On Saturday night, by a strict party-line vote of 60-39, Senate Democrats voted to bring the healthcare reform debate to the floor. Though this is a victory for the Democratic Party, a fierce battle awaits their bill, as it seems very unlikely that any type of bill will be voted before the end of the year.
The healthcare reform bill was created with the promise of providing affordable healthcare to the 45 million uninsured Americans. Both parties, however, have argued contentiously about how this should be done. The initial bill, written by Democrats, included a public option for all Americans that would compete with the private insurance companies. In essence, the price of private insurance would decrease because of this public option.
Republicans responded with vehement opposition to such a bill. Their arguments were based on the idea that this was an attempt by President Obama and the Democrats to socialize healthcare, with the potential to socialize other aspects of American life. Another claim was that the government had created death panels, which were supposedly in place to “pull the plug on Grandma.”
In response to these unsubstantiated claims, the bill was reformed to provide a public option only for those who weren’t covered by Medicaid or by their employer. Further compromises have given each state the right to opt out of the public option. This new and significantly weakened public option would not have much bargaining leverage and would appeal to those in poor health, thus raising the cost of healthcare.
Despite this overhaul of the public option, nearly all Republicans, so-called centrists, and most of the Blue Dog (fiscally conservative) Democrats refuse to vote for a bill that includes a public option.
The healthcare bill that was passed in the House also included a controversial anti-abortion amendment to ensure the bill’s survival. The amendment, written by Rep. Bart Stupak of Michigan, banned abortion coverage on all healthcare plans paid for by taxpayer money. Only women who pay their premiums without government assistance, would have their abortions covered. This would make it extremely difficult for lower– and middle-class women to get abortions, most of whom could not afford to pay for it out of pocket.
The motivation behind the amendment was the appeasement of conservatives and especially the Catholic Church, who, despite the concept of separation of church and state have a significant influence on the American political system.
Though strides have been made to reform the healthcare system, it appears that the Senate will likely debate the logistics of the bill for weeks. The new watered down bill doesn’t seem to address the main issue: private insurance companies providing inadequate services in an attempt to increase their bottom line, with no regard for the welfare of their customers. Until this matter is dealt with, healthcare reform will remain an idea instead of a practical solution.