary Landrieu, Jim Webb and Evan Bayh could take on big roles as Democrats try to keep their coalition intact.
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR INSURERS AND HEALTH COMPANIES?
The bill could be a double-edged sword for the insurance industry. It faces new restrictions, fees and taxes but also would get millions of new customers, subsidized by the government, courtesy of the new mandate requiring coverage for all citizens and legal residents.
Hospitals and other medical care providers will deal with fewer uninsured patients, meaning they will have to shift fewer costs to insured patients. Drugmakers and medical device manufacturers also will have to pay new fees but gain new consumers with the addition of millions more insured patients.
WHAT ABOUT OTHER KEY LEGISLATION LIKE FINANCIAL REGULATORY REFORM AND CLIMATE CHANGE?
Obama and Democrats still hope to move on both issues this year but the healthcare debate has consumed most of the political oxygen in Washington for two months and will do so until it concludes, probably in December.
Congressional analysts increasingly expect legislation on financial regulatory reform and climate change to be pushed off until next year, when Obama has said he also wants to take up an immigration bill and members of Congress will be up for re-election.
(Writing by John Whitesides; Additional reporting by Donna Smith and Thomas Ferraro; Editing by John O'Callaghan)
((Washington newsroom, +1 202-898-8300) Keywords: USA HEALTHCARE/
COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.