9-15-09, 4:58 pm

The much awaited has come. Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., chair of the Senate Finance Committee, released a draft outline of a health reform package for consideration by his committee.

In the effort to attract Senate Republican votes for health reform, Baucus' early outline differs remarkably from the House version of the bill and strays from the key principles outlined by President Obama. The Baucus plan excludes the public option, provides much lower subsidies for low-income individuals and families to purchase insurance and provides broad exclusions for insurance companies from major new regulations.

Key Republicans on the committee, like Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, hav virtually signaled prejudicial opposition to any reform bill, however.

One Senator on the Finance Committee has already expressed staunch opposition to the draft outline as it stands. Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.V., on a conference call with reporters Sept. 15th, said he could not support the version of a reform package released by Sen. Baucus.

Citing the missing public option as well as differences over new proposed Medicaid rules that may reduce eligibility in the Baucus draft, Sen. Rockefeller told reporters, 'I cannot agree with him on this bill.'

Rockefeller stated that he plans to introduce amendments to include the public option and to resolve other key differences, such as relegating the S-CHIP program to the proposed insurance exchange, during the committee amendment process.

The West Virginia Democrat added that the public option would provide a resource to people without coverage or who lose their employment-based coverage due to a lay-off. In addition, it would create meaningful competition for insurance companies who hold virtual monopolies in major parts of the country.

A public insurance program can both end the practice of 'chopping people off the insurance rolls' for preexisting conditions and compete with big insurance companies because it 'doesn't have to make any money,' Rockefeller pointed out. 'It doesn't have to have big marble buildings as its headquarters. It doesn't have shareholders to please or Wall Street to please.'

A public program would serve as a benchmark that health insurance consumers could choose if they are forced out of the private insurance market as is common practice in the health insurance industry today, Rockefeller suggested.

Rockefeller's remarks came just hours after President Obama delivered a rousing speech to the AFL-CIO's annual convention in Pittsburgh in which he re-stated his support for a public insurance program as part of the major health overhaul he wants enacted this year. Of this aspect of his plan, President Obama told the union activists, the public option would 'offer Americans more choices, and promote real competition and put pressure on private insurers to make their policies affordable and treat their customers better.'