Washington (CNN) – Two Senate moderates are teaming up in a bipartisan push for health care reform.
"We remain convinced that convening a bipartisan group of Members who are committed to reform is essential if we are to breathe new life into the broken health care reform process and rebuild confidence that our government is able to set aside partisan bickering and achieve meaningful results for working families facing enormous health care insecurity," Sens. Olympia Snowe , R-Maine, and Blanche Lincoln, D-Arkansas, said in a statement issued Wednesday. "No one party or ideology carries a monopoly on ideas – our constituents do not care if a workable solution comes from Democrats or Republicans."
"Legislation designed to help small businesses provide health care coverage to their employees should be a starting point for building a larger health care reform bill with bipartisan support," Snowe and Lincoln also said.
The "bill could pass with bipartisan support, alongside other broadly supported health insurance reforms. These might include requiring greater cost transparency from insurance companies, commonsense malpractice reforms, and allowing young people to stay on their parents' coverage until age 26. We believe that it is possible to take these critical first steps and to do so in a transparent and bipartisan manner."
The move by Snowe and Lincoln to push for bipartisanship comes a day before the White House's health care summit where President Obama will hold a daylong, televised meeting with congressional leaders from both parties.
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Both are hypocrites. Where were they six months ago?
Ms. Snowe and Ms. Lincoln should remember that unless they can convince Harry Reid not to do like he did with the recent bipartisan jobs bill and toss it out as soon as it was finished and at his whim put forth his own and then invoke special rules allowed to the Speaker only to only amendments from his own party – then all their efforts are wasted before they even begin.
Dream on – not a white man in congress has respect for women's views.
Wake up America. The old white men are the problem – not the solution.
Thank you for this encouraging view from moderate voices working for the American people!
Good start but a lot more of the common sernse stuff could be added. How about charging insurance companies and uninsured same price? How about opening drug market to Canadain imports and re-imports. I do like the transparancy. How about "truth in insurance coverage and procedure costing. Why not shortened patent lifes and easier generics on drugs.
Too late Lincoln & Snowe. We gave you two ample time to get republican support. Republicans are scared now because they see that the public option is on the horizon. The American people don't want the watered down Senate bill that you Sen. Snowe helped put together.
Do not under any circumstances cooperate with the Democrat Mafia as long as they insist of about ANY govt. control of healthcare.
The real plan is to get some watered down version, call it a victory, but in a tiny paragraph, there will some language that opens the door for a single payer system (aka Govt. Control).
When the affects of the bill kick in, and everyone sees it as a failure (they will, the utter idea, not just the bill stinks.........and YOU know it), then we'll be in a crisis again and then we'll have to go single payer because the insurance industry will be bankrupt and many of the hospitals.
See that's how the Mafia works and the Democrats are not a political party. They are Mafia.
I wish Snowe in particular had been talking this way last autumn, when it might have made a difference.
Republicans seem tho think that in order to achieve bipartisanship the President and the democratic majority must scrap everything and do what the republicans want. Surely the republicans must realize that they DID NOT win that right in the 2008 general election. They must move to meet the president.
Good for you, senators. You're right, we don't care which party is behind the reform – in fact, most Americans would like BOTH parties to back it. But please, stop the bickering and get it done!
NOW ?????????they are suggesting this NOW???????????
ALL OF THOSE THINGS ARE IN THE PRESIDENT'S PLAN! You wouldn't know it from listening to the GOP, though! I think it is a good step for these Senators to make this statement, though.
GOOD LUCK WITH THAT SENATORS, THE EMPEROR is going to jam HIS Health Care Snake Oil Pill down the throats of every American whether it kills the patient or not. RIP DIMRATS 2010.
What ever you come up with ,put yourself/Obama/unions on it .Same plan for all America-do not give the citizens a 2nd class plan different from yours.
Where Were The Three Senators Before All This Nonsense With Delay Tactics Were Happening?
The earth just tilted on it's axis.
Two members of each party were able to make a bi-partisan plea and the subject matter was not a natural disaster in Haiti?
What is next, a drop of oil being applied to the squeaking wheels?
I will believe when I see it......but not holding my breath.
Now Snow and Lincoln want to start talking about getting health care reform. I guess it must have something to do with the insurance companies in their states raising the premiums between 23-35% in 2010.
What is needed now is single payer non-profit universal health care or at least a public option or buy in to medicare.
If Republicans, Lieberman, Blue Dogs like Nelson,Buyh do not want to get on board then pass it using reconciliation.
I am glad to see at least two republicans who may finally seen the light and are begining to see what the americans thin of the party of no, just maybe she can knock some sense into the rest of them. Just maybe things might turn around,
No matter who calls for what, there won't be any Public Option to satisfy the Thugs, the Blue Dogs, and the rest of those beholden to the MONEY! Then the Health Care Lobby will have little to fear as they keep raking in the billions at our collective expense. Is there anyone NOT robbing this populace? We may be the most exploited group in the world now. We keep paying for WARS and the largesse of the Rich who rule us for their own motives!
I feel really bad for the guy who flew his plane into the IRS building. I read his suicide note and he is 100% accurate about this madhouse! His only error was in choosing despair and his own death over the continuing fight to make others aware of just how bad it is for this world now.
I smell reconciliation. Does anyone else? After all the Repubs used it several times under Bush.
The Dems tried to woo Snowe all last summer...she said no.
That's it? What about the insurers practices or rationing and denying care?. What about helping those over 55 and self employed, who have a hard time finding insurance at any cost? What about making insurance affordable for all Americans? I'm sorry to say that the ideas coming out of the Republican camp really don't do a heck of anything to "reform" healthcare.
About time.
The Government ( GOP & DEM ) will never bail out Main Street USA or create Universal Health Care. Here is the good part, we can start believing in ourselves, move forward with our lives, and tell Washington to drop dead, they need us more than we need them. There is a lot of power in relinquishing Washington's control over our lives and future.
The Great Depression was the same way, Americans finally gave up on \" Help is on the way \" and created their own help called \" Self Reliance \". That's how Mom, Dad, Grand Pa and Grand Ma did it, and that's how we have to do it. Lets stop the whining and crying, get out there and make it happen, we are Americans, we can do anything!
Good Bye, Good Luck, and don't forget to write!
Papasan in AZ