President Barack Obama traveled to Capitol Hill to rally support from his fellow Democrats an a healthcare reform bill that would lead to the biggest changes in health policy in four decades.
“Now is the time to finish the job,” Obama said later at the White House. “I urge members of Congress to rise to this moment, answer to the call of history and vote yes for health insurance reform for America.”
The healthcare overhaul cleared its first hurdle when Democrats easily approved, on a 242-192 vote, a procedural rule setting the terms of the debate. It was the first test of support for the measure.
The push for healthcare reform, Obama’s top priority, is designed to rein in costs, expand coverage to millions of uninsured and bar insurance practices such as denying coverage to people with pre-existing conditions.
Republicans and Democrats spent hours on Saturday in sometimes heated debate on the measure, which would bar insurance practices such as refusing to cover people with pre-existing conditions.
“No longer can insurance companies come between you and your doctors,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said.
Republicans are united in opposition to the legislation, criticizing its $1 trillion price tag, new taxes on the wealthy and what they said was excessive government interference in the private health sector.
“We can’t afford this bill,” said Republican Representative Roy Blunt. “It’s a 2,000-page road map to a government takeover of healthcare.”
The reform bill would lead to the biggest policy changes in the $2.5 trillion US healthcare system since the creation of the Medicare health programme for the elderly in 1965.
After days of frantic lobbying, House Democratic leaders hoped to pick up key votes after striking a middle-of-the-night deal early on Saturday with foes of abortion rights.
The abortion deal allowed dozens of Democratic moderates concerned about the bill’s abortion provisions to have a floor vote on whether to impose stronger restrictions on using federal funds to pay for abortions.
The healthcare vote is critical for Obama and his fellow Democrats who control Congress. A House victory would be a big step forward for the overhaul and would shift the political spotlight to the Senate, which is struggling to prepare its own version.
But failure in the House would be a huge blow to Obama, who has staked much of his political capital on the healthcare battle and has said he wants to sign a bill by year’s end. Differences in the House and Senate bills ultimately would have to be reconciled, and a final bill would need to be passed again before it is sent to Obama for his signature.
