New Health Care Reform Bill Unveiled By House
WASHINGTON- Following what amounts to months of struggle, House Democrats produced far-reaching legislation Thursday that would extend health care coverage to millions who presently don’t have it as well as creating a new option allowing for a government-run insurance option. A vote is expected for next week on the plan which closely approximates what President Barack Obama is seeking.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Congress has reached an “historic moment” and that lawmakers are about to bring about an answer to the need for affordable health care and quality health insurance, making it available for every American.
It is being said by government officials that once the health measures are fully phased-in in the future, health care will be available for 96 percent of Americans. The main aspect of the legislation that is being used to assure universal coverage is the creation of a new government controlled insurance “exchange.” This would allow private insurance companies to sell their policies in competition with the government. In order for lower income families to be able to afford the policies, they would receive federal subsidies which would be made available to millions of lower-income individuals and families so that they would be able to afford the health insurance policies, and to small businesses in the form of incentives to them for offering coverage to their employees.
Larger companies would be obligated to insure their employees, and most individuals would have be insured.
The committee’s passage of this legislation indicates a major step in the yearlong attempts by the Democrats to respond to Obama’s request for legislation to renovate the nation’s health care system by making insurance benefits available to all, and the ending of industry practices of denying coverage on the basis of pre-existing medical conditions, or slowing the growth of medical throughout the country.
Senate Democrats are also working toward the passage of legislation by the end of the year. Majority Leader Harry Reid presented legislation earlier this week that would include an option for a government type of health plan, but his plan would allow the states to drop out if they wanted to. This provision is not included in the House legislation.
In a statement released by the president, Barack Obama said that House Democrats had reached a major step toward bringing about a health care overhaul. He singled out the proposed government insurance option as being of special importance. He also said that the bill meets two of his criteria, it is fully paid for and in the long run it will help to reduce the deficit.
The reaction from the Republicans was both swift and critical.
As an example, Representative Tom Price, a Republican from Georgia who serves as the head of the Republican Study Committee. How issued a statement that says that the Democrats have produced a plan that is in fact a government takeover. He says it will limit individual choice, as well as competition and innovations in health care, and at the same time it will increase costs while decreasing health care quality. According to Representative Rice, the new legislation will reduce jobs while rising taxes and creating cuts in the program of private Medicare that already provides benefits for millions of seniors.