Senate Passes Healthcare Reform

On December 24, 2009, the Senate passed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care bill by a vote of 60 to 39. This follows the House passage of their version of the legislation, the Affordable Health Care for America bill (H.R. 3962), on November 7, 2009 by a 220 to 215 vote. Tax provisions in the Senate version include an excise tax on "Cadillac" health plans, an increase in the Medicare tax for those with adjusted gross incomes over $200,000, and tax incentives for and penalties on individuals and small businesses to promote universal health insurance coverage. A tax on elective cosmetic surgery was removed and replaced with a tax on the use of tanning beds. The House and Senate must still meet in a joint conference to resolve the significant differences between their two versions of the legislation, including significant differences in the tax provisions. With very close votes in the House and Senate, the conference committee could face great difficulty in resolving the differences between the two versions while still maintaining the necessary votes in both bodies. The legislation is expected to be a top priority when Congress returns in mid-January.