Baucus Plans Revisions To Finance Committee Reform Bill

Main Category: Health Insurance / Medical Insurance
Also Included In: Public Health
Article Date: 23 Sep 2009 - 3:00 PDT

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Senate Finance Committee Chair Max Baucus (D-Mont.) on Tuesday is expected to release a revised version of his committee's draft health reform bill that he says should "help smooth the way for passage" through the panel and chamber, the New York Times reports (Pear/Herszenhorn, New York Times, 9/22). According to Roll Call, Baucus spent Monday adjusting the bill to address various concerns committee members raised in the 564 amendments they submitted late last week (Drucker, Roll Call, 9/22).

The Washington Post reports that Baucus' revisions focus on improving affordability for middle-class residents, who would be required for the first time to have health insurance (Murray/Montgomery, Washington Post, 9/22). Baucus said, "Affordability -- that, I think, is the primary concern," adding, "We want to make sure that if Americans have to buy insurance, it's affordable" (New York Times, 9/22).

In press interviews, Baucus discussed some of the changes he has made to the bill but declined to provide details of the revisions, according to the Times. One revision is to reduce the proposed penalty on families that do not obtain health insurance coverage by 2013 (New York Times, 9/22). Under the current bill, annual penalties would range from $750 to $950 for individuals and from $1,500 to $3,800 for families, depending on income (Wayne, CQ Today, 9/21). Senate Budget Committee Chair Kent Conrad (D-N.D.), who also sits on the Finance Committee, said the penalties could be cut by half (New York Times, 9/22).

Another change is reducing the proposed 35% excise tax on the highest-priced insurance plans, which Baucus developed as the bill's primary source of revenue. According to the Post, some Democrats criticized the proposal because it would likely affect people in high-risk professions, like firefighters and coal miners (Washington Post, 9/22). Baucus said he likely would raise the threshold for when the tax would kick in. Under the current proposal, the tax would be levied on plans with annual premiums exceeding $8,000 for individuals or $21,000 for families (New York Times, 9/22).

Baucus also plans to reduce the percentage of income that people would have to spend on employer-sponsored coverage to become eligible for federal subsidies. According to CQ Today, the threshold might be reduced by one percentage point from the current 12% of income (CQ Today, 9/22).

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