Washington - A US Senate committee began taking up legislation on Tuesday to overhaul health care in the United States, but no end was in sight in the long feud over how to best ensure that Americans receive adequate medical attention. Democratic Senator Max Baucus, the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, formally introduced his bill during a public session of the committee after months of negotiations with Republicans that produced little optimism of reaching a bipartisan agreement.
"Let us make this a time for progress. Let us seize our opportunity to make history," Baucus said.
Senator Charles Grassley, the top Republican on the committee, expressed skepticism that members of his party would back the legislation because of the cost to taxpayers, but said Republicans are committed to reforming health care.
Most significantly, Baucus's proposal does not include a controversial government insurance plan or "public option" that Democrats have long insisted must be part of any reforms. Instead it proposes creating not-for-profit co-operatives, owned by consumers and backed by the government, which could inject competition into the medical insurance sector.
The legislation would also, for the first time, force individuals to buy health insurance, or face penalties starting in 2013. Republicans view that aspect as an infringement of civil liberties.
The new 223-page proposal, designed to expand access to about 46 million uninsured and bring down skyrocketing costs, contains some concessions towards conservatives but maintains the bulk of the proposals sought by President Barack Obama.
The Finance Committee is one of five congressional committees that has developed proposals for health care reform.
The bill would cost 856 billion dollars over 10 years, less than the other versions. Baucus has insisted its provisions were paid for and said the legislation would not add to an already-surging federal deficit.
Obama has said he wants a reform bill passed by the end of the year. The US currently has the most expensive health care system in the industrialized world.
