Senate Finance Committee Votes Down Public Option – Updated

The Senate Finance Committee met today for a vote on a public option for health care. This is the headline at the top of The Wall Street Journal’s home page:

Breaking News: The Senate Finance Committee has voted against the creation of a new government-run health insurance plan

I’ll update when more information is available.

Update: From the New York Times Live Blog:

DOWN TO DEFEAT| 2:51 p.m. The Rockefeller amendment is voted down, despite Mr. Rockefeller’s declaration, “The public option is on the march.”

The final tally was 8 in favor, 15 against. The amendment drew no Republican support. Democrats voting against the amendment were Mr. Conrad, Ms. Lincoln, Bill Nelson of Florida and Thomas Carper of Delaware.

Supporting the public option were the Democratic Senators Rockefeller, Bingaman, Kerry, Wyden, Schumer, Stabenow, Cantwell and Menendez.

Update 2: From the Wall Street Journal:

The 15-to-8 vote could forecast the fate of the public option in the Senate as a whole. The outcome was expected but still a defeat for liberals who view government-sponsored insurance for the middle class as a key component of President Barack Obama’s health-care overhaul.

Five committee Democrats, including Chairman Max Baucus, joined with all 10 committee Republicans to defeat the measure by Democratic Sen. Jay Rockefeller of West Virginia.

Opponents said a public option would drive private insurers out of business and amount to a government takeover. Proponents said it would give consumers choice and competition.

[...]

While Democrats hold a majority on the committee, the legislation advanced by Sen. Max Baucus (D., Mont.), omitted the so-called public option. Moderate Democrats on and off the committee oppose it, and Sen. Olympia Snowe of Maine, the Republican seen as most likely to support the bill, has also spoken against it.

Under Mr. Rockefeller’s proposal, payments to doctors, hospitals and other health care providers would be based on Medicare fees. Mr. Schumer’s proposal called for negotiations to set the rates.

Two liberal groups are launching a hard-hitting television and Internet ad targeting Mr. Baucus that features a young father from Montana. Bing Perrine, 26 years old, in need of a heart operation, uninsured and deeply in debt, looks straight into the camera and asks Mr. Baucus, “Whose side are you on?”

The ad is sponsored by Democracy for America and the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, who say Mr. Baucus is too cozy with insurance and health care interests that have contributed to his campaigns and oppose the public option.

“The public option is the only true way we can keep it fair,” Mr. Perrine said in an interview. The insurance industry says it couldn’t compete with the price-setting power of government.

Baucus aide Tyler Matsdorf said the ad falsely implies that Mr. Baucus doesn’t care about the plight of people with pre-existing health problems. Mr. Baucus would just address such problems in a different way from what the liberals want, Mr. Matsdorf said.

More on Mr. Bing Perrine later….

Update 3: : More from NY Times Live Blog:

The Wrap-Up| 3:52 p.m. So that’s it for the Senate Finance Committee debate on the public option, which ran almost six hours, with a 45-minute break for lunch.

The fact that the Schumer amendment picked up two Democratic votes should be a reassuring sign for supporters of a “public option” — a government-run insurance plan — even though liberals view the Schumer amendment as a weaker version than the Rockefeller proposal. But Tuesday afternoon’s votes highlight the tough fight ahead with conservative Democrats like Kent Conrad of North Dakota and Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas, who held out against the Schumer proposal.

The question now is whether the support shown today by at least some Democrats for the public option will be enough to convince Senator Harry Reid, the Democratic leader, to include it when he reconciles the Finance Committee bill with one from the more liberal health committee — which does include a public option. …..

Looks like the democrats will just keep throwing out amendment after amendment until something sticks.