A Schedule Has Been Set- And a Public Option Is Admittedly Dead

Following a ruling yesterday by the Senate parliamentarian, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) held a press conference today stating that the House would move forward on an alternative plan to advance health care reform.  Apparently under the Senate's rules, President Obama would first need to sign the Senate's proposal (H.R. 3590) before the senators could consider separate legislation that would alter 3590 to meet House members' demands.  Prior to this ruling, the House initially planned on holding a vote on H.R. 3590 with the understanding that senators would pass changes by amendment after the bill was signed into law.  But because House rules are different, House Democrats now plan to prepare a reconciliation package that would deem the Senate version as passed at the same time that the House approves a number of changes, which would then only require 51 votes to pass in the Senate.  This plan will permit House Democrats to avoid a direct vote on an unrevised Senate bill - political maneuvering at its best.  Further, President Obama has announced that he will push an overseas trip to Asia back three days with this development.  And though it's been expected, Speaker Pelosi admitted that a public option would play no role in the House's plan.

According to Speaker Pelosi, the House Budget Committee will meet next week followed by the House Committee on Rules in order to set the perimeters for a floor vote. A vote may then occur as early as next week.  Assisting this plan was the Congressional Budget Office's release this afternoon of an updated cost estimate of H.R. 3590.  This revised estimate takes into consideration all of the amendments that were adopted by the Senate, including a revised assumption regarding its enactment.  This updated estimate provides that the bill "would yield a net reduction in federal deficits of $118 billion" over the 2010-2019 time period.