More on Health Care

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Last week, Members of Congress resumed debate on health care overhaul after a series of contentious town hall meetings throughout the August recess. Senator Max Baucus (D-MT), Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, released a draft outlining his framework for health care reform . This outline does not propose a government funded public option. Instead, it would establish health care cooperatives, a system of nonprofit, member-run health insurance companies. Baucus' framework calls for an expansion of Medicaid to cover all people under 133 percent of the federal poverty level.

President Obama also outlined his vision for health care reform in a joint session of Congress on September 9. Many of the Obama Administration proposals are reflected in the Finance Committee framework. Insurers would be forbidden from refusing coverage to individuals with pre-existing conditions or dropping coverage if an individual becomes ill. Both plans would mandate individual coverage and encourage businesses to offer coverage to their employees while providing some protections to small businesses. President Obama also called for a total cost of about $900 billion over 10 years, matching the estimated cost for the Finance Committee version.

To read the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops response to President Obama's speech, click here .

The other four committees of jurisdiction (Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee; House Ways and Means, Education and Labor, and Energy and Commerce Committees) completed markups before the August recess. While Senator Baucus has stressed bipartisanship throughout the process, he now says that he will advance his proposal during the week of the 21st with or without Republican support. Legislative language is expected to be released this week.