Well, the House health reform bill -- known to Republicans as the
Government Takeover -- finally passed after one of Congress's longer,
less enlightening debates. Two stalwarts of the single-payer movement
split their votes; John Conyers voted for it; Dennis Kucinich against.
Kucinich was right.
In Washington, "healthcare reform" has degenerated into a sick joke.
At this point, only spinners who've succumbed to their own vertigo could use the word "robust" to describe the public option in the healthcare bill that the House Democratic leadership has sent to the floor.
WASHINGTON - Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-AZ)--co-chair of the Congressional Progressive
Caucus--was not in attendance at today's health care bill unveiling.
But his office sends over the following quote, suggesting that he plans
to continue his push for a strong public option, even though the base
House bill doesn't go as far as he'd like.
The public option was always a compromise for serious supporters of
health-care reform, who -- like Barack Obama when he was running for
the Senate in 2003 -- knew that a single-payer "Medicare for All"
system was what America needed to provide health care to everyone while
controlling costs.
But, in the reform legislation debuted Thursday by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the compromise was even more compromised than had been expected.
Majority Leader Harry Reid says health care legislation headed to the Senate floor will include an option for government-run insurance.
Reid says states will have the prerogative of opting out of the program if they choose.
Reid noted that polls show widespread public support for giving the government a role in the overhauled health care system envisioned by President Barack Obama and his allies in Congress.
What kind of a public debate can we have on the most vital issues of the day in the
United States? A lot depends on the media, which determines how these issues are framed for most people.
House leadership sources are telling TPMDC they think news on the
"robust" public option is leaking out to pressure House Speaker Nancy
Pelosi as the health care discussions are getting hotter, and closer to
the final deal.
Politico's story this morning suggests Pelosi doesn't have the votes, but our sources insist the leadership isn't yet at that stage.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is feeling the heat
from his liberal colleagues to include a government-run health
insurance plan, or "public option," in the Senate health care bill.
Say hello to "Medicare Part E" - as in, "Medicare for Everyone."
House Democrats are looking at re-branding the public health
insurance option as Medicare, an established government healthcare
program that is better known than the public option.
The strategy could
benefit Democrats struggling to bridge the gap between liberals in
their party, who want the public option, and centrists, who are worried
it would drive private insurers out of business.
