U.S. Senators returned to Washington, D.C. from their Thanksgiving week break on Monday November 30 and began what is expected to be weeks of debate on healthcare reform. Before they left, Senators voted 60-39 to invoke cloture, which halted a filibuster and cleared the way for floor debate.
The U.S. Senate’s healthcare bill would raise insurance premiums by at least 10 percent by 2016 for those independently buying coverage, but subsidies would reduce the actual costs for half of that group, the Congressional Budget Office said on Monday November 30. The nonpartisan CBO said the bill would have a much smaller impact on those who receive coverage through employer-based plans. Employers with 50 or fewer workers could see premiums go up slightly, but costs could decline by as much as 2 percent per worker relative to current expectations, CBO estimated. Premiums for larger employers could be as much as 3 percent lower in 2016, the report said.
A major reason behind the projected increase in premiums for those purchasing their plans individually is that the plans will offer greater benefits than under current policies. At the same time, more competition among insurers who would offer their products through newly created exchanges, where people would shop for and compare policies, will help reduce premiums in the nongroup market, the CBO said.
In the Senate, the next step in the process is that various amendments will be offered from the Senate floor, each subject to debate. Each will be voted upon individually unless grouped into a single vote. Debate goes on until another vote for cloture requiring 60 votes shuts off amendments.
It is less clear under arcane Senate rules if a third cloture vote is required to shut off debate after the amendment process ends. This emphasizes the importance of the Senate Parlimentarian, who could be called upon to issue rulings on the meaning of Senate rules. With the Senate so closely divided on this issue, such rulings could determine the fate of healthcare reform.
December 2, 2009