Health care reform divides N.C. delegation

Kay Hagan

Hagan, a first-term Democratic senator, has called for changes that would lower insurance premiums.

In a video on her YouTube channel, she said she wants to prevent insurance companies from denying coverage to people with pre-existing conditions.
 

The House bill passed 220-215. How did N.C. representatives vote?

Yes votes: G.K. Butterfield (D) Bob Etheridge (D) Brad Miller (D) David Price (D) Mel Watt (D)

No votes: Howard Coble (R) Virginia Foxx (R) Walter B. Jones (R) Larry Kissell (D) Patrick McHenry (R) Mike McIntyre (D) Sue Myrick (R) Heath Shuler (D)

Hagan has said she won’t vote for a bill that increases the federal deficit. But she has shied away from discussing some of the more controversial proposals, such as the government-maintained insurance plan known as the public option.

Hagan supports workplace wellness programs, which often include smoking cessation and weight-loss initiatives. In another YouTube video, she said wellness efforts can make employees healthier and more productive.

The House bill includes a grant to help small business owners set up such programs.

Richard Burr

Burr opposes Democrats’ health care proposals. In a Nov. 3 blog post, he pointed to a proposed government-run insurance plan as a potentially expensive provision that he believes would lead to excessive government involvement in health care.

“I am very disappointed that the House majority chose to ram through this massive health care bill,” Burr said in a statement released after the House bill passed. “I agree that health care reform is necessary, but a government-run system is not the answer.”

Burr continues to promote a bill he and several Republicans introduced during the summer that would establish a tax credit for individuals and families to purchase health insurance.

The bill has gotten little attention from Senate leaders, but Republicans are expected to offer it as a substitute for Democrats’ bill.

House bill vs. Senate version

The health care overhaul legislation that passed the House on Nov. 7 is expected to go to the Senate floor within the next week. And there might be changes.

Public option

A government-run public insurance option was included in the House bill, but Republicans and some moderate Democrats in the Senate oppose the plan.

Alternative possibilities include allowing states to opt out of the public plan or establishing it as a last resort if premiums keep rising after the legislation passes.

Abortion funding

The House bill would ban insurers from covering elective abortions for anyone receiving federal subsidies.

The provision has been controversial, with some legislators claiming it unfairly restricts women’s rights and others calling for a ban on all abortion coverage. The Senate will likely revisit the debate.

Employer mandate

The House bill and one Senate committee’s version require employers to provide insurance for employees.

But the Senate Finance Committee’s version did not carry that requirement, and the eventual Senate bill could instead require employers to pay a fee that would go toward employee insurance, McClatchy reports.

Overhaul funding

A 5 percent surtax on individual incomes above $500,000 or $1 million for couples would pay for the House bill.

The Senate could change that, raising Medicare payroll taxes on couples making more than $250,000 a year and reducing a proposed tax on high-value insurance plans, McClatchy reports.