FAQ: A normal person's guide to health care reform

[BABY1]

TweetIf you've recently found yourself wondering, "What the heck is going on with the health care reform debate?", you're not alone. The American legislative process is unwieldy, and never more so than in the United States Senate. The Senate voted Saturday to move its bill to a full debate, but some big hurdles still remain.
Because we think you may have some of the same questions we did, and the bill being discussed would constitute one of the most consequential in a generation if passed, we thought we'd put together a quick primer on what to expect in the weeks to come.
But first, what exactly happened Saturday?
Saturday night at 8 p.m. ET, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid brought his proposed bill to the floor of the Senate for a procedural vote to kick off a full debate and amendment process. To get things started, he needed 60 votes for a "motion to proceed." He got them.
The big suspense was over whether or not the bill would be successfully filibustered by opponents who wanted to stop the bill from moving forward.
Full debate in the Senate is now set to begin after Thanksgiving on November 30th.
What the heck is a filibuster?
Saturday night's "motion to proceed" vote was the first time the process could be stopped by a filibuster. There are two more times remaining.
With a filibuster, Republicans can prevent a vote by extending debate indefinitely by, for example, reading Sarah Palin's new book over and over and over again and refusing to stop. To bypass a hypothetical "Going Rogue" loop, Harry Reid needs 60 senators to vote to end any filibuster. This is called a "cloture" vote.
Opponents will get their next chance to filibuster when the Senate votes to end full debate and send the bill to its final phase. To get to 60, Reid will again need all 58 Democrats and both independents.
Who would filibuster and why?
Excluding the outside possibility that Olympia Snowe would break ranks, all 40 Republicans would likely support a filibuster. So, to prevent Democrats from getting the 60 votes necessary to break one, only one Democrat or independent would need to defect.
The most likely suspects for this are independent Joe Lieberman and conservative Democrats Mary Landrieu, Ben Nelson, and Blanche Lincoln. Recent speculation has focused on Lincoln, who faces low approval numbers in conservative Arkansas and an upcoming re-election bid in 2010. Nelson and Landrieu are also both from conservative states, though neither is up for re-election in 2010. Lieberman is not up for re-election and is from more liberal Connecticut, but may be influenced by the large insurance industry presence in his state.
What happens if the Senate does pass a bill?
After weeks of speeches and amendments and filibuster threats, if the Senate passes a bill, it moves on to a "conference committee." Here, members of both the House and the Senate will negotiate over the final details while trying to merge the bill passed by the House with the bill passed by the Senate.
All the hot-button issues will be on the table. If the Senate passes a bill without a "Public Option" it will need to be debated again. Many House Democrats want the controversial Stupak Amendment, which bans funding or subsidies for any insurance plan that funds abortion, removed in conference.
If these issues are ironed out, the committee will create a "conference report," or final bill, that will need to be passed yet again by both the House and the Senate. The vote in the Senate can be filibustered, so any ''conference report'' will need the support of 60 senators one last time.

If the "conference report" is passed in both houses of Congress, it will be sent to President Obama's desk for his likely signature.
When will all of this be over? Up until last week, few people thought that this process could be completed by the end of the year. But the Senate Democrat's bill recently received positive feedback from the Congressional Budget Office, the nonpartisan federal agency that advises Congress on financial matters. This has led some political observers to think that maybe, just maybe, Americans will know whether or not their country's health care system will be dramatically overhauled in time for the holidays.

[Dzone]

TweetThanks baby1. Lets hope this bill never happens.

[daved150]

Tweetgood info baby1...thanks. and ditto dzone!!

[JsJs24]

TweetIt will be passed without a doubt. This administration does not care what the people want, they will buy every senators vote until they reach 60. The reason it does not go into effect until 2013 is because the health care will be so terrible that Obama would have no chance of getting elected to another term. This is the reason he is trying to cram so many large bills so fast, because Americans have short memories and will forget all about it when they vote for him again. This is the sad truth. Anyone who does not understand this is blind to the obvious truth. Think about it. Why is it so crutial to hurry and pass the Health Care Bill when it does not go into effect until 2013, right after the next presidential election.

[FUZO]

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It will be passed without a doubt. This administration does not care what the people want, they will buy every senators vote until they reach 60. The reason it does not go into effect until 2013 is because the health care will be so terrible that Obama would have no chance of getting elected to another term. This is the reason he is trying to cram so many large bills so fast, because Americans have short memories and will forget all about it when they vote for him again. This is the sad truth. Anyone who does not understand this is blind to the obvious truth. Think about it. Why is it so crutial to hurry and pass the Health Care Bill when it does not go into effect until 2013, right after the next presidential election.

No way jsjsn this bill wont pass. Maybe somekind of lame bill might pass but not this bill no way there wont be a gov run option everyone will not get insurance.Everyone will see i'm right. The people are so against this bill it wont pass.And last night karl rove explained if it did pass when it kicks in. It wont fully kick in for 7 years thats right 7 friggin years. And no one will see any type of health care for 4-5 years now.2013 just got pushed back. And last night karl exlained that thers like 36 dem gov up for election or something and in this new health bill all states have to kick up to the gov to pay for this bill.That means the dem gov will have to raise taxes and they will for sure lose the election in 2010. Everyone hs to have faith and beleive this bill wont pass it doesnt have the majority of the peoples vote

[Dzone]

TweetThere will be certain drugs allowed for certain conditions. If you dont like the drug the government tells you you have to take, thats just too bad. Imagine that. Well, its starting to happen with many insurance companies. You support the drug company that the insurance co is in cahoots with or youre shit outta luck. Doctors will be Government employees who will answer to the federal government. If the doctor admisters a treatment outside the covered areas, then he wont get paid.

[JsJs24]

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No way jsjsn this bill wont pass. Maybe somekind of lame bill might pass but not this bill no way there wont be a gov run option everyone will not get insurance.Everyone will see i'm right. The people are so against this bill it wont pass.And last night karl rove explained if it did pass when it kicks in. It wont fully kick in for 7 years thats right 7 friggin years. And no one will see any type of health care for 4-5 years now.2013 just got pushed back. And last night karl exlained that thers like 36 dem gov up for election or something and in this new health bill all states have to kick up to the gov to pay for this bill.That means the dem gov will have to raise taxes and they will for sure lose the election in 2010. Everyone hs to have faith and beleive this bill wont pass it doesnt have the majority of the peoples vote

Fuzo brother I hope you are right, and I do believe in being optomistic and to keep fighting. I have e-mailed my horrible senator Harry Reid's office and called and left messages with a couple of our congressmen and women. My only point was that this admin does not care about the people or what they want. The healthcare bill is 1% lower in approval than Hillary Care was in the 90s, which resulted in Dems completely dropping the plan. However, this admin is not dropping it and they keep throwing money at those the senators and members of congress who have no morals or ethics and in turn change their votes. This bill is a nightmare waiting. I have a friend who is an Anesthesiologist and he is furious. He said he has already talked it over with his wife and explained that if it passes they will have to sell their house and buy something cheaper because his salary will be cut in half.

I hope it does not pass Fuzo. If it doesn't then it will be a huge win for all of us Americans that love our country, and a huge loss to those who wish to destroy it.

[JsJs24]

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No way jsjsn this bill wont pass. Maybe somekind of lame bill might pass but not this bill no way there wont be a gov run option everyone will not get insurance.Everyone will see i'm right. The people are so against this bill it wont pass.And last night karl rove explained if it did pass when it kicks in. It wont fully kick in for 7 years thats right 7 friggin years. And no one will see any type of health care for 4-5 years now.2013 just got pushed back. And last night karl exlained that thers like 36 dem gov up for election or something and in this new health bill all states have to kick up to the gov to pay for this bill.That means the dem gov will have to raise taxes and they will for sure lose the election in 2010. Everyone hs to have faith and beleive this bill wont pass it doesnt have the majority of the peoples vote

I double posted on accident, sorry.