Who says the GOP hasn’t offered alternative solutions? While I wish the story would have come out on a slower news day, the AP has released specifics on the health care bill House Republicans may introduce as early as this week:
A 230-page draft was obtained Tuesday by The Associated Press. A spokeswoman for Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, said changes were still being made before the bill would be finalized in time to offer as an alternative when Democrats begin floor debate on their bill, possibly at the end of this week.
The bill leaves out a number of the key features of the Democrats’ 1,990-page legislation, such as new requirements for employers to insure their employees and for nearly all Americans to purchase insurance. It also doesn’t block insurers from denying coverage to people with pre-existing health conditions, as Democrats would do.
Instead, the Republican plan increases incentives for people to use health savings accounts, caps non-economic jury awards in medical malpractice cases at $250,000, provides various incentives to states with the aim of driving down premium costs and allows health insurance to be sold across state lines.
“As Leader Boehner has made clear, our proposal will focus on the No. 1 concern of the American people—reducing health care costs, and we do it at a price tag our nation can afford,” said spokeswoman Antonia Ferrier, though Republicans have not said how much their bill would cost.
“Our proposal will help struggling middle-class families and small businesses by increasing access to affordable, high-quality health care,” Ferrier said.
…The Republican bill includes a permanent ban on any federal funding for abortions except in cases of rape, incest or threat to the life of the mother, stronger language than the Democratic bill.
Predictably, as the article proceeds to explain, Democrats have already assailed the bill for not expanding coverage enough or providing sufficient “security and stability”, in the words of Steny Hoyer (read: not promoting a government takeover). Regardless, I like what I see from this bill, with the obvious exception of not eliminating the outdated tax incentives for employer-provided health care. Hopefully, more of the mainstream media will pick up on the GOP bill, as it, along with other pieces of legislation, shows that Republicans have, contrary to the meme perpetuated by Dems and the MSM, proposed alternative solutions.
November 3rd, 2009 at 6:05 pm
Actually this is a good day to release this information. All eyes are on the Republicans to see if they can have a sweep. And what better way for the RNC folks, senators and governors who will be on the evening chat shows to talk about Republican Healthcare.
November 3rd, 2009 at 6:06 pm
The GOP plan is terrible. Terrible. The minor changes the bill would enact would do little to help our health care system.
Plus tort reform would only save around 5 billion a year…
November 3rd, 2009 at 6:19 pm
Today is a great day for America and marks the resurgence of an ascendant Republican Party. The current administration has the lowest approval ratings ever at this point in the term and those numbers are headed south fast along with the dow and the economy. Look for a clean sweep for Republicans tonight. These elections mark a referendum on the current administration and show the enormous and growing popularity of the GOP. In addition to Hoffman, Christie, and McDonnell, Governor Palin is the clear winner this evening. She saw a leadership vacuum and filled it and she played a pivotal role in NY -23 and Virginia, ensuring Republican victory. The only setback that could possibly come is if the rampant reports of voter fraud and Acorn activities derail our candidate in NJ as they did McCain in 2008.
November 3rd, 2009 at 6:23 pm
ABCNEWS.COM => “Top Dems: Obama Won’t Get Health Care Bill in 2009″
Breaking now…I think the editors should elevate this to a main topic. Wow. How far have we come people? This is amazing…
November 3rd, 2009 at 6:30 pm
So now we’ve got a Democratic bill that would solve the problem of uninsured Americans, and a Republican bill that would lower costs. Neither bill seems to do both. Ok, now get back in there, put the two bills together, and find a way to solve BOTH of the major problems in the health care situation – not some half-@$$ed proposal that only fixes one.
November 3rd, 2009 at 6:50 pm
3. Palin paid a pivotal role in Virginia?
You might want to re-think that one, JA.
November 3rd, 2009 at 8:54 pm
[...] from: race42008.com » Blog Archive » The House Republican Alternative … Tags: caps-non-economic, driving-down, incentives-for, jury-awards, medical-malpractice, [...]