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发帖数: 29846 | 1 WASHINGTON—The Senate on Wednesday voted against repealing the health-care
overhaul but approved a measure eliminating a tax requirement that had irked
small businesses.
In a debate reshaped by this week's court strike against the law, the Senate
voted 51-47 against repeal. All of the chamber's Democrats who were present
and one independent who caucuses with them voted against it, and every
Republican voted for it. The measure, which Republicans tacked on to an
unrelated aviation bill, had been expected to fail.
Wednesday's voting produced a small change to the health law, though. The
Senate voted 81-17 to remove a piece of the law that calls for businesses to
file a 1099 tax form when they pay a vendor more than $600 in a year.
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HAELTHPOL
Zuma Press
Sen. Mike Johanns (R., Neb.) sees this week's federal court ruling against
the health-care overhaul as a sign that Congress overreached.
HAELTHPOL
HAELTHPOL
President Barack Obama has indicated he would sign the tax-change measure,
and the House already approved a similar bill. The change will be the most
significant so far to the law, designed to expand insurance to 32 million
Americans.
The provision was intended to reduce tax evasion, but businesses called it
burdensome. The two parties had tussled over how to replace the $19 billion
the provision was projected to raise to pay for the law. The approved
measure offsets it with unspecified spending cuts.
Wednesday's vote against repeal means that a Republican repeal bill, which
passed the House last month, is now effectively dead in Congress.
Two senators, Democrat Mark Warner of Virginia and independent Joe Lieberman
of Connecticut, missed the day's votes.
Both parties are turning their attention to the courts since judges may
wield the greatest power to reshape the law.
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On Monday, a federal judge in Florida declared the entire law void. He said
its requirement that most Americans carry insurance or pay a penalty—the "
individual mandate"—violates the Constitution.
States are at odds over whether that ruling means they should put the brakes
on enacting the law. The Obama administration plans to appeal, and the
Supreme Court is ultimately expected to decide the matter.
So far, both Wisconsin and Florida—states with Republican governors who
were party to the lawsuit—interpret U.S. District Judge Roger Vinson's
decision as a license to treat the law as if it no longer exists. But other
states among the 26 plaintiffs in the lawsuit say they haven't changed their
implementation strategy because they believe an appeals court is likely to
issue a stay against the judgment.
Inside the Senate, Republicans pointed to the court ruling as evidence that
Congress overreached in its sweeping measure to rework the health system.
"I believe we are looking forward to a day when the Supreme Court says to
Congress, 'You went too far. You went beyond the Constitution of this great
nation,'" said Sen. Mike Johanns (R., Neb.).
Democrats argued that the individual mandate is the only way to rework the
system so people with pre-existing health conditions can secure coverage.
"It's certainly an assault on individual Americans' freedoms when someone
goes without insurance and they show up in the emergency room and they stick
other Americans with their emergency-room bill," said Sen. Tom Harkin (D.,
Iowa). "The individual mandate is just common sense, and that's why so many
Republicans supported it in the past."
Sen. Bill Nelson (D., Fla.) introduced legislation Wednesday that would ask
the Supreme Court to bypass federal appeals courts and take up the case, on
the grounds that all sides want a fast resolution. Any decision would be up
to the Supreme Court, which is generally reluctant to hear a case before
appellate courts have ruled. |
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