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...Asked if she could vote for the bill right now, Senator Blanche Lincoln, an Arkansas Democrat, smiled coyly. "There's always room for improvement," she said. "I've got an opportunity to make improvements, so we all look forward to that...
...Still, Senators shouldn't hold their breath that they will be radically changing the bill, at least in the formal markup expected in committee next week. It's unlikely that any amendments that change the basic framework will be accepted, Baucus told reporters before unveiling his bill. The Montana Democrat has not even given up on the hope of some Republican support. But despite his apparent confidence, Baucus may still need to work to win over enough wavering Democrats to get the bill through the Finance Committee. Here are their five biggest issues with the legislation and what Baucus...
...Senate include a government-insurance option that would compete with private plans to help keep costs down. Republicans across the board have denounced the proposal, with many calling it the first step to socialized medicine. In a nod to the concerns of his GOP colleagues and some moderate Democrats, Baucus introduced an alternative to the public plan: nonprofit state or regional cooperatives that, except for some seed money from Washington, would be exclusively financed by members' premiums. The hazy concept of co-ops has been pushed by North Dakota Democrat Kent Conrad, who was part of the bipartisan so-called...
...Senator Jay Rockefeller, a West Virginia Democrat and longtime champion of the public plan, said he intends to introduce an amendment to insert the federal alternative into the bill, though there was no word if Baucus would accept such an amendment. "The proposed co-op model is untested and unsubstantiated and should not be considered as a national model for health insurance," Rockefeller said. If Dems choose to go it alone without any Republican support, it's possible they could include such a plan in the final version of the bill. But many moderate Democrats, such as Landrieu and Nebraska...
...Immigration Representative Joe Wilson may have gotten himself into trouble when he yelled "You lie!" at President Obama during the address to the joint session of Congress, but it certainly seems that Democrats took his outburst to heart. Senate Finance negotiators went back to the table and rewrote the bill to ensure not only that illegal immigrants would be prevented from receiving government subsidies to buy insurance, but that they wouldn't be able to purchase insurance on the so-called exchanges even if they could pay for it in full. The plan also tightens the rules for some legal...