Washington, D.C.
Democrats in Congress and President Obama have pulled out all stops to pass their health care reform legislation in what may be the final days prior to passage of some form of their legislation. Congressional Republicans continue to oppose all attempts to reform anything, and their entire motivation at this point is to stall for additional time. The Republican strategy is to stall-off a final vote until the Easter recess period which begins on Friday, March 26. Democrats continue to work to win their own Democratic Congressional members to support the bill one-by-one.
Democrats are now pushing forward with their legislation in a frantic last-ditch attempt to declare some sort of victory, and to bolster the sagging fortunes of President Obama. The actual content of the health care reform legislation has decayed in some key aspects as the wheeling-and-dealing for votes led to the subtraction of some parts of the bill. Primary among the key provisions removed in the last days has been the minimal requirement where health insurance companies would have been forced to justify their enormous premium increases to a new government panel.
The legislation will face any number of hurdles in the coming week, as it grinds its way back and forth between the House of Representatives and Senate and through constantly shifting and arcane rules of play.
Should the legislation pass, the immediate tasks facing our union and working people will be to:
1. Ascertain what exactly is in the bill, followed by extensive research into the probable effect that the legislation will have on our current health care situations. A special focus on the anticipated conduct of employers who currently provide coverage is needed ASAP.
2. Determine the exact dates when the component parts of the legislation will take effect, with homework having been done to anticipate what the changes will mean for our members.
3. Pressure lawmakers to ensure that the legislation is actually implemented on the set time frame, and is adequately funded so as to ensure this.
4. Begin immediately to compile the list of changes which are required so as to strengthen and expand the legislation just passed, define the loopholes to be closed, etc.
Commenting on the current situation, UE General Secretary-Treasurer Bruce Klipple said, “One way or the other this logjam must be broken. The endless debate on this legislation is no longer productive, in fact it is counterproductive at this point. For the past year it has been clear that the Republicans were going to defend our broken and corrupt system to the end. Democrats wasted virtually all of their precious momentum trying to reach an impossible compromise with these forces. The current watered down legislation is a result of these political fantasies. It is the reason why working people and our union watch this moment with only limited enthusiasm, if any at all. While some parts of the bill move us forward, we do have great concerns and doubts about other parts of the current legislation.”
Klipple continued, “If the Democrat legislation does pass, it will be our task as a union to immediately determine what it will actually do to change our health insurance and health care systems. We will also set to work to determine what the employers are going to do to try to exploit this legislation and shift the costs further onto our backs. We will be watching the insurance companies closely, and we fully expect that they will rapidly increase premiums even beyond their customary astronomical increases. Our union will be demanding new price controls on health care premiums, for starters, as called for by delegates to our 71st Convention. And we will hold the politicians responsible for what they have done here. Our charge is to defend our members, not prop-up politicians. Any applause will be short, because we have a lot work to do.”