Senate Democrats Willing to Bypass GOP on Health Bill

[kpete]

Source: Wall Street Journal

By PATRICK YOEST

WASHINGTON – Senate Democrats won't hesitate to forgo bipartisanship to pass a health-overhaul bill if negotiations fail in the next month, Sen. Charles Schumer said Monday.

The New York Democrat, on a conference call with reporters, indicated that Democratic leaders are actively exploring options to pass the health bill that wouldn't require Republican votes. He pointed specifically to budget reconciliation, a parliamentary tactic that would allow passage of a bill with a simple majority, rather than the 60 votes generally required in the Senate.

Reconciliation is "clearly one of the contingencies on the table," Mr. Schumer said. "We want to get a bipartisan agreement, but if we don't, it's not going to stop us from moving forward with health care."

Mr. Schumer reiterated a Sept. 15 deadline to reach agreement on a bill within the Senate Finance Committee. He emphasized that the deadline was generated by that committee's chairman, Democrat Max Baucus of Montana, rather than from Democratic leaders.

Read more: Senate Democrats Willing to Bypass GOP on Health Bill

[T Wolf]

1. I will applaud every legislative trick the Dems use, IF the result is a good law. Unfortunately, it

looks like what will come out of Congress will not be much of an improvement over the current situation.

If only they were as determined to produce single-payer that we, the people, want.

[GreenTea]

16. The legislation has to have a strong public option or it's worthless to us...Co-ops are a sham!

An insurance company sham.

Pushed by the greedy slimy republicans & the selfish paid-off blue dog "democrats".....who pretend and present co-ops real & viably options to the powerful insurance corporations strong financial hold, and as a substitute for a strong public option - Bullshit!

Co-ops are nothing more than insurance companies pacifiers to fool the public into forgeting about a public option as an option.

The hugely rich insurance corporations & their lobbyist, through deregulation & unlimited money the will control co-ops almost immediately....to gain even more profit....The insurance industry will not accept losing a dime....They will lie, smear, distort, bribe, blackmail and kill if necessary to ensure it.

Co-ops will mean even more profit them as time goes on and we'll be right back where we started, no public option health care and the insurance companies sucking us dry!

[dflprincess]

27. HR3200 began as a bad compromise

and it's only getting worse.

I agree, if they're going to do this with 51 votes then go for Medicare for All.

[No Elephants]

30. It will be worse in some ways. Young, healthy people who now go

uninsured will be forced to buy insurance, thus making insurance companies richer at the expense of those who are not making much money. This is really going to sour folks on health insurance "reform."

[marshall]

40. That's why both sides (when in charge) push so hard for bipartisanship

Not that they really want to include the other side, but they want cover so that if it all goes south the blame can be equally shared.

[fascisthunter]

2. please bypass the corporate whores... the majority wants this

and that tiny fascist minority is just looking out for themselves and no one else, the exclusively delluded crowd.

[Wizard777]

3. Good for them! We can't allow doing the bipartisan thing to prevent us from doing the right thing.

The Democrat lead Senate seems to have their priorities in order.

[subterranean]

4. They won't get any republican votes no matter what they do.

They must know that, so why bother with the pretense about bipartisanship?

[Q3JR4]

34. Amen.

That's what I've been saying this whole time. No matter what kind of conciliation prize they give to the republicans not one is going to vote for this bill. In fact you may as well bypass the blue dogs while your at it and give the people what we really want.

Q3JR4.

[subterranean]

38. If it's a bad bill that gives them everything they want,

they won't vote for it, because then they can use it as a campaign issue in the next election. If it's a good bill, they won't vote for it because they don't want to help the Democrats pass a popular bill.

[Q3JR4]

39. In either case I hope

the citizens in the state hit them with their voting history.

Coming from one of the redest states in the union (idaho) I know a lot of republicans who want socialized medicine. Most of them have even used the phrase "socialized medicine" in my presence with awe and happiness at the thought. Can't be good for the folks back home when the repubs (and the blue dogs, and a lot of the dems) are more interested in their corporate insurance bankroll than doing their jobs.

Q3JR4.

[happygoluckytoyou]

5. Rumor has it Humans, Dinosaurs, and Republicans,walked the earth together...ONLY the humans survived

the other two became what we know as OIL

[wryter2000]

21. LOL

:rofl:

[SeriousEbony]

6. As well they should

In fact, this should be the running assumption with the majorities we have. Duh.

[wryter2000]

22. Welcome to DU

:hi:

[Joanne98]

7. Democrats May Bypass Republicans on Health Plan, Schumer Says

Source: Bloomberg

Aug. 4 (Bloomberg) -- Senate Democrats may decide to pass a U.S. health-care overhaul without Republican support if some opposition lawmakers don’t agree to a plan by mid-September, Senator Charles Schumer said.

Schumer, a New York Democrat, said Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus set a Sept. 15 deadline for getting a bipartisan agreement among six senators on the panel who are negotiating a deal.

“If we cannot produce a bipartisan solution by then, you have to wonder if the Republicans would ever be willing to agree to anything,” Schumer said on a conference call with reporters yesterday. “We will enact health-care reform by the end of the year. If the Republicans are not able to produce an agreement, we will have contingencies in play.”

Baucus, a Montana Democrat, said the group of six senators will discuss an exact date this week. “We’ve got to have some kind of stopping point here,” he said.

Schumer said Democrats may invoke the practice of “reconciliation,” which requires only 51 votes for Senate passage. The Democrats control 60 votes, enough to quash Republican efforts to block action on the bill. Party leaders can’t rely on all 60 because of the illnesses of two senators, Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts and Robert Byrd of West Virginia.

The reconciliation procedure “is clearly one of the contingencies on the table,” said Schumer, a member of the finance panel.


Read more: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601070&sid=ahB7_XOnC9Ms

[ck4829]

8. Finally! Thank God.

[gratuitous]

9. From Schumer's lips to Reid's ears

The GOP gets the best of it, no matter how it goes down. If health care reform passes, they can tell their mouth-breathing constituents that the tried to stop it, but the socialists are keeping whitey down. So donate more money to our campaign funds. And if it turns out to be a good plan, they'll be out in front of every camera with a red light on it, talking about how they brought a great plan to their constituents. So donate more money to our campaign funds.

[Alcibiades]

33. Except that they have decided to call it "Obamacare"

I actually hope this label sticks. They call it that to mobilize their base, but if this program turns out to be successful, it will cement this president's status as a change agent.

[BlueIdaho]

10. About fucking time.

Lets face it, health care reform is likely to be evolution not revolution. If we can break the for-profit stranglehold on health care delivery we are off to a good start. Medicare has evolved dramatically over the years and this will too.

[stubtoe]

14. Right on.

Getting started will be the hardest part. If we need to do that without Republicans, so be it.

They're on the rocks anyway, so who cares.

[asjr]

11. The talk about bi-partisanship is not the

reason to vote. We want a vote on health care.

[KansDem]

12. It's about time! Tell the GOP it's time to shit or get off the pot!

And tell their enablers in the media the same thing!

[Kind of Blue]

13. Reminds me of the Chinese finger trap

Looking forward to see how they twist now that the option is fully on the table, and the only way out for them is towards the middle, a position they know nothing about. Let them twist :rofl:

[Winterblues]

15. Don't trust Lying Republicans

They will say they will consent to a bipartisan bill and then when it comes up they will fillibuster it..I don't know enough about the Senate to know whether they can go the reconcilation route after they lose by fillibuster..I say use that route as first order of business and let the Republicans squeel to high heaven about it..At least we will have a Health Care Reform Bill out of it..

[colsohlibgal]

17. Just Ram It Through

Do it so it can be in place for a time, so then if they do it right ( shaky odds on that, sadly) let the corporate stooges, aka republicans try to undo it when they get the chance.

[mvd]

18. K&R

If compromise means a bad bill, then don't compromise.

[Lost-in-FL]

19. Let's go "nuclear"

Why not?? This is the time.

[GinaMaria]

24. agree. This is the one. We have to go all in on Healthcare Reform

So much hinges on this and delays make it seem like O and team can't deliver. All in and let's call... what cards are repukes really holding?

[Zorra]

35. Nuke 'em and then pass single payer. Wouldn't that be a hoot? n/t

[ieoeja]

20. Then toss the f'ing compromises, and go single-payer!

Of course, I doubt we have fifty votes even for a public option funded by premiums.

[JDPriestly]

23. This is good news. If we can just get a bill that forces the

insurance companies to cover everyone and their pre-existing conditions, then we can at least know what the insurance companies will charge for that. Once we know that and have that figure in simple numbers, we can compare it to what Americans would pay with single payer. At that point, our argument for single payer becomes very clear. That is why I think that H.R. 3200 is an important step in the right direction.

At this point, people buy insurance, but they aren't insured. That is the worst excess that we have now. Too many people have to settle for just catastrophic coverage. With the new bill, hopefully, that kind of insurance will not be permitted.

[Triana]

25. well it's about DAMN TIME. Jeeeeeze. n/t

[JohnWxy]

26. Since it is clear the Corporate Lobbyist Party (GOP) is just out to obstruct progress or any

rational, meaningful, practical approach to making health care in America work better, the Democrats are forced to proceed on their own (well, with the most of the country behind them).

the Corporate Lobbyists are really giving them no option.

The Corporate Lobbyists put an amendment intothe bill being considered by Waxman's committee that would PREVENT the Government (in the government option plan) FROM ACTUALLY USING ANY KNOWLEDGE GAINED FROM TREATMENT EFFECTIVENESS RESEARCH to improve the quality and reduce the costs of HEalth insurance. (by paying for the more effective treatments).. Why did the Corporate Lobbyists put this amendment in? Because BigPharma wants insurers to pay for newer drug therapies even when they are no more or even less effictive than already established drug therapies. They put in this amendment to protect the profits one of their controllers, Big PHarma.

This of course, would reduce the effectiveness of healthcare. but the first thing in the Corporate Lobbyist Party's mind is protect the profits of those who pay us off.

[happygoluckytoyou]

28. DEM-STEAMROLLER COMING THRU...would the 5 remaining Republicans please drag their knuckles offstage!

[Amos Moses]

29. It's an insurance bill, not a health bill.

Call it what it is.

[No Elephants]

31. Now if we could only bypass Baucus and his ilk. But the bill already has about 200 Republican

amendments in it--insane if they are not going to vote for it anyway.

Support HR 676!

[MrBlueSky]

32. Wow... the Senate Dems are waking up...

They are finding that they, indeed, have backbones. Who'd have guessed... considering they, along with House Dems, have been acting like Republicans-lite for the past few years.

I guess they must have gotten an advanced copy of Keith Olbermann's Special Comment and decided that they found their spines.

[Divine Discontent]

36. ram it! or we're screwn in 2010 & 12 and maybe longer, not to mention our health. eom

[NecklyTyler]

37. Why are we waiting until September! This should have been done yesterday

The Republicans are not interested in solving problems, they are only interested in the next election.

The party of no, the party of obstruction needs to be put in a corner and ignored.

We are the party in power, and it is high time the Republicans feel our power. Let's put our foot on their throats and govern without them. They are useless whiners anyway.