Monthly Archives: June 2009

30 June

A Public Plan According to Sen. Snowe and HELP

In an interview with the Associated Press, Maine Senator Olympia Snowe (R-ME) outlined her support for a public plan with a trigger option as a possible compromise to the stalemate over inclusion of a public plan in comprehensive health care reform. The ...

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Category: Economic RecoveryTags: Health Care, HELP, public plan, small business, Snowe

29 June

The Debate over Beverage Taxes

In the debate to pay for comprehensive health care legislation, one idea that would only partially pay for reform is the idea to tax beverages. Specifically, some members of Congress have proposed leveraging an excise tax on sugar-sweetened beverages and ...

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Category: Economic RecoveryTags: AARP, ABA, APHA, Baucus, beverage tax, DISCUS, Grassley, healthcare, MADD

26 June

Finance Committee Fixes Health Care Bill Costs

Late yesterday Senate Finance Committee Chair Max Baucus (D-MT) announced that the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) had rescored his committee's health care legislation and the new cost for the bill over ten years was a number that could be offset: $1 ...

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Category: Economic RecoveryTags: Baucus, charitable deduction, climate change, economy, finance, healthcare

25 June

HELP Committee Employer Mandate Details

The "employer mandate" issue is one of the most controversial aspects of comprehensive health care reform, and yesterday the Senate Health Education Labor and Pension (HELP) Committee released two proposals that it sent to the Congressional Budget Office ...

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Category: Economic RecoveryTags: Baucus, CBO, Commerce Committee, employer mandate, healthcare, HELP, service

24 June

President Begins Major Health Care Push

As the certainty of a comprehensive health care bill is being questioned by Congress and the media (subscription), the Obama Administration has become increasingly active in pushing Congress to pass legislation this year. Today, Health and Human Services ...

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Category: Economic RecoveryTags: AMA, Baucus, economy, finance, healthcare, obama