Sen. Reid’s Government-Run Health Plan STILL Requires a Monthly Abortion Fee

Fixed it is not.  Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s (D-NV) latest health care “manager’s amendment” would STILL levy a new “abortion premium” fee on Americans under the Democrats’ health care plan.  Just like the original 2,032-page, government-run health care plan from Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-CA) and the last version of Senator Reid’s 2,074-page bill, this latest 383-page amendment levies an abortion premium and does not fix the problem of government funds being used to subsidize elective abortions.

Under Reid’s “manager’s amendment,” there is no prohibition on abortion coverage in federally subsidized plans participating in the Exchange.  Instead the amendment includes layers of accounting gimmicks that demand that plans participating in the Exchange or the new government-run plan that will be managed by the Office of Personnel Management must establish “allocation accounts” when elective abortion is a covered benefit (p. 41).  Everyone enrolled in these plans must pay a monthly abortion premium (p. 41, lines 5-8), and these funds will be used to pay for the elective abortion services.  The Reid amendment directs insurance companies to assess the cost of elective abortion coverage (p. 43), and charge a minimum of $1 per enrollee per month (p. 43, lines 20-22).

In short, the Reid bill continues to defy the will of the American people and contradict longstanding federal policy by providing federal subsidies to private health plans that cover elective abortions.  The new language does include a “state opt-out” provision if a state passes a law to prohibit insurance coverage of abortion, but it’s a sham because it does nothing to prevent one state’s tax dollars from paying for elective abortions in other states.

http://republicanleader.house.gov/blog/?p=725

Release: Primary Health, Dental Care for 25 Million More Americans

December 19, 2009

$10 Billion More for Community Health Centers will Revolutionize Care

WASHINGTON, December 19 – A $10 billion investment in community health centers, expected to go to $14 billion when Congress completes work on health care reform legislation, was included in a final series of changes to the Senate bill unveiled today.

The provision, which would provide primary care for 25 million more Americans, was requested by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.).

http://sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/news/?id=30B2A415-4ADE-4367-AF7D-4C3306E31B58

Warnings of Fraud on Cap-and-Trade

NOW President Condemns Compromised Health Care Bill;
Women's Access to Abortion Care Traded Away

Statement of Terry O'Neill, NOW President

December 19, 2009

The so-called health care reform bill now before the Senate, with the addition of Majority Leader Harry Reid's Manager's Amendment, amounts to a health insurance bill for half the population and a sweeping anti-abortion law for the rest of us. And by the way, it's the rest of us who voted the current leadership into both houses of Congress.

The National Organization for Women is outraged that Senate leadership would cave in to Sen. Ben Nelson, offering a compromise that amounts to a Stupak-like ban on insurance coverage for abortion care. Right-wing ideologues like Nelson and the Catholic Bishops may not understand this, but abortion is health care. And health care reform is not true reform if it denies women coverage for the full range of reproductive health services.

We call on all senators who consider themselves friends of women's rights to reject the Manager's Amendment, and if it remains, to defeat this cruelly over-compromised legislation.

http://www.now.org/press/12-09/12-19.html

Abortion in "Health Care Reform" --
A Grave Danger to the Pro-Life Cause

Stupak, working with GOP, trying to sink abortion compromise

An aide to Rep. Bart Stupak (D. Mich.) coordinated opposition to a Senate compromise on the place of abortion in health care legislation this morning with the Republican Senate leadership, the Conference Catholic Bishops, and other anti-abortion groups, according to a chain of frantic emails obtained this morning by POLITICO.

The emails show that Stupak — who has so far remained silent on language accepted by Senator Ben Nelson (D. Neb.) and faces intense pressure from the White House to accept it — is already working behind the scenes to oppose the compromise.

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1209/30811.html

Dems give insurers tax break in final bill

By S.A. Miller

UPDATED:

Senate Democratic leaders say last-minute changes to the health care bill include giving nonprofit health insurance companies an exemption from the excise tax on insurers, a revision pushed by Sen. Carl Levin, who is a major recipient of campaign contributions form mega nonprofit Blue Cross Blue Shield.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has unveiled a final version of his healthcare reform legislation containing a plethora of changes designed to lock down the 60 votes he needs to pass the historic legislation on Christmas Eve.

The so-called manager's amendment to the bill that has been on the Senate floor for weeks contains in its 383 pages new compromise language on abortion coverage added to win over centrist Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.), a proposal to created multi-state, nonprofit health insurance plans managed by the federal Office of Personnel Management as an alternative to the traditional insurance plans that would be offered under the bill, vouchers to allow some middle-income people to opt out of their employer-sponsored health benefits and purchase plans on the bill's insurance exchange, additional and more immediate assistance for small-business employees and stronger insurance regulations and consumer protections than the underlying bill.

http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/73057-final-senate-health-bill-released-by-reid-in-drive-for-60

By Shailagh Murray and Lori Montgomery
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, December 19, 2009; 9:41 AM

Sen. Ben Nelson (Neb.), the final Democratic holdout on health care, was prepared to announce to his caucus Saturday morning that he would support the Senate reform bill, clearing the way for final passage by Christmas.

"We're there," said Sen. Kent Conrad (D-N.D.), as he headed into a special meeting to announce the deal.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/12/19/AR2009121900797_pf.html

• Senate approves $626B Defense bill

  By DAVID ROGERS | 12/19/09 8:42 AM

  The Senate approves a $626 billion bill to fund the Defense Department on a 88-10 vote.

US launches cruise missle strikes against al Qaeda in Yemen

The US military carried out cruise missile attacks against two al Qaeda camps in Yemen, killing several terrorist commanders and fighters as well as civilians.

The attacks, which took place on Dec. 17, were carried out in conjunction with the Yemeni military, who targeted al Qaeda bases in the provinces of Sana'a and Abyan. The Yemeni government and the US launched the raids after intelligence indicated al Qaeda was planning to conduct attacks against Yemeni and US installations in the region.

http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2009/12/us_launches_cruise_m.php

Wheeling In The Cots: A Winter Snow Emergency--And An Absentee Lieberman--Is Complicating Democrats' Health Care Push

Brian Beutler | December 18, 2009, 5:27PM

As if Democrats didn't have enough to worry about. Overnight and into tomorrow, Washington, D.C. is preparing for a major snow storm, complete with thunder and high winds. A winter snowpocalypse.

On any other weekend, that would be no biggy for Senate Democrats, but tomorrow, they need all hands on deck if they hope to keep on track to pass their health care bill by Christmas. And remember, they can't afford a single slip-up.

So here's another wrinkle: Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) has skipped town.

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2009/12/wheeling-in-the-cots-a-winter-snow-emergency--and-an-absentee-lieberman--is-complicating-democrats-h.php