Reports: Medicare Expansion In, Abortion Restrictions Out
Dec. 9, 2009 – The U.S. Senate likely will make expanding Medicare eligibility part of its health care reform package but not a controversial measure restricting abortions, and several news outlets are reporting a public health care option is dead, although some say otherwise.
The U.S. Senate yesterday voted 55-45 to defeat an amendment restricting how public funds could be used when subsidizing health insurance plans providing coverage for abortion services. Soon after, a group of ten Senate Democrats met in a closed session in Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s office and hammered out a tentative deal essentially scrapping the public health care option in favor of expanding Medicare eligibility and create a national, non-profit insurance exchange overseen by the federal Office of Personnel Management, ABC News reported today.
The plan would lower the minimum age for Medicare program eligibility from 65 to 55 years of age in 2011, according to ABC News. And citizens would be allowed to purchase private health insurance plans offered through the national health insurance exchange. Senators also agreed to require insurers to spend 90 percent of insurance premium dollars on health care and reduce administrative costs, the Associated Press reported.
Although several news outlets are reporting a public health insurance option is dead, Reid said that isn’t true. The yet-to-be-revealed compromise plan “includes a public option and will help ensure the American people win in two ways: one, insurance companies will face more competition, and two, the American people will have more choices,” Reid said in a statement.
The Senate debate is scheduled to last until Dec. 18, but several Capitol Hill pundits anticipate eroding public support could push the debate into next year. Gallup recently released results of its national telephone survey of 1,017 adults conducted Nov. 20-22, and a plurality indicated they would “advise” their respective representatives in Congress to vote against a health care reform measure while 44 percent indicated they would advise voting for reform.
Even fewer want federal lawmakers to take action this year. Only 35 percent of those surveyed said they favor voting on health care reform this year while 42 percent said they prefer Capitol Hill lawmakers take more time before enacting major legislation that won’t take effect for several years.
Gallup’s polling results corroborate similar recent findings by Rasmussen Reports, which last week reported some 56 percent of those polled oppose federal health care reform efforts while only 38 percent indicated support. The support of federal efforts hadn’t dipped below 41 percent in prior weekly polling, according to Rasmussen Reports.
A recent Rasmussen survey also indicates most people don’t think reform efforts will help. Some 54 percent of those polled said the Senate and House bills would harm and not help health care, and 60 percent said the federal legislation likely would increase costs for everyone. Only 16 percent of those polled believe Congressional reform efforts will lower costs.
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