health insurance

Private health insurance would be kept under proposed Senate plan

(HEALTHCARE.com) - The Senate Finance Committee, whose chairmen had previously spearheaded work towards limiting health care costs, may be close to releasing a bill that would contain private health insurance requirements, but no public option.

Pre-existing conditions and rescission would be banned under the new plan that is underway in the committee, but it would not contain certain language that has shown up in House bills such as a public health insurance plan similar to Medicare nor would it include mandates for employers to provide coverage, according to an Associated Press report.

The House may still vote in the next several days on proposed language that is more partisan than the reported Senate bill, using a Congressional Budget Office report finding that less than 12 million people would sign up for a public plan to refute charges that House Democrats are trying to force private health insurance companies out of the market, reported the news provider.

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