11/6/2009 2:06 PM ET
(RTTNews) -
House Democrats acknowledged Friday that they don't have the 218 votes needed to pass health care legislation, and that, as a result, they may push back the scheduled vote on the bill from Saturday to Sunday or even Monday.
"There are many people who are still trying to get a comfort level that this is the right thing to do," House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer told reporters Friday.
None of the Republicans in the House are on board with the bill, but that wouldn't be a problem if all the Democrats were. However, Democrats have yet to resolve intraparty disputes over such issues as abortion funding and illegal immigrants' access to health care, and as such do not have enough support to pass the bill.
Meanwhile, Ken Spain, spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Committee, said of the possible delay, "If the Democratic leader of the House is moving the goalposts, it's because Democrats can see the writing on the wall."
He added, "A vote for yet another job-killing expansion of government in the wake of newly-released skyrocketing unemployment numbers would just be further proof of how politically tone-deaf the Democratic majority has become."
The bill up at the center of the debate is a 10-year, $1.2 trillion bill that would extend health coverage to tens of millions of uninsured Americans. In addition, the bill would place greater restrictions on private health insurance companies.
96% of Americans would be covered by the bill, and beginning in 2013, it would provide government subsidies to millions of Americans who currently do not have health insurance coverage.
In terms of small businesses and the self-employed, they would have the option of purchasing health insurance from a private provider or from a newly established government plan that would compete with the private providers.
by RTT Staff Writer
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