–After Nearly A Day of Non-Stop Voting, Senate Passes Health Bill
–Senate Approves Reconciliation Bill On 56 to 43 Vote
–House To Take Up Reconciliation Bill Now; Pelosi Predicts Passage
By John Shaw
WASHINGTON (MNI) – The Senate concluded nearly a day of non-stop
voting Thursday by passing the budget reconciliation bill.
The Senate approved the reconciliation bill on a 56 to 43 vote. All
Republicans voted against the bill. All Democrats, except for three,
voted for the bill.
The reconciliation bill makes a number of adjustments to the
comprehensive health care bill that President Obama signed Tuesday.
Since the Senate’s version is slightly different from the
reconciliation bill that was approved by the House on Sunday, the House
must vote on the bill again.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said at a briefing earlier in the day
that she expects the House to pass the slightly revised reconciliation
bill later in the day.
Pelosi called the Senate changes “quite benign.”
The Senate spent more than eight hours voting Wednesday night and
early Thursday morning on Republican amendments, ending just before 3
a.m. ET. Senate Democrats defeated 29 Republican amendments to the final
health care bill.
The Senate voted for more than three hours Thursday, as Democrats
defeated about a dozen Republican amendments.
However, a ruling by the Senate parliamentarian removed two
education provisions from the package, thus requiring the House to
revote on the bill.
House Democratic leaders have said all week that any House revote
would take place immediately and predicated the bill would pass the
House again if the changes were minor.
If the Senate had passed the reconciliation bill without any
changes, it would have gone to Obama for his signature. But now that the
legislation will be modified slightly, it must be sent back to the House
for its consideration.
The House approved the reconciliation bill Sunday on a 220 to 211
vote.
** Market News International Washington Bureau: (202) 371-2121 **
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