WASHINGTON - Senate Democrats said they neared agreement Saturday on a major overhaul of the nation’s health care system, putting them within reach of approving legislation by Christmas.
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Mr. Reid’s amendment includes major restrictions on abortion that were intended to win support for the bill from Mr. Nelson. Under Mr. Reid’s proposal, health insurance plans are not required or forbidden to cover abortion services, but there is a major exemption that would give states power to prohibit abortion coverage in the insurance markets, or exchanges, where most health plans would be sold.
Mr. Reid’s amendment also includes a substantial increase in federal contributions to Nebraska’s costs of providing Medicaid coverage to the poor.
also: just one of many critical comments:
"If the last newspaper report is accurate, this bill will kill more people than it saves. By allowing insurance companies to sell policies over state lines without any state regulation, you're going to see huge consolidation of the industry, and a race to the bottom as far as responsiveness and service are concerned.
For example, there are a bunch of conditions that insurance companies are not allowed to exclude from coverage in California. Before those laws went into effect, patients were simply out of luck if they developed those conditions. They still had insurance, it just didn't pay for anything to do with that condition. This is still perfectly legal in some other states. Bets on how long those people would have their care covered?
Not to mention the fact that, with binding arbitration agreements, someone who was unfairly denied coverage ILLEGALLY would probably have to fly to Delaware or South Dakota in order to talk to the arbiter (so that they could be denied redress.)
Yep, he said it. An up or down vote. Finally, someone throws their precious phrase back at them.
from daily kos
The President looks back to the bipartisan Patient's Bill of Rights, a bill that was defeated in Congress at the hands of special interests and their supporters, and notes that health insurance reform covers the same ground and much more in terms of giving the consumers the upper hand over their insurance companies. He calls on the Senate to allow an up-or-down vote, and for those opposing reform to stop using parliamentary maneuvers to drag it out.
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