Senate Democrats face tedium as they combine healthcare reform bills

In case you haven't heard, there is a lot going on related to healthcare reform in Washington this week. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT) and Health, Education, Labor and Pension Committee Chairman Harry Reid (D-NV) will begin the complex task of blending their two bills together for debate on the floor of the Senate. These talks are set to also include Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT), Senior White House officials, including Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel and Nancy -Ann DeParle, President Obama's chief healthcare adviser.

These individuals will attempt a balancing act. The goal: extending health insurance coverage to nearly all Americans while reforming the system to rein in run-away costs, without busting the budget. They risk losing party support at every turn. A shift to the right will result in lost votes on the left, and vice versa. While most Senators favor expanding benefits, few want to pay for the expansion with spending cuts or tax increases. They are also working to try and keep the support of lone Republican, Senator Olympia Snowe (R-ME).

Topics they will ponder as they attempt to merge these two complex and costly bills are as follows: Accountability; Inclusion or Exclusion of a Public Option; Individual Responsibility (ie: individual mandate); Employer Responsibility, and the biggie: Financing.

Lobbies of all types (Big Pharma; the AMA; Insurance Companies, etc.) are all jockeying for position to make sure that their interests are protected. Stay tuned as we learn more.....