Senate Votes Yes on Motion to Proceed
This afternoon the Senate voted to move forward on debate of the healthcare bill. It’s important to note that this vote only allows the Senate to move on to debate and doesn’t pass any particular version of a healthcare bill.
There is still much discussion and confusion around exactly what happens next. Many in DC are reporting that several iterations and amendments will be voted on and will most likely fail. However, there does seem to be some growing consensus around a “skinny repeal”. This would be a very scaled-down version of repeal that could simply include repealing the individual and employer mandates and something like the medical device excise tax. Some in the GOP feel like it might be possibe to get the 50 votes by scaling the bill down to that level and continuing to tweak small pieces moving forward.
We will continue to monitor healthcare reform developments and provide updates on our Performance Thinking blog.