Senate jockeying begins on Baucus bill

Source: POLITICO

Members of the Senate Finance Committee filed more than 500 amendments to Chairman Max Baucus’s health care reform bill, setting the stage for a markup next week that will lay bare differences between the parties on overhauling the health care system.


Two very different visions of health care reform emerged from the wave of amendments, which the committee posted online Saturday.


Republicans want a less-costly bill with fewer taxes, no government insurance option or nonprofit insurance cooperatives, medical liability reform, loosened restrictions on flexible savings accounts and no unfunded mandates on the states.


Some Democrats are looking to strengthen the co-ops, and others want to replace it with a government insurance option. They want to boost the amount of tax credits available to low- and moderate-income people to purchase insurance, and change the 35 percent excise tax on insurers that offer high-end plans.



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