Congress Blog - The Hill's Congress Blog. Kathleen Sebelius Predicts The Public Will Warm To Health Reform. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius says she believes people who remain skeptical about the massive health care reform that has passed Congress will feel better as they learn more about it. Interviewed the morning after Democrats pushed it through on a 219-212 vote, Sebelius suggested that public resistance to the legislation largely is the result of statements Republican opponents and insurance industry figures have made about it.
She told CBS's "The Early Show" she thought "what's been going on for the better part of the year is a lot of attempts to confuse and scare Americans. " Sebelius said people "will be happy" with the legislation once they learn more about how it changes the rules governing how insurance companies operate. Meanwhile, Sen. John McCain says Democrats who championed the historic health care bill that passed the House haven't heard the last of the issue, predicting reprisals at the polls and in the courts. Rep. Health Care Bill PASSES. After months of fierce debate in Washington and around the country and after an intense day of voting on Capitol Hill, the House of Representatives passed a health care reform bill and it's on its way to President Obama's desk. Once Obama signs the bill into law, as he is expected to do on Tuesday, it will mean an end to the current health care system as we know it. Pundits on the right and left have been reacting to passage of the legislation, but what does the bill actually mean for the average American?
The Huffington Post has compiled a list of the top 18 immediate effects of the health care bill as well as some that will take effect in the first year of implementation: Health insurers cannot deny children insurance because of pre-existing conditions. Loading... Democrats passed two pieces of legislation. Watch yesterday's health care debate condensed into 10 minutes: The rancor of the protesters outside was audible inside the Capitol, where it resonated with the Republicans.
Rep. Rep. Democrats Woo Abortion Foes in Push for Health Bill - NYTimes.co. Arizona Drops Children’s Health Program. The Arizona budget is a vivid reflection of how the fiscal crisis afflicting state governments is cutting deeply into health care. The state also will roll back coverage for childless adults in a move that is expected to eventually drop 310,000 people from the rolls.
State leaders said they were left with few choices because of a $2.6 billion projected shortfall next year. But hospital officials and advocates for low-income people said they were worried that emergency rooms would be overrun by patients who had few other options for care, and that children might suffer enduring developmental problems because of inadequate medical attention. The cuts also mean the state will forgo hundreds of millions of dollars in federal matching aid, and could lose far more if Congress passes a health bill that requires states to maintain eligibility levels for the two programs. Ms. “Arizona is navigating its way through the largest state budget deficit in its long history,” said Ms. Krista K. Nuns Back Bill Amid Broad Rift Over Whether It Limits Abortion E. The issue dividing them is whether the Senate version of the legislation goes far enough in limiting the use of federal subsidies paid for insurance policies that cover . Progressive Catholics, including the group of more than 50 nuns representing thousands more from various religious orders, said this week that they would support the Senate bill.
The traditionalists, like the , said they would oppose it. Although both the nuns and the bishops firmly oppose abortion, they have reached different conclusions about the bill, a divide that is also playing out more broadly among other groups that oppose abortion. These include Democrats in the Senate like Bob Casey of Pennsylvania who are comfortable with the restrictions in the Senate health care bill and Democrats in the House like of Michigan who are fighting for tighter restrictions. That divide is proving central to the outcome of the health care debate — Mr. Representative Dale E. In a conference call on Thursday, Mr. Mr.
As for Mr. White House Memo - For Obama, Health Care Pushes Other Issues to. Text - Obama’s Remarks on Overhauling Health Care. Search for Aye Votes on Health Care Narrows in House - NYTimes.c. House Democratic Caucus Heading to Meet With Obama on Saturday - Politics News and Opinion on The Huffington Post. Robert Reich: The Final Health Care Vote and What it Really Mean. It's not nearly as momentous as the passage of Medicare in 1965 and won't fundamentally alter how Americans think about social safety nets. But the passage of Obama's health care reform bill is the biggest thing Congress has done in decades, and has enormous political significance for the future. Medicare directly changed the life of every senior in America, giving them health security and dramatically reducing their rates of poverty. By contrast, most Americans won't be affected by Obama's health care legislation. Most of us will continue to receive health insurance through our employers.
(Only a comparatively small minority will be required to buy insurance who don't want it, or be subsidized in order to afford it. Medicare built on Franklin D. Obama's legislation comes from an alternative idea, begun under the Eisenhower administration and developed under Nixon, of a market for health care based on private insurers and employers. How the Health Care Overhaul Could Affect You - Graphic - NYTime. Blue Dogs Should Pray Health Care Fails. Dear Swing-Seat Democrats: Hey. How are things? I see that you’re really busy trying to figure out just how much you’ll need to sell your vote for Obamacare. So I’ll make this quick. Liberals got all angry when Jim DeMint said that if the president’s health care rationing bill was defeated, it would be his ‘Waterloo.’
But if Pelosi, Reid, and Obama win on this vote, do you know what lesson the Left will take? So consider: with your vote for Obamacare, you are giving the Left a new lease on life. Now as my friend Moe Lane would say, this doesn’t bother me. With love, Brian. How to Prepare for Health-Care Changes. Perriello A Yes On Health Care Bill. Rep. John B. Larson: The Top Ten Immediate Benefits You'll Get W. As soon as health care passes, the American people will see immediate benefits. The legislation will: By enacting these provisions right away, and others over time, we will be able to lower costs for everyone and give all Americans and small businesses more control over their health care choices.
CBO says health bill increases deficits under Rep. Ryan's assump. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) said the healthcare bill would add billions to the country's debt if lawmakers ignore the bill's cost constraints, as Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) expects them to do. Under the scenario painted by Ryan, CBO said the healthcare bill's $138 billion in savings over 10 years would disappear because the government would: extend the current Medicare doctor payment rate instead of allowing it to expire; allow health insurance subsidies to grow at a sustained rate; and fail to implement a tax on high-cost health plans and an independent Medicare advisory board, two measures aimed at constraining federal health costs. The CBO made those estimates, released Friday, at the request of Ryan.
Ryan and Republicans argue that such a pessimistic scenario will become a reality because it's the politically easier course. The Medicare physician payment rate extension, which costs $208 billion over 10 years, would be enough by itself to wipe out the deficit reduction. House passes health-care reform bill without Republican votes - House Democrats scored a historic victory in the century-long battle to reform the nation's health-care system late Sunday night, winning final approval of legislation that expands coverage to 32 million people and attempts to contain spiraling costs. The House voted 219 to 212 to approve the measure, with every Republican voting no. The measure now awaits President Obama's signature. In remarks Sunday night, he said that the vote "proved that we are still capable of doing big things.
We proved that this government -- a government of the people and by the people -- still works for the people. " House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her colleagues erupted in cheers and hugs as the votes were counted, while Republicans who had fought the Democratic efforts on health-care reform for more than a year appeared despondent. And it has sparked a citizens' revolt that reached the doors of the Capitol this weekend. "If we pass this bill, there will be no turning back," House Minority Leader John A.
Obama Signs Health Care Bill: VIDEO, PHOTOS. Pelosi inches closer to 216 as fence-sitters pledge 'yes' vote - Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) is now close to achieving the biggest political victory of her career. After struggling to collect votes earlier this week, Democratic leaders picked up some key votes on Friday. Reps. Suzanne Kosmas (D-Fla.), Brad Ellsworth (D-Ind.), Allen Boyd (D-Fla.), Harry Mitchell (D-Ariz.), Dina Titus (D-Nev.) and John Boccieri (D-Ohio) had all been undecided or leaning no, but they all say they will vote yes this weekend. Kosmas, Boccieri and Boyd voted against the House healthcare reform bill last year. Boyd's decision to vote yes was Friday's biggest surprise because he voted no earlier this week in the Budget Committee and had reservations with the education reform measure that will move with healthcare reform in the reconciliation process.Likewise, many on Capitol Hill expected Ellsworth, who is running for Senate, to reject the final bill, but on Friday the centrist Indiana Democrat said he will support it.
Rep. But there were some setbacks on Friday. Undecided Dem won't return White House calls on healthcare - The. A key undecided Democrat on healthcare said he opted not to return White House calls to him on healthcare. Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas), who's yet to announce how he'll vote on a healthcare bill before the House this weekend, said he opted not to respond to Obama administration entreaties on healthcare. "The White House called, I decided not to return their phone calls," Cuellar said during an appearance on Fox News. "I'm going to see the president later this afternoon. " Cuellar's one of a dwindling number of House Democrats who's yet to announce his stance on health reform legislation.
Cuellar was referring to hearing from President Barack Obama himself on Saturday when the president will visit the Hill to talk to House Democrats at the Capitol Visitor Center. "The White House has called; with all due respect to the White House this is a decision I need to make for my district," Cuellar said. Bridget Johnson contributed to this report.
Obama Exercising That Old, Old, Very Old Charm on Health Care | Pelosi puts the heat on undecided N.Y. Dem as vote hunt intensif. Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Friday leaned on an on-the-fence Democrat for his vote on healthcare reform while other Democratic leaders urged their colleagues to support the bill. Pelosi was seen on the House floor with Rep. Scott Murphy (D-N.Y.), who is undecided on the bill. Approached by The Hill after his discussion with Pelosi, Murphy was tight-lipped. A man walking with Murphy attempted to cut off questions until Murphy signaled he would answer them. Murphy, who is in a competitive reelection race this fall, confirmed Pelosi made the case for the bill, but would not say whether the Speaker was giving him a hard sell. The second-term Democrat said he was still undecided and "reading through [the bill]. " Pressed on whether he committed his vote to the Speaker, Murphy responded, "You've got my statement.
" Murphy voted no on the House bill in November. The Pelosi-Murphy meeting is a clear indication that the Speaker needs more votes to get the 216 needed to pass the measure. Emanuel says health reform on its 'last leg' - The Hill's Blog B. The healthcare debate that's ensnared Washington for months is in its final stages, White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel argued this weekend. Emanuel, who has been a key Obama administration figure in crafting the healthcare reform push, rejected the idea that President Barack Obama had been stretched too thin between healthcare and other issues. "Not at all," Emanuel told CBS's "60 Minutes" in an interview to air Sunday when asked if the president had been stretched too far on healthcare.
"We're in the final stages of getting a comprehensive bill finally passed and onto the president's desk," Emanuel said. "We're on the last leg of the legislative process. " The House, in which Emanuel served for several terms and ascended to a leadership position, is set for a landmark vote as soon as Sunday afternoon on healthcare reform legislation. No, that's gone," Emanuel told CBS when asked if he'd still like to be speaker one day. Rep. Mike Honda: Senator Graham's Inappropriate "Kamikaze" Remar. This week, Senator Lindsey Graham made comments about Speaker Pelosi's efforts to galvanize support for health care reform, stating that she has Democratic Members "liquored up on sake" to make a "suicide run" to pass reform.
Later he added, "I don't know whether it's sake or moonshine but no sober person would do this. " For the Senator to add "moonshiners" to an already unsavory sake and suicide statement, does a disservice to the underlying issue. Citing that "no sober person would do [healthcare reform]", because Americans "do not need to lose their choice in health care", I question who has, in fact - to use the Senator's words - "lost their political mind". This "lose of choice" is exactly what this bill prevents by putting the healthcare industry in its place and by returning control to the American people. If the Senator has problems with us capping premiums or covering preexisting conditions, then I suggest he come clean on his addiction to the habits of the healthcare industry. Obama Signs Health Care Overhaul Bill, With a Flourish - NYTimes.