Obama takes healthcare case to the House
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President Obama will meet with House Democrats this afternoon to urge that the rank and file work to get a healthcare agreement quickly.
Obama met with Democratic leaders on Wednesday, trying to resolve differences between the House and Senate approaches to healthcare overhaul. Each chamber has passed different versions of the bill, and they must be reconciled before a final bill is sent to Obama.
Politically, the rush is on to resolve the differences, with how to fund the nearly $1-trillion cost over 10 years at the top of the list. But there are also serious disagreements about the establishment and power of proposed insurance exchanges, designed to increase competition among private insurance companies.
The Senate plan calls for a tax on high-end insurance policies, a mechanism opposed by many in the House because they fear it will hit union insurance plans. The House bill calls for a tax on the rich, and leaders have floated a compromise that would tax capital gains, which hits the rich as well.
House Democrats are also uneasy about how much they have given up to protect the 60 votes needed to pass any healthcare reform in the Senate. Early this morning, Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her leadership team briefed some House Democrats.
The need for speed is mainly political, as polls show that support for a healthcare bill is dropping. Further complicating the issue is that the polls show Democrats favor passing healthcare reform while majorities of those who identify themselves as Republicans and independents oppose a bill. Only one Republican in the House and none in the Senate voted for the bills.
Republicans have been pushing a Senate special election in Massachusetts as a test case over healthcare reform. That race, for the seat once held by Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, has been fiercely fought; the Democratic candidate maintains a lead in most polls.
-- Michael Muskal
