13 Republicans Voted To Allow Single-Payer Systems In States

In a largely unnoticed vote late last week, 13 small government-conservatives backed legislation that could facilitate the emergence of major government-run health care entities.

In an exquisite political irony, 13 Republicans on the House Education and Labor Committee offered their support for an amendment that allowed states to set up single-payer health care systems.

The amendment to the committee's health care bill allows states to essentially opt out of a national public health insurance option if they set up a single-payer alternative that meets similar standards for coverage. Offered by one of Congress's foremost liberals, Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio), the legislation enables a system progressives have long desired.

So why would 13 House Republicans, after bemoaning Democratic plans for public health care for months, attach their names to the provision? Depending on who you ask, it's either a philosophical belief in states' rights or childish political shenanigans.

According to those who followed the vote closely, Republicans on the committee were eager to put potentially vulnerable freshmen Democrats -- particularly those from traditionally conservative districts -- on the spot. One plugged-in aide said the GOP lawmakers were "laughing and giggling" throughout the voting process.

But the amendment actually passed, after a host of veteran Democrats on the committee sided with Kucinich. The final tally was 27 Representatives in favor and 19 opposed, with two lawmakers not voting at all. Just how screwy was the vote? Education and Labor Chairman Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.) voted against the legislation despite being a co-sponsor of Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.) bill to set up a national single-payer health care system.

Since then, some of the supportive Republicans have spun their votes as being in support of a states' rights, even though Democrats on the committee insist that was never their intention.

The amendment has the potential to trip up the GOP as the health care debate continues. The text could end up being in the House's final product, once it is merged with the version produced by the Energy and Commerce Committee. And when Republicans claim government bureaucrats will infringe upon the rights of consumers, Democrats will have a solid retaliatory point: 13 GOP lawmakers voted to allow single-payer plans.

In a conference call on Friday, Rep. Miller made direct reference to the amendment as a means of asserting that Republicans weren't honest participants in the health care debate. As one high-ranking Democratic aide in the House put it: "This amendment would allow states to opt out of the exchange and set up their own single-payer plan. Even if they made the states' rights argument -- would that really trump Republicans' opposition to the 'government' run health plan they've been so adamant against through this entire debate?"

The 13 Republicans:

Rep. John Kline (Minnesota)
Rep. Tom Petri (Wisconsin)
Rep. Buck McKeon (California)
Rep. Peter Hoekstra (Michigan)
Rep. Mike Castle (Delaware)
Rep. Mark Souder (Indiana)
Rep. Vernon Ehlers (Michigan)
Rep. Judy Biggert (Illinois)
Rep. Todd Platts (Pennsylvania)
Rep. Joe Wilson (South Carolina)
Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (Washington)
Rep. Tom Price (Georgia)
Rep. Brett Guthrie (Kentucky)

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Comments

[cruisepuppy7452a]

12:56 PM on 08/03/2009

Single payer isn't a crime, its not the anti christ. Yet insurance companies and the president want you to assume it is. Why? Except for the few who backed single payer, every single one who voted against it, has financial intrest in its failure. They know damn well its the ONLY option that should be on the table, that it IS doable, and that if we Ended the war NOW, it would be financialy feasible. When will the public wake up to the fact our leaders are not representi­ng us and only care about their own financial greed? This isn't a partisan issue, its a health care issue for and about all of us. Period. Until we see single payer on a ballot for the PUBLIC to vote on, nobody in the house or senate should have access to a vote or anywhere near it. This is about the Public, NOT thier Greed.

[klo]

01:31 PM on 08/03/2009

Thank you for this. You're absolutely right.

[butterfliesblossom]

11:24 AM on 08/03/2009

Read this on another thread in regards to another article but wanted to pass it along. Please go to http://www­.PetitionO­nline.com/­CFC2009/pe­tition.htm­l and sign petition to amend US Constituti­on for "election campaign reform". We need "change" as we voted for change and this means CONGRESS MUST CHANGE and also election campaign funding to end the "influence peddling" from lobbyists. Thank you and PLEASE help this movement to millions of signatures­. We can do this together! Share this link, help it go ~~~~viral~­~~~~.

[butterfliesblossom]

10:16 AM on 08/03/2009

Keep up the emails they are working. Send your representa­tive your approval of the single payer system, emplasize we don't even need a private option just a public option. Let's take the middle man (insurance­) out of the equation.

[newpantaloons]

10:10 AM on 08/03/2009

Good policy.

[rollingdivision]

08:40 AM on 08/03/2009

Bad policy.

[Tyler-Durden]

12:29 PM on 08/03/2009

who are you with, Aetna? United??

[DocJerome]

02:56 AM on 08/03/2009

Doesn't matter how we get there, let's just go.

[blaharumph]

07:34 AM on 08/03/2009

i agree! i wish texas could be represente­d here. would like to see more discussion in the media too.

some info: http://www­.singlepay­eraction.o­rg/

[klo]

01:30 AM on 08/03/2009

I just watched M.Moore's "Sicko". Besides the 9/11 rescuers getting treatment in Havana that they couldn't get in the US, the most profound statement was made by the guy in England when he talked about how democracy shifted power from the richest to the general population­. The doc in France said something similar.
Contradict­ing that is Democracy in the US. Instead of our elected officials passing laws that work for all of us, they get paid by big business (Health insurance and pharmaceut­ical companies) to do their bidding to keep us from getting the best that money can buy. These companies are allowing Americans to die so that they can share a big pie among themselves­.
If a poor nation like Cuba at an average of $250/pp per year, can provide the same treatments and medicines (woman paid $.05 for a prescrip she gets in the US for $120), democracy is dead or on life support here.
Mr. Potter, a guest on Bill Moyers last week, said that "Sicko" was accurate. I hope some of you will watch it, share it and make calls to your elected officials demanding universal health care.

[b1rd67]

11:16 AM on 08/03/2009

The real underlying problem here is not health care, or energy reform, or any other hot-button issue that the press reports on. The REAL problem that threatnes to destroy American Democracy is influence-­peddling. What we need is real campaign finance reform!

http://www­.petitiono­nline.com/­CFC2009/pe­tition.htm­l

[butterfliesblossom]

11:25 AM on 08/03/2009

Read this on another thread in regards to another article but wanted to pass it along. Please go to http://www­.PetitionO­nline.com/­CFC2009/pe­tition.htm­l and sign petition to amend US Constituti­on for "election campaign reform". We need "change" as we voted for change and this means CONGRESS MUST CHANGE and also election campaign funding to end the "influence peddling" from lobbyists. Thank you and PLEASE help this movement to millions of signatures­. We can do this together! Share this link, help it go ~~~~viral~­~~~~.

[jsijason]

11:54 AM on 08/03/2009

Absolutely­! If these Senators stopped receiving so much money from big companies, you know damn well a lot of policies would be different in the United Banks of America.

[Cambridge9]

08:29 PM on 08/02/2009

As soon as these guys knew that Kucenich was involved in this amendment their toes should have curled. But I guess they have tunnel vision - and it was a good scam. Clever Denis!

[jsijason]

11:57 AM on 08/03/2009

No scam here, please try again.

[sueinmn]

05:49 PM on 08/02/2009

They want to look as IF they are for single payer?

We all know the states cannot afford this! They know it also!!

How many states didnt want to extend your unemployme­nt? You think they will want to add thos program for YOU?

States are broke, cities are broke..

This needs to remain Federally funded.

[jsijason]

11:58 AM on 08/03/2009

While in theory is sounds good - you're right, states cannot afford a project of this size.

Stabalize the economy, put people to work first, legalize marijuana, put some money in the coffers then consider it.

[cripes]

02:19 PM on 08/02/2009

After eight years of trying to destroy our country , how can anything they do surprise us...
Tried their best to destroy Medicare .
What more can be said.

[whatthel]

10:01 AM on 08/03/2009

Hopefully, nothing will be said about them for the next 7 years.

[cripes]

02:01 PM on 08/02/2009

Whew! This is getting crazy.
This may make those in doubt of the public option more in support of it.
If all their cohorts are voting for some single payer plan then the Baucus and Grassley bunch are going to look like they are anti-Ameri­can or totally out of step.

[gorideabike]

01:55 PM on 08/02/2009

This could go big if they follow through. There are a number of programs the feds allow states to share in. They administer local programs such as water quality, air quality, and workplace safety. They find that not only do they keep the size of fed government employment down, but the states are more productive and efficient than feds who have to be managed by a much larger overhead. The way it works is the state legislatur­e passes enabling legislatio­n and the feds put up some startup money. Later the programs get a percentage of their costs in exchange for meeting federal standards.
And bless the 13 dancing republican­s who voted yes whatever their motives were.

[CTtransplant]

01:15 PM on 08/02/2009

I don't know if the rest of you are as fed up as I am with the obstructio­n and political game playing going on with this health care reform...b­ut I DO know this - the Republican obstructio­nists and the Blue Dog Dems have absolutely NO clue what the rest of us are going through with healthcare­. Maybe it's time they did!

If you agree, please sign the petition below, and forward it - any way you can - to anyone and everyone you know! Time to let them know how we feel!!!!

http://www­.petitiono­nline.com/­PubOp676/p­etition.ht­ml

[neesy08]

11:17 AM on 08/02/2009

Everybody needs to go over to the DailyKos and read the blog. What this article does not say is that the GOP want prayer to be a part of the reform. I'm not against prayer, but what about the atheist and agnostics? What about people who never ever pray? The GOP are putting their so-called Christian beliefs ito the bill.
The states opting out is a ploy the GOP are using to have to not participat­e in Obama's reform if it passes. They are trying to make this a STATES RIGHT issue. When I hear STATES RIGHTS I think of discrimiat­ion. FLORIDA GOP members are already trying to set this up.

http://www­.dailykos.­com
Look to the right ledger and scroll and look for the heading about Repubs for single payer

If they are really for single payer, they should be supporting the public option

[hauty007]

10:39 AM on 08/02/2009

Many "facts" are false hoods,
although , if you consistent­ly assert them as undisputed facts.

[daedelus]

10:44 AM on 08/02/2009

Try not to slobber on your keyboard.

[Buddy McCue]

11:21 AM on 08/02/2009

Yes, but to be forewarned is to have four arms...