Health Care Reform: SOTU Update

Posted by Bill Pierce

The president painted a clear picture to the public. He said all the right things, using phrases such as “Take another look,” “Don’t walk away,” and “Come together.” But to Congress, especially to his own party, the picture was much less clear.
 
What remains unanswered from his speech is how he is going to get health insurance reform back on track and passed. The rhetoric he used about asking Republicans for their ideas are the same words he used last year, and neither side acted on them. The GOP didn’t really try to engage, and neither did Democrats. So what is different now?
 
The House version cannot achieve the 60-vote threshold required by the Senate, making the Senate version the only viable option, yet the Senate bill does not appear to have anywhere near the 218 votes needed for passage (recall the House bill only passed the House with 220 votes). Complicating this calculus is the fact that it is also unclear whether there is enough support for proceeding with the companion tactic of using reconciliation to iron out the differences between the House and Senate bills.
 
The president was clear that he is not prepared to quit the fight, but few thought he would.
 
So the answer to what’s next is: stay tuned.