House and Senate Democratic leaders will likely bypass the traditional joint conference for reconciling legislation and instead hold informal talks through most of January to work out the differences between the two bodies' bills. The last big sticking point is how to pay for reform.
As it now exists, health-reform legislation is hardly a leap to "universal" coverage -- some 23 million Americans will be left out. Plus, neither the Senate nor the House version takes effect before 2013, leaving many newly eligible without insurance for years.
Why is public support falling? People are confused by all the rhetoric, shocked by the huge price tag and scared that the proposed changes will only make the situation worse. Yet it's not too late for Congress to come together and improve a system that isn't working now.
