Happy New Year -- Health Reform Fun Continues!

Today, reports from Democratic leaders indicate that the House and Senate will not set up a formal conference process to work through the significant differences in the health reform bills that have passed in the Senate versus the House. This informal process of negotiations (often referred to as ping pong) has already begun between Senate Majority Leader Reid and House Speaker Pelosi. The informal process is the only way that Democrats can bypass procedural hurdles that would challenge the feasibility of passage of a final health reform bill. Senators are not in town this week, but House leaders and key committee chairmen plan to meet Tuesday to discuss melding the bills.

• The Senate bill that passed early in the morning on December 24th does not include a public option like the House bill which will bring this issue back into debate.
• The bills also differ in how they are funded. Reports are that the House may be prepared to accept a Cadillac tax as long as the threshold for premiums considered high cost is raised so union plans are exempt.
• The House bill imposes a 5.4 percent surtax on individuals earning at least $500,000 and families earning at least $1 million. The Senate bill imposes a 40 percent excise
  tax on the value of premiums that exceed $8,500 for individuals and
  $23,000 for families.
• There are also differences in how to fill the gap in Medicare Part D prescription drug coverage, known as the doughnut hole.
• Also important is a Senate-created commission meant to make
  cost-cutting decisions in Medicare.

The White House would like to see a bill on the president's desk by the State of the Union address which will likely be late January or early February which is a challenging timetable for such negotiations.

Thus the debate and discourse on these details continue....is it Groundhog Day yet?