Interview with Senator Harry Reid about Health Care Reform
Last Thursday, I sent four questions to Senator Harry Reid through Erin Skinner Cochran, a member of Reid’s New Media team. Understandably, it took a few days for Reid’s office to respond thanks to Reid’s singular role in the health care reform battle.
I received Reid’s answers to my original questions today and have printed them as received below. Reid’s answers are in bold:
- Many in the progressive movement don’t feel you are a strong enough leader when it comes to key Senate fights, the latest example being health care reform. How do you respond to that charge?
Every day more than 220 Nevadans lose their health insurance. This alarming reality drives me every day to achieve meaningful health insurance reform that will rein in costs and ensure that all Americans have high quality, affordable coverage.
There has been a vigorous and healthy debate across our country and in Congress about how to achieve reform. You’re seeing plenty of back and forth in the committees and there’s more to come on the Senate floor. But not every battle in the Senate is fought in front of the TV cameras, so just because you don’t see it, that doesn’t mean it’s not happening.
I believe that I have set our very diverse Caucus on a path towards success and am confident that we will be able to combine proposals from all the relevant committees into one bill that will get the votes we need to make health insurance reform a reality.
- You’ve said many times that you personally favor a public option over a trigger and co-ops, but many are concerned that you are too open to these alternatives due to statements you made in your recent Nevada Tele-Conference and on recent reports from the media. When all polling shows that more than 70% of Americans favor a public option, why are triggers and co-ops still being debated at all? Some would suggest this means that the Senate is no longer responsive to their constituency. Is there any other way to see it?
As I have said before, the final bill will have a public option that will keep insurers honest, create competition and keep costs down. While we don’t yet know exactly what that option will look like, I’ll be working with President Obama, the Committee Chairs and Sen. Dodd to ensure that the final bill meets these principles.
- Senator Schumer said last night on the Rachel Maddow show that you have not unveiled your approach to getting a final health care reform bill passed in the Senate. And Mike Lux recently claimed that your silence on the issue has been very deliberate. Now that the Finance Committee has almost completed its work, do you plan to take on a more active roll getting a Senate bill passed? When do you plan to unveil your plan? How does the public option fit into that plan?
We stand closer to delivering reform than we have been in the last 60 years. I already worked to strengthen the Finance proposal as it pertains to Nevada, and we will continue to make progress as we merge the bills this week.
- You are facing a tough election next year if recent polls are to be believed. I’m asked by progressives outside the state how likely it is that you might lose in 2010 on a fairly regular basis. Are you at all worried that not passing health care reform, or passing health care reform without a public option will affect your campaign in a negative way?
I get more calls to my office every day in support of health care reform than against it. The American people want to see our health care system changed and so do I. Everything that I do on this issue I do knowing that 220 Nevadans lose their health insurance every day and our unemployment rate is more than 13%.
Because of the struggles Nevadans are facing, I reached an agreement with Sen. Baucus to provide Nevada full federal funding for people added to Nevada Medicaid under the program expansion included in the legislation. Nevadans are hurting and I make no apologies for helping people in my state and our nation who are hurting the most.
There will be a time to talk about the campaign, but right now I’m committed to working in the Senate to pass health insurance reform. I’m confident that we can and will accomplish meaningful reform by the end of this year.
Reid will be reconciling the health care reform bills from the Senate Finance Committee (led by Max Baucus) and the Health, Labor, Education, and Pensions Committee (led by Kennedy). Please call Reid’s Office and tell them that you want health care reform with a strong public option–Less Baucus, More Kennedy!
202-224-3542
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just curious. Understanding that Reid is speaking as the Senator from Nevada more than as the Senate Majority Leader, am I to take away from his last answer that Nevada will enjoy full funding for those added to Nevada’s Medicaid but that isn’t going to be the case for all other states? That may play well in Elko or Vegas but not so much in Detroit, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Raleigh, etc.
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Interview with Senator Harry Reid (D-NV) about Health Care Reform | Reno and Its Discontents [link to post]
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Recently answered several health insurance reform questions from NV blogger, Tracy Viselli (@MyrnaTheMinx). [link to post]
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RT @SenatorReid: Recently answered several health insurance reform questions from NV blogger, (@MyrnaTheMinx). [link to post]
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RTing my senator @SenatorReid: Answered health insurance reform questions from NV blogger, Tracy Viselli @MyrnaTheMinx [link to post]
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RT @MyrnaTheMinx: @SenatorReid: Answered health insurance reform questions from NV blogger, Tracy Viselli @MyrnaTheMinx [link to post]
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