Key Senator Says He Will Alter Health Proposal - NYTimes.com

Key Senator Says He Will Alter Health Proposal

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By ROBERT PEAR and DAVID M. HERSZENHORN
Published: September 21, 2009

WASHINGTON — The chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, Max Baucus,
said Monday that he would modify his health care bill to provide more
generous assistance to moderate-income Americans, to help them buy
insurance.

In addition, Mr. Baucus said he would make changes to reduce the impact
of a proposed tax on high-end health insurance policies.

Mr. Baucus, Democrat of Montana, disclosed his plans in an interview a
day before the committee is to begin meeting to debate and vote on the
sweeping legislation, which is intended to remake the nation's health
care system and guarantee insurance for millions of Americans.

Mr. Baucus said the changes showed that he had heard the criticism of
his bill from colleagues, who asserted that many people would be
required to buy insurance who could not afford it — even with federal
subsidies to help defray the cost of premiums.

"Affordability — that, I think, is the primary concern," Mr. Baucus
said. "We want to make sure that if Americans have to buy insurance,
it's affordable."

Mr. Baucus said he believed that the changes would "help smooth the way
for passage" of the bill through the Finance Committee, where it has
been criticized from both the left and the right.

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