Is the managers amendment the final version of health care reform?
No. It’s a set of changes to the Senate’s health care bill that is supported by a razor-thin filibuster-proof majority of Democrats. The full amendment is available at Democrats.senate.gov. Who wins/loses? Health care reform is expected to expand coverage to more than 30 million Americans, but there s no government-run program to compete with the private sector, a win for private insurers. The National Association of Manufacturers opposes the Senate bill because, among other things, it would include a payroll surtax on wages higher than $200,000 for individuals. Labor unions also oppose the idea of partially paying for reform with an excise tax of as much as 40% on plans with generous benefits. However, Andy Stern, head of the Service Employees International Union, is tepidly in support of the Senate bill. Reid’s mark-up is close to what America’s Health Insurance Plan, the largest and most involved insurance lobbying group, had worked out with the White House months ago. The lack of a
