This evening, the Senate voted 60-39 - along party lines - for a motion to proceed, thus propelling the recently released Senate health reform bill to the full Senate floor for weeks of debate and amendments. Recent holdouts Joe Lieberman (I-CT), Mary Landrieu (D-LA), Blanche Lincoln (D-AR), and Ben Nelson (D-NE) all voted for the motion to proceed, but indicated clearly that today's vote wasn't a guarantee of their support for the final bill. Mrs. Lincoln, for instance, has said that she won't vote for a final bill that includes a public option.
Of note to employers, the Senate bill contains a provision that would not explicitly require employers to provide coverage, but would penalize employers with 50 or more employee $750 for each full-time worker in the company. The House bill, in contrast, mandates employer coverage and penalizes non-compliant employers (only those with an annual payroll over $500,000) with an 8% wage tax.
The full New York Times article can be found by clicking here.
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