The Senate is Set to Debate the Health Care Reform Bill

The Health Care Reform Bill won a vote of 60 to 39 on the Senate floor last Saturday night, opening the door for debate on American's health care system. If the Senate manages to pass the bill, a congressional conference committee would have to merge the House and Senates' proposals into one consensus version. At that point, a final approval from both chambers would be needed before it could move on to President Obama's desk to be signed into law.

The Senate debate is expected to last for weeks and won't begin until after Thanksgiving. The Republicans and Democrats seems strongly divided on this issue, Republicans believe that the bill is an unnecessary government takeover of the health care system that would harm the economy and reduce the quality of our health care coverage. Democrats argue that this reform will help millions of Americans that can't get health insurance because of pre-existing conditions or due to the overall cost of coverage.

There are several issues within the bill that are very controversial including federal funding for aboration, a public option plan, a tax increases on individuals who make more than $200,000, and a five percent tax on elective cosmetic surgery. Both the Senate and House bills require individuals to buy health insurance, with penalties for non-compliance. The House version would mandate that all employers to offer health care where the Senate version does not. The two bills are very similar in that both want to include a health insurance exchange, expanded benefits with Medicaid, subsidied insurance for low and middle income families, cap out of pocket medical expenses, and elimination of denials for individuals with pre-existing conditions.

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