Jon Walker and David Dayen, both of Firedog Lake, are reporting that the Stupak Amendment which virtually bars BOTH Private Companies AND the Public Option from providing coverage for Reproductive Health Care for Women will receive a Floor Vote today in the House.
As Jon explains-
Stupak's amendment, by not allowing a private insurance company to sell a policy to anyone if they receive any amount of affordability tax credits, would make it impossible for a private insurance plan that covers abortion to survive on the individual and small group market. Stupak has threatened to bring down the entire bill if he does not get his amendment. Rep. Stupak called all previous "compromises" that had been offered "unacceptable."
As David reports-
The Democratic leadership is making a bet that, if it doesn't pass, Stupak and his cadres will sign on to the bill (I highly doubt it; most of them are no votes on health care entirely); and if it does pass, pro-choice Democrats won't sink the bill entirely (also, I highly doubt it). I'm a bit surprised that it's come to this. Also, Stupak appeared to have lied in the Rules Committee about how the deal "fell apart," since he got what he wanted.
This is an enormous bet, and not a well-designed one either, in my view. The Democratic Party will tomorrow give a minority of their caucus an opportunity to amend a large health care bill that would effectively ban abortion services coverage in the individual and small group insurance market, essentially telling private insurance companies what they cannot cover.
The amendment is expected to pass with the combined support of more than 40 anti-abortion Democrats and virtually every House Republican. That likelihood meant that leaders of the much larger group of Democrats who support abortion rights were not happy to learn of the deal.
"There will be no abortion, not just with public funds, but with private funds under the public option, and that's not acceptable," said Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.).
House leaders met with that bloc of Democrats late Friday to try to quell their frustration., but the agreement makes clear that they believe abortion-rights Democrats will find it difficult to vote against the health-care bill even with such a restriction attached to it.
As far as I'm concerned this is a flat out deal breaker.
Health Care Reform with the Stupak Amendment is not worth passing and I intend to call the House Leadership and my Congressperson today to express that opinion.
