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Snowe May Withhold Trigger Amendment Until Full Senate Debates Health Care
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One of the most anticipated amendments to the Senate Finance Committee's health care bill was introduced by Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-ME). If adopted, it would create triggered public options at the state level if private insurance companies didn't make insurance affordable and available everywhere. But yesterday, when the Committee considered a separate pair of public option amendments, Snowe's proposal wasn't on the agenda.
Senate sources suggest Snowe may withhold the amendment until health care legislation hits the floor next month. And a Snowe spokesperson confirms that, though the situation is very fluid right now, that is a possibility.
The exact reason for that is unclear, but Time's Karen Tumulty notes that, in the wake of yesterday's losing public option votes, things may be a bit too hot in Finance right now for triggers to survive. And that makes sense intuitively: Republicans not named Olympia Snowe almost certainly won't support the amendment, and public option enthusiasts like Sens. Jay Rockefeller and Chuck Schumer may not want to back a trigger at this point, for fear of foreclosing on a straightforward public option down the line.
Calls to aides to Schumer and Rockefeller were not returned before publication time.
Democrats hope to finish up work on the bill by the end of the week or shortly thereafter, and Snowe's vote at the committee level will be one to watch. A "no" isn't out of the question, and could enhance her leverage with respect to Democrats in negotiations over the final bill.
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Indie Pro
September 30, 2009 5:31 PM
her state public option (not national) would make this happen again:
Health Insurance Stocks Rise After Defeat Of Public Option Amendments
“We are pleased by the rejection of both the Rockefeller and Schumer amendments,” said Tom Currey, president of the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors. Janet Trautwein, president of the National Association of Health Underwriters, also told the press that her organization is pleased by the failure of the Schumer and Rockefeller amendments.
Meanwhile, disgraced former CEO of Columbia/HCA Healthcare Rick Scott, who heads the anti-reform front group Conservatives for Patients Rights, released a video where he called yesterday’s vote “a great day.”
If anyone knows how the insurance industry feels about protecting its profits from the introduction of a new public plan, it’s whistleblower Wendell Potter, who left Cigna last year over its opposition to health care reform. Potter appeared on Democracy Now! this morning and told host Amy Goodman that the Finance Committee advancing legislation without a public option marks the “first time” that a health reform bill has been put together that the industry supports:
POTTER: Yeah, this is the first time that the insurance industry has really seen great opportunity in healthcare reform,
http://thinkprogress.org/2009/09/30/insurers-welcome-defeat/
Congress and the President are delivering healthcare to the Insurance Industry at the expense of the people, and good reform.
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NobleCommentDecider
September 30, 2009 7:52 PM in reply to Indie Pro
Thinkprogress says United Health Group Inc. gained 3 cents, $25.80 to $25.83, or about 0.1%, not exactly a moon shot.
I read that Ms. Snowe's trigger is actuarially impossible as the gov't will subsidize middle class families at 13% income (percent of income needed for health insurance) so the cost could never reach the 15% trigger.
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runfastandwin
September 30, 2009 6:44 PM
Reconciliation is where we are going to get a public option. It will never happen prior. That is why we need to hammer the House day in and day out over this.
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markg8
October 1, 2009 8:51 AM in reply to runfastandwin
Correction runfastandwin, that's in conference with the house. Reconciliation is where we use 50 D votes plus Biden's to pass the final bill in the senate after breaking the filibuster with a closure vote.
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mcrose68
September 30, 2009 6:51 PM
Public Option at the state level???
Is this serious?
So, we'll only have the public option in Alabama and Mississippi, where overuse creates the highest costs, and relatively low paying jobs leaves very little for paying premiums. In other words the insurance companies can insure highly compensated healthy people, and the public option will insure low paid unhealthy people.
Better profits for insurance companies and higher cost for us tax payers. This isn't what I was dreaming of.
Can anyone point me toward any argument that tries to claim this isn't the worst of all worlds?
I'm not trying to snark. I'm seriously at a loss for how this wouldn't be the most ineffective and expensive option possible.
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bluebell
September 30, 2009 6:58 PM in reply to mcrose68
Congress no longer represents the American people, it merely loots the American people. But let's not get distracted from important issues like the Olympics. I mean if Obama and Rahm aren't good for funneling pork to Chicago, what are they good for?
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rwc
September 30, 2009 11:29 PM in reply to bluebell
Congress has never represented the American people; some individual congressmen and women have over the years, but just about never tne institution as a whole; it's always been dominated by the first the wealthy, and then with industrialization, the wealthy and the corporations.
The good old days never existed, except, maybe briefly. from 1934-38. That tiny burst of public-minded representation led to several decades of relative prosperity for the average American. Gradually, however, it was wittled away by the corporations and wealthy and then completely jettisoned with the start of the Reagan era.
I briefly had a hope after the Democratic wave of the 2008 election that we might just be blessed with a little bit of the mid-30s all over again, but those hopes are fading fast.
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mcc
September 30, 2009 7:06 PM in reply to mcrose68
What I don't understand is how this would interact with that other provision in some versions of the bill, the one that would allow insurers to compete across state lines.
Would that mean a Texas resident could buy insurance from the government of California?
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mcc
September 30, 2009 7:13 PM
So let's say that-- I realize we're supposed to always assume the worst outcome to every situation, but bear with me-- when the bills go into conference, the HELP bill (with a public option) takes precedence over the Finance bill (without a public option). Does Snowe still introduce her amendment?
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dndobson
September 30, 2009 7:30 PM
This 60 vote thing is really starting to wear thin.
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synchronicity
September 30, 2009 7:54 PM
The 'trigger' is a joke and a scam. It is an insult to our intelligence to suggest that it would be effective in any way. I agree with Speaker Pelosi that a trigger is an excuse for doing nothing or for Senator Snowe a way to appear to give a public option to your constituents while not really doing anything to offend your fellow republicans.
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Michael A
September 30, 2009 7:55 PM
This has got to be the stupidest idea I have ever heard. Trigger a public option at the state level? WTF? That is just beyond silly. Let's ram this thing through with a viable and legitimate public option. Simple to accomplish actually. Just expand medicare. Let people buy in for a fee who want to buy in and get excellent medical care for a reasonable price. Simple solution. Why do these fools have to make everything so difficult? Pathetic.
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dougom
September 30, 2009 8:14 PM
"Trigger" is another way of saying, "Put off indefinitely." Has anything that was legislated with a trigger ever been implemented?
If Snowe is really interested in a public option, she should find some balls and support the real thing, instead of a transparent stall like a "trigger."
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liberal historian
September 30, 2009 8:21 PM
The left won't ride it.
The population won't ride it.
And the midterms will be lost betting on it.
If Olympia can get the Democrats to hop aboard and say giddy-up, the republicans ought to give her any committee she wants. She will have done more to destroy the hard won Dem majority than anyone else...
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AJM
September 30, 2009 10:14 PM in reply to liberal historian
Exactly. But she may be waking up to reality: the trigger will do for Snowe what opposing the public option has done for Lincoln.
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Rich in NJ
September 30, 2009 8:51 PM
A trigger isn't a sufficient fig leaf to hide anyone's lack of balls.
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xargaw
September 30, 2009 9:15 PM
The "trigger" cannot be spun no matter how hard they might try. We want to see results in our health insurance premiums, our co-pays, our un-denied benefits, our access to care. Only a public option can provide adequate impetus to improve all these areas. Anything less will result in an exodus of Democrats from the base necessary to elect Democrats. Why is so hard for the Democrats to recognize this? Are they really that stupid?
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biglith
September 30, 2009 10:46 PM
I can't believe this old biddy is being courted by the Democratic leadership. Who needs her.
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meri
September 30, 2009 11:19 PM
And just how is Baucus going to get his bill out of committee when so far it has only had 20% of the amendments filed, offered during the hearings?
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wbgonne
October 1, 2009 7:10 AM
Another possible reason for Snowe waiting until the bill is on the floor: if the public is added during conference she might propose the trigger to sabotage the PO. Snowe could get all 40 Repubs and how many Dems? I don't think it will work but it might be close.
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theone718
October 1, 2009 10:15 AM
The problem with a trigger is it is basically a tug of war. How high will the standards be? The Repubs will probably make so it would basically never trigger. That's why it isn't a viable alternative.
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