Politics

Health Care and the Slaughter Solution

This week, the Obama Administration and Democrat leadership in both chambers announced that they plan to move forward with their health care reform proposals despite overwhelming opposition from Members of both parties and the American public. Many have questioned the reasons why the Democrats feel this must happen this week considering this opposition and the very serious consequences that this overhaul will have on all Americans and 1/6 of our economy.

The Democrats plan to use a process called reconciliation to pass their health care reform package. They will use the Senate-passed bill as the base bill and draft a separate reconciliation bill and ?fix? parts of the Senate bill to appease certain House Members. The Senate bill does not have enough support in the House to pass, so Democrat leadership will attempt to avoid putting it on the floor for an ?up or down? vote. They must comply with requirements that the Senate bill first pass before consideration of the reconciliation bill occurs. To do this, Rules Committee Chairwoman Louise Slaughter has proposed including language in a procedural rule bill that would deem the Senate bill passed once the rule vote passed (the ?Slaughter Solution?).

It?s no wonder the American public is outraged and does not trust Washington. A new poll released today by the Center for Medicine in the Public Interest revealed that six in ten Americans believe that House Democrats? ?Slaughter Solution? to avoid a vote on the Senate-passed bill is ?unfair.? It is my hope that House Democrats will avoid procedural tricks to avoid real votes on real issues.

The above poll shows significant opposition to the substance of the Democrat bills as well. Significant majorities oppose raising taxes and cutting Medicare benefits to pay for new insurance subsidies (76%), having government panels recommend medical procedures (87%), and government involvement in deciding the ?acceptable? level of health coverage (81%).

The poll further revealed support for various Republican solutions, such as allowing individuals to buy insurance across state lines (84%), letting people save for health needs through tax-free Health Savings Accounts (78%), and allowing premium discounts for individuals who participate in healthy behaviors (85%).

It is my hope that the House Leadership will slow down, allow for a fair ?up or down? on the Senate health care bill and consider alternative solutions that will improve, not overhaul, our health care system. Sarah Beatty-Senior Legislative Assistant

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Full post as published by Mike Conaway's Blog on March 17, 2010 (boomark / email).