From the Alan Katz healthcare blog;
History was made today. The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee approved comprehensive health care reform legislation, the first Congressional committee to do so in decades. Never mind that the bill is well to the left of the emerging consensus concerning health care reform. Never mind that it passed on a party line 13-10 vote. What is meaningful is that a congressional committee moved comprehensive health care reform forward. Significantly, three House committees are likely to follow suit within the next three-to-four weeks.
The legislation approved by the Senate HELP Committee, which carriers a $600 billion price tag, would require individuals to obtain coverage, employers to help their workers pay for it, and carriers to accept all applicants regardless of their health conditions. Individuals and families earning up to 400 percent of the Federal Poverty Level ($88,000 for a family of four) would be eligible for subsidies. The Associated Press provides additional information and reaction to the Committees vote, but in my mind, the details are secondary. The vote itself is what is significant. Remember, the Clinton Administration health care reform proposal was never voted upon by any Congressional Committee.
Read the rest here.
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