Healthcare bill poised to pass US Senate test

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A broad healthcare overhaul  was poised to clear its first US Senate hurdle yesterday as  the last wavering senators said they would vote to begin debate  on the legislation, giving Democrats the 60 votes they need.

Democrats Blanche Lincoln and Mary Landrieu ended days of  uncertainty and said they would support a procedural motion yesterday to open debate to reform the $2.5 trillion healthcare  system — the Senate bill’s first crucial test vote.

The healthcare overhaul, President Barack Obama’s top  domestic priority, would expand coverage to millions of  uninsured and bar insurance practices like denying coverage to  those with pre-existing conditions.

The stakes are high for Obama in the healthcare debate,  with his political standing and legislative agenda on the line  less than a year into his first term.

Democrats need 60 votes to approve the motion in the  100-member Senate and have no margin for error — they control  exactly 60 votes and Republicans are united in opposition.

Landrieu and Lincoln, moderates from conservative Southern  states where the overhaul is unpopular, were the last  uncommitted Democrats on the 8 pm EST vote.

Both went to the Senate floor to say they wanted the debate  to begin, but they could not commit to supporting the final  bill without changes.

“Although I don’t agree with everything in this bill, I  have concluded that I believe that it is more important that we  begin this debate to improve our nation’s healthcare system for  all Americans rather than just simply drop the issue and walk  away,” Lincoln said.

Landrieu said she wanted changes to make healthcare more  affordable, ease the burden on small businesses and rein in the  growth of costs.

“There are enough significant reforms and safeguards in  this bill to move forward, but much more work needs to be done  before I can support this effort,” she said.

Landrieu and Lincoln had been showered with attention by  Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid and Obama administration  officials as they pondered their vote.

In her floor speech, Landrieu defended her successful  effort to win more funds in the bill for Medicaid, the  government health program for the poor, for her home state of  Louisiana.

“I am proud to have fought for it. I will continue to. But  that is not the reason I am moving to debate,” she said.

Republicans have condemned the healthcare bill as a costly  government intrusion in the private sector that would raise  insurance premiums, reduce consumer choices and raise taxes.

Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell said some  Democrats had to “twist themselves into a pretzel” to justify  voting to move ahead on the bill. Almost all Senate bills that  clear the first hurdle eventually pass, he said.

“The easiest time to change this bill, if you were serious  about it, is right now,” he told reporters. “The time of  maximum leverage would have been before tonight’s vote.”

Reid said he just wanted to get the debate started on the  2,074-page plan he unveiled on Wednesday after weeks of  closed-door negotiations. “Why would anybody be afraid, in the  greatest debating society supposedly in the world, to debate  healthcare?” he asked.

Once the Senate takes up the bill, the debate is expected  to begin on Nov. 30 and last at least three weeks, making it  unlikely Obama can sign a final bill by the end of the year.

McConnell said Republicans would use every weapon possible  to slow down the debate and try to block the bill. “The battle  has just begun,” he said.