The Senate Health Committee approved a bill to overhaul the nation’s health care system Wednesday. It passed without Senator Lamar Alexander’s vote.
Alexander voted with all the other Republicans on the committee to oppose the bill. Democrats say it would give more affordable health care to more people. But Alexander wasn’t having it.
“The idea is going to be, dump another 15-20 million low-income Americans into a failed Medicaid program, and after 5 years, shift the cost to the states. The amount of dollars that will cost in Tennessee about equals a 10% income tax.”
He had co-sponsored an alternative plan that sought to provide universal coverage without increasing the deficit … by creating a new private insurance system.
“Our goal is to reduce the cost of health care for every American and when we’re finished, to also give Americans a government that they can afford.”
The Senate Finance Committee is still working on its own version, which leaders hope will garner at least some Republican votes. The two versions will then be combined. President Obama is pushing Congress to figure it all out before they leave for August recess.
Reported by Tanya Snyder
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