Democrats try to regain health care momentum
By RICARDO ALONSO-ZALDIVAR and ERICA WERNER
The Associated Press
Friday, June 19, 2009
WASHINGTON -- Trying to regain momentum on a core issue of Barack Obama's presidency, House Democrats on Friday unveiled legislation they said would cover virtually all the nearly 50 million uninsured Americans.
Major provisions of the draft bill would impose new responsibilities on individuals and employers to get coverage, end insurance company practices that deny coverage to the sick and create a new government-sponsored plan to compete with private companies.
But it remained far from clear how the Democrats intend to pay for their plan, even as they vowed to take the legislation to the House floor by the end of July. Lawmakers got sticker shock this week after budget analysts estimated costs of $1 trillion-plus on just partial plans.
"If there is one thing that is off the table, it is saying 'no' to health care reform," said Rep. George Miller, D-Calif., chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee, one of three panels involved in writing the legislation.
(More here.)
The Associated Press
Friday, June 19, 2009
WASHINGTON -- Trying to regain momentum on a core issue of Barack Obama's presidency, House Democrats on Friday unveiled legislation they said would cover virtually all the nearly 50 million uninsured Americans.
Major provisions of the draft bill would impose new responsibilities on individuals and employers to get coverage, end insurance company practices that deny coverage to the sick and create a new government-sponsored plan to compete with private companies.
But it remained far from clear how the Democrats intend to pay for their plan, even as they vowed to take the legislation to the House floor by the end of July. Lawmakers got sticker shock this week after budget analysts estimated costs of $1 trillion-plus on just partial plans.
"If there is one thing that is off the table, it is saying 'no' to health care reform," said Rep. George Miller, D-Calif., chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee, one of three panels involved in writing the legislation.
(More here.)
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