Obama to Offer Health Bill to Ease Impasse as Bipartisan Meeting Approaches

[Pirate Smile]

Source: The New York Times

WASHINGTON — President Obama will put forward comprehensive health care legislation intended to bridge differences between Senate and House Democrats ahead of a summit meeting with Republicans next week, senior administration officials and Congressional aides said Thursday.
Democratic officials said the president’s proposal was being written so that it could be attached to a budget bill as a way of averting a Republican filibuster in the Senate. The procedure, known as budget reconciliation, would let Democrats advance the bill with a simple majority rather than a 60-vote supermajority.
Congressional Democrats, however, have not yet seen the proposal or signed on.

-snip-
During a conference call on Wednesday night, the House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, told the White House chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, and the Senate majority leader, Harry Reid, that she could not agree to a proposal until rank-and-file lawmakers returned from a weeklong recess. A House Democratic caucus meeting is set for Monday evening.

-snip-
Democratic officials said the president’s proposal, like the House and Senate bills, would insure more than 30 million Americans by 2019, at a cost of about $900 billion.
Kathleen Sebelius, the secretary of health and human services, said the president would “take some of the best ideas” from the House and the Senate and “put them into a framework.”
“There will be one proposal,” Ms. Sebelius said.

-snip-
Mr. Obama has rejected the calls to start over, but aides have said that he is open to adopting Republican ideas.
In recent days, White House officials have consulted with Ms. Pelosi and Mr. Reid, but have not reviewed Mr. Obama’s plan with other Democratic lawmakers.
“There has not been a collaborative process,” said a Congressional Democrat with decades of health care experience. “We have not been consulted. This is very much a White House proposal.”

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/19/health/policy/19health.html?src=twt&twt=nytimespolitics

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Amendments can be offered in reconciliation. A Public Option Amendment will, I'm sure, be offered. If there are 50 votes for it then it'll be part of the Bill but I doubt it will be part of the proposal the President puts out (this is just my opinion - whether the PO was included always had to do with if we had the damn votes in the Hell-hole known as the Senate).

[MannyGoldstein]

1. Prediction: SIngle-Payer, But Only For Bankers nt

[Dr.Phool]

2. There goes the public option.

It was just a head fake.

[midnight]

3. Another deal????

[No Elephants]

4. Bailout of profit making industries.

[SlingBlade]

5. Well that's another way to avert a reconciliation vote ...

on the public option.
That an the fact that Obama is open to adopting Republican ideas
should just about seal the deal unless 51 Democrats do what they've never done before
in recent times ...

Grow a spine and tell 'em to Fuck OFF !

[niceypoo]

6. "aides have said that he is open to adopting Republican ideas"

Whatever happened to adopting Democratic ideas?

Im starting to believe that Obama suffers from a form of Stockholm Syndrome.

[Pirate Smile]

7. That is just so the Summit looks like it can produce something and, if the Republicans

actually had a good idea that could be added through Reconciliation, he'd probably be willing to add it but I think we all know that is probably not going to happen.

He has always said he is open to any ideas that the Republicans can actually show would work without damaging or undercutting other necessary reforms.

I wouldn't get worked up about that part of the story.

[niceypoo]

8. Ive read their little healthcare pamphlet and so has Obama

It is a mishmash of tired old right wing talking points mixed with propaganda about stopping socialism. He seems more worried about the process and appearances than the end result.

[Pirate Smile]

9. I believe (based on what I've read) that the WH has decided that the Process is a big part of what

polluted public opinion on HCR so the Summit is part of trying to correct that which they think will increase support for HCR & give cover for the Dems to pass it through Reconciliation. By having this televised and discussing all the issues out in the open, they hope to diffuse some of the negativity regarding it not all being on cspan, backroom deals like the Nebraska deal, etc.

They know Republicans don't have anything to actually offer but a lot of the public still likes to see him try. He'll show why our ideas are better and theirs suck based on facts not fictional death panels and other crap. Then they will pass it through Reconciliation. End of story.

[karynnj]

11. I agree and if that is true it is a great idea

[niceypoo]

14. At what point do the games end?

The republicans will never vote for it in a million years. They need to ditch the facade and grow a pair. Nobody will remember the process, all they will remember is the end result. The longer it drags out, the less likely it will happen.

[dflprincess]

16. I'm beginning to think he is a Republican

he seems more concerned with making them happy than he does the people who actually elected him.

[karynnj]

10. This is really as good as can be expected

I like that he is rejecting starting over - that would lead to nothing in an election year. The Congressional Democrat saying it is not a "collaborative process" ignores that in starting with the Senate bill, it likely will have the 80% or so stuff that is in both bills. So, the Congress DID have a major role in designing it.

[Pirate Smile]

12. Right. I'm not sure what they expected. They are bickering over the final few details. If Nancy &

Harry (who the WH is working with) don't agree re how to iron out the final details then the President is going to decide because the stalemate has to end. It will provide a way forward which is what we need right now. Frankly, I bet Harry and Nancy will be happy once it is out because there will be compromises and everyone is just going to have to swallow some of them for the better of the Country and the Democratic Party. They've wanted Obama to provide them cover for the less popular parts that they have to sell to their caucuses and now they will have it. Don't blame them. It is Obama's final deal. Now vote for it so we don't get massacred in November and so 45,000 wont continue dying every year from being uninsured.

[karynnj]

13. wonderfully stated

[dflprincess]

15. A bill that only mandates "coverage"

and does not guarantee access to care is worthless. If all that happens is the insurance companies are handed millions of more victims to cheat the 45,000 uninsured will still die - only now some of them will join the unknown number of underinsured who die every year because they still can't afford care. A bail out of another industry, while ignoring what the people want, will still result in a disaster in November.

From the NY Times' story:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/19/health/policy/19health.html?src=twt&twt=nytimespolitics

“There has not been a collaborative process,” said a Congressional Democrat with decades of health care experience. “We have not been consulted. This is very much a White House proposal.”