Senate Set to Pass Health Care Reform Bill (12/23/09)

The U.S. Senate is poised to pass its version of health care reform legislation. In a series of procedural votes this week Senate Democrats have held ranks to produce the 60 votes necessary to keep the bill moving towards a final vote. The final vote is expected to occur on Christmas Eve. So far not a single Republican has voted in support of the legislation and the bill will likely be passed without a Republican vote.

Once the Senate passes its bill, Congress will have to work to reconcile the Senate and House versions to craft a single bill. That process will likely take several weeks. The House passed its version of the bill in November by a slender and mostly party-line majority vote. The two bills are different in significant ways.

"The bill set to pass in the Senate is deeply flawed," said RWDSU President Stuart Appelbaum. "It taxes benefits for so-called “Cadillac” insurance plans, which in reality could end up taxing millions of middle-class workers whose unions have negotiated good health insurance benefits. It also does not include more affordable coverage options like a public plan or an opportunity for people to buy into Medicare."

Union activists are also concerned that the Senate version places fewer responsibilities on employers and may have the perverse effect of encouraging employers to hire more part-time employees. For an excellent explanation of this problem go to www.fixthebill.org.

"The House version of the bill is much better for working people, is financed more fairly, covers more of the uninsured and asks employers to do their fair share," Appelbaum added.

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