The House of Representatives has received a thorough health care reform bill that includes an option for a government-run insurance plan.


The House of Representatives has received a thorough health care reform bill that includes an option for a government-run insurance plan.

 
"Today we are about to deliver on the promise of making affordable, quality health care available for all Americans," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in a ceremony at the U.S. Capitol on Thursday.
 
According to the Associated Press, individual states can choose to refuse the public option, but that is not the only change presented in the newest version of the 1,990-page bill.
 
"The House bill clearly meets two of the fundamental criteria I have set out: it is fully paid for and will reduce the deficit in the long term," President Barack Obama said in a statement.
 
Budget experts estimate, Reuters reports, the proposed reform would cost about $894 billion over the next decade, but it would also shave $104 billion off of the deficit at the same time.
 
House Republicans have all opposed the bill, but Democratic support has been inconsistent. Whereas liberal representatives want a more solid public option, moderate Dems just wanted to know that the government insurance money wouldn’t cover abortions.

 
The reform bill, as it stands, would provide subsidized health coverage for 36 million uninsured Americans. There would be expanded eligibility for Medicaid as well, which is actually cheaper for the government than providing subsidized insurance. Additionally, the bill would keep insurance companies from refusing potential clients with pre-existing conditions.
 
While the bill was presented to the House on Thursday, debate over whether to pass it into law may not start until next week at the earliest.  However, House Republican leader John Boehner would like to hold off a little longer on reform talks because he wants time to understand the bill, stating, "This huge bill is designed to be so complex that nobody would ever know for sure what's in it."

-- Sonya Eskridge

Here’s more:

Health care bill to include a public option
Senate panel passes health care reform bill