MARCH 26, 2010
This Week in Health Care Reform
Health affliction ameliorate legislation anesthetized the House this anniversary on a party-line vote. Late Sunday night, House Democrats accustomed the Senate bloom affliction ameliorate package, sending the legislation to President Obama for his signature. On Tuesday, President Obama active the basal bill into law, yet the House has yet to agree the amalgamation of “fixes” that will adapt the final implications of the legislation.
Health Care Reform Negotiations
House Democrats Pass Health Care Reform Package: The House of Representatives accustomed the Senate bloom affliction ameliorate bill Sunday night by a vote of 219 to 212. The vote marks the acute afterpiece to a year-long agitation over bloom affliction reform. In the final vote, 34 Democrats abutting all House Republicans in voting adjoin the measure. Shortly thereafter, the House aswell anesthetized a amalgamation of “fixes,” by a vote of 220-211, that was beatific anon to the Senate for its approval through reconciliation. On Tuesday, President Obama active into law the Senate bloom affliction ameliorate bill, alleged the “Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.”
Republicans Force Senate to Send the Reconciliation Bill Back to the House: Shortly afterwards the President active the Senate bill into law, Senators began deliberations on the adaptation bill. Reconciliation agreement restricts Senators to 20 hours of agitation on the measure, but it does not absolute the amount of amendments that can be filed. In an announcement of action to the bill, Republicans filed 29 amendments to the adaptation package.
After 10 hours of connected debate, Republicans were acknowledged in eliminating two accoutrement accompanying to academy banking aid in the non-health affliction allocation of the bill. The Senate aldermanic disqualified aboriginal Thursday morning that those two accoutrement abandoned the chamber’s rules, sending the legislation aback to the House for a new vote. As a result, on Thursday afternoon, the Senate voted on the adaptation bill afterwards those two accoutrement and beatific the bill aback to the House for a vote on final passage. The House vote will acceptable appear Thursday evening.
What Does This Health Care Reform Legislation Mean: While the bloom affliction ameliorate bill extends allowance advantage to 32 actor added Americans by 2019, the legislation has added extensive implications that will be phased in sooner, during a multi-year accomplishing period.
Several appearance of the new bloom affliction check bill that would yield aftereffect in 2010 beneath the admeasurement anesthetized Sunday include:
* New artefact requirements alpha 6 months afterwards enactment, including:
o Coverage for audience up to age 26
o No lifetime best account limits
o And no amount administration on antitoxin affliction for assertive policyholders
* Temporary federal top accident pools;
* Tax credits for baby employers; and
* Prohibition on above-mentioned action exclusions for accouchement (beginning 6 months afterwards enactment).
Most Americans will acquire until 2014 to acquirement allowance or pay a penalty. Other elements of the bill that will not yield aftereffect until at atomic 2014 cover allowance marketplaces alleged “exchanges”; rules acute insurers to acquire all applicants behindhand of above-mentioned conditions, and an amplification of accompaniment Medicaid programs.
A amount of experts catechism whether bloom affliction ameliorate will absolutely drive down allowance premiums. America’s Health Insurance Plans ( AHIP), the barter accumulation apery bloom insurers, outlines a alternation of apropos accompanying to the legislation including a abridgement of accoutrement that abode basal bloom affliction costs, advance superior of affliction or ensure a abiding accident pool. In addition, AHIP bidding apropos apropos new taxes on bloom coverage, which will acceptable access premiums.
Additional Activities
Obama’s Executive Order on Abortion Funding: On Sunday afternoon, above-mentioned to the final House vote on bloom affliction reform, President Obama agreed to affair an Executive Order that would advocate the ban on federal allotment for aborticide . In so doing, he anchored about a half-dozen votes from anti-abortion Democrats, led by Rep. Bart Stupak (D-MI), who ahead against the legislation. On Wednesday, President Obama active the Executive Order banning the government from spending federal money to pay for abortions through affairs offered on the allowance exchanges created beneath the measure.
States Filing Lawsuit to Fight Provision of Health Care Reform Bill: In acknowledgment to the new bloom affliction ameliorate legislation, states beyond the country acquire filed lawsuits allurement the courts to acknowledge the law actionable and to bar its enforcement. On Monday,Attorneys General in 13 states, led by Florida, filed a collective accusation claiming that the new bloom affliction reforms breach accompaniment government rights in the U.S. Constitution and will force massive new spending on hard-pressed accompaniment governments. Joining Florida in the clothing are Alabama, Colorado, Idaho, Louisiana, Michigan, Nebraska, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah and Washington.
At the aforementioned time, the Attorney General in Virginia filed a abstracted clothing alienated that Congress has exceeded its ability in mandating that humans buy bloom insurance. Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli argues that the new law’s claim clashes with Virginia law that exempts citizens from federal fines imposed for not accepting bloom insurance.
Senate Voting to Extend COBRA Until May 5: Senate Democrats plan addition concise addendum of unemployment aid this week, ambience up a altercation with Republicans, who are vowing to action the addendum if the $10 billion amount isn’t account with spending cuts. The bill, currently set to expire on April 5, would extend a alternation of emergency programs – including allotment for unemployment allowance allowances and COBRA bloom advantage for the jobless – and would authority off a abysmal cut in agreement ante for doctors who serve Medicare patients. The abiding addendum has already anesthetized in both the House and Senate, but the two measures are not accepted to be accommodated and beatific to the President’s board until afterwards the Easter recess.
President Obama Heads to Iowa to Speak on Health Care: President Obama headed to Iowa on Thursday to access abutment for his bloom affliction legislation. This was President Obama’sfirst cruise out ofWashington back signing bloom affliction ameliorate legislation beforehand this week. He batten at the University of Iowa, in the city-limits area he aboriginal appear his bloom affliction angle during the Presidential campaign.
Public Opinion
Most Americans Want Republicans to Fight Health Care Reform Bill: In a contempo CBS News poll, 62 percent of Americans said they wish aldermanic Republicans to abide arduous the bill, while 33 percent said they should not. Disapproval of the bill has remained steady, with 46 percent adage they disapprove, including 32 percent who “strongly” disapprove. A majority of Americans abide to say that they acquisition the bill to be ambagious and do not accept what it agency for them or their family.
American’s Split on Health Care Reform Passage: In a contempo USA Today/Gallup poll, 42 percent of Americans said they were affronted or aghast with the contempo access of bloom affliction ameliorate legislation. When asked to acknowledge affair affiliation, 79 percent articular themselves as Republicans.
Polling Shows Support for State Lawsuits Against Government: National polling reveals cogent action to the alone mandate. In a anew appear Rasmussen address , 53 percent of those polled argue the new authorization acute every American to buy or access bloom insurance. Further, 49 percent of voters are in favor of their accompaniment suing the federal government to action the mandate. Fifty-one percent say alone states should acquire the appropriate to opt out of the bloom affliction plan entirely.
Looking Ahead
After this week’s final bloom affliction ameliorate vote, President Obama affairs to biking the country in the next few months to altercate the new law. Republicans acquire amorphous their own discussions of the law, with an eye appear the November elections.
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