Politics, Political News - POLITICO.com
The Senate health reform bill will not allow illegal immigrants to get benefits and prohibits taxpayer funding of abortion, reports Senate Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad. He said that unlike the House bill, there's no surtax on the wealthy, but there is a Medicare payroll tax of 1.95 percent on couples who earn more than $250,000 annually. The reimbursement rates for the public plan will not be tied to Medicare, and co-ops will still be offered.
