Healthcare Reform Thread II

[Drake Tungsten]

Good news.

Durbin: No pre-recess vote on healthcare

Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) on Wednesday acknowledged for the first time that a pre-recess vote on healthcare reform is unlikely.

“We’re going to take a little longer to get it right,” Durbin told The Hill when asked about the oft-stated goal of a vote on or before Aug. 7, when a monthlong Senate recess begins. “Initially we had hoped for a full vote by then, but I don’t think it’s going to be possible.”

Delaying the vote until after Labor Day would all but erase hopes of getting a bill to President Obama by mid-October, since the House and Senate versions would have to be reconciled in conference negotiations — assuming they pass their chambers.

http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/durbin-no-pre-recess-vote-on-healthcare-2009-07-22.html

[Drake Tungsten]

Great news.

Senate Democratic leaders on Thursday abandoned plans for a vote on health care before Congress' August recess, dealing a blow to President Barack Obama's ambitious timetable to revamp the nation's $2.4 trillion system of medical care.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., delivered the official pronouncement on what had been expected for weeks, saying, "It's better to have a product based on quality and thoughtfulness rather than try to jam something through."

His words were a near-echo of Republicans who have criticized the rush to act on complex legislation that affects every American.

Reid told reporters the Senate Finance Committee will act on its portion of the bill before lawmakers' monthlong break. Reid then will merge that bill with separate legislation passed by the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee earlier this month.

The process will be difficult since Finance, led by Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., is seeking a bipartisan deal while the health committee bill was passed by Democrats on a party-line vote.

Obama had pushed for votes in the House and Senate before August to ensure that lawmakers had enough time to meld the two bills into comprehensive legislation before the end of the year — and the start of a politically charged congressional election year.

Health care is Obama's top domestic priority and the president has made nearly daily appeals for the overhaul in the last two weeks, and summoned more than a dozen lawmakers to the White House to make his case. At stake is a massive remaking of the system — as well as Obama's clout.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090723/ap_on_go_co/us_health_care_overhaul

Now the Congress critters will get a whole extra month to listen to their constituents complain about this terrible healthcare reform plan.

[Jon Miller]

Has the generic versus name-brand drug problem been fixed yet?

JM

[Az]

We already have a thread on the topic.

[Drake Tungsten]

We already have a thread on the topic.

I've had a healthcare reform thread up for weeks. Your thread should be closed.

[Ogie Oglethorpe]

Agreed. Az's thread was merely troll bait.

[DanS]

This is pretty amazing. The Dems have 60 votes in the senate, but still have to cast about for bipartisan support?

Seems likely that this reform is dead.

[Drake Tungsten]

Seems likely that this reform is dead.

We can only hope.

[DanS]

I would like a fuller debate about it, to be honest. There are a lot of good reasons to have a reform. A lot of good reasons against too.

[Drake Tungsten]

I'm all for reform. I just want one that actually makes things better.

[Koyaanisqatsi]

Clearly Apolyton needs to create their own reform plan and submit it to the Congress.

[Jon Miller]

I am hugely in favor of reform. However, this seems to be heavily about more money to big pharm/etc.

It would be very expensive, and not actually acheive as much as it should.

JM

[Caligastia]

I would like a fuller debate about it

President Hopeandchange wants it done IMMEDIATELY!

[rah]

Damn, a thread where I agree with posts dan, drake and jon. I know we've had some almost record lows in Chicago recently but was unaware that hell had frozen over.

[Caligastia]

It doesn't matter what we do, just so long as we do it - and quickly. If we debate, we succumb to the politics of delay and defeat.