Insurance Machine

WASHINGTON
Wednesday the Senate health committee cast a landmark vote to grant legislation increasing medical insurance coverage to nearly all Americans. This makes it the first congressional panel to act on what President Barack Obama has called his top domestic priority.

With a 13-10 vote, a $600 billion measure has been advanced requiring individuals to receive health insurance and for employers to contribute to the expense. Through this legislation the government would provide financial assistance with respect to insurance premiums for individuals and families who are receiving up to four times the U.S. poverty level in family income, which is about $88,000 for a family of four. This health committee legislation is still only one piece of a much broader Senate legislation that is presently under development.

In order to get them to pass legislation before their August recess, Obama has been putting pressure on both the House and Senate. If he can accomplish this he will then be able to sign comprehensive legislation into law in as early as October. Of all of the developed nations, only the United States does not have a health plan for all its citizens. At the present time it is estimated that as many as 50 million Americans out of 300 million people are without health insurance.

A Democrat who stood in for committee chairman Sen. Edward M. Kennedy. Kennedy, a United States Senator who has made health care legislation a lifelong priority, Sen. Chris Dodd of Connecticut, says that this time the Senate has produced legislation that by and large most Americans will want. Kennedy is currently being treated for brain cancer.

Sen. Mike Enzi, however, who is the top Republican on the Senate panel, argues that the bill will break Obama's promises since it will add to the deficit.

Scheduling a White House statement to that repeats his argument that a bill will get passed, Obama himself was driving the action. This marks three days in a row that the president has kept up pressure on health care. Included in his drive was a television ad blitz by Obama's political operation. The ad campaign targeted moderate lawmakers of both parties.

It was on Tuesday that House Democratic leaders agreed to meet the president's goal of health care legislation to be accomplished before the congressional break in August by offering a $1.5 trillion plan that makes the right to health care universal for all Americans. The plan is to be paid for by medical providers, employers and the wealthy.
Rep. Henry Waxman who is a Democrat and who serves as the chairman of the House Energy and Commerce committee, says that the Congress cannot allow the healthcare issue to be delayed. He says that congressional members frankly cannot go home for a recess unless both the House and the Senate approve bills designed to reform and restructure the health care system.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid says that he wants floor debate on the bill to begin a week from Monday. That timetable might not be practical since the Senate Finance Committee is still struggling to reach consensus. Even so, it stressed a renewed sense of urgency.
Obama says that there is going to be a major debate over the next three weeks. He further says that you should not be fooled by those trying to scare you by saying that we can't change the health care system. We have no choice but to change the health care system since at the present time it appears to be broken for too many citizens, he says.