Oct. 13
Senator Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) speaks with the press after the Senate Finance Committee approved its health-care bill, 14 to 9. Snowe was the only Republican on the committee to vote in favor of the bill.
Marvin Joseph-The Washington Post
Oct. 13
Sen. Snowe is approached by Sen. Max Baucus (D-Mont.), chairman of the committee. Snowe told reporters, "Is this bill all that I would want? Far from it. But when history calls, history calls."
Marvin Joseph-The Washington Post
Oct. 13
Sen. Baucus sometimes hurried senators through the final hours of the debate. He opened the hearing by telling his colleagues, "This is our opportunity to make history. Our actions here will determine whether we extend coverage to more Americans."
Marvin Joseph-The Washington Post
Oct. 13
From left to right, Sens. Jay Rockefeller (D-W. Va.), Max Baucus and Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) during the hearing. Grassley, the ranking Republican on the committee, warned that the bill was on a "march leftward" as Senate and House leaders prepare for deliberations on their respective chamber floors.
Marvin Joseph-The Washington Post
Oct. 13
Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), who serves on both the Senate Finance and Health panels and is a staunch opponent of the bill, predicted that the package would become more problematic as Democratic leaders attempt to craft a final bill.
Marvin Joseph-The Washington Post
Oct. 13
A handful of Democrats on the panel, such as Rockefeller, left, expressed regret that Baucus's bill does not contain a public option for consumers to consider as an alternative to the private insurance industry.
Marvin Joseph-The Washington Post
Sept. 24
Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) offered an amendment that would have extracted higher rebates from manufacturers on medicines sold to low-income seniors.
Ricky Carioti-The Washington Post
Sept. 24
Sen. Max Baucus (D-Mont.) opposed Sen. Nelson's measure.
Ricky Carioti-The Washington Post
Sept. 24
From left to right, Sens. Jeff Bingaman (D-NM..), Kent Conrad (D-N.D.), John D. Rockefeller IV (D-W.Va.) and Max Baucus (D-Mont.) listen as committee members argue amendments during the mark up session of the health care reform legislation on Capitol Hill.
Ricky Carioti-The Washington Post
Sept. 24
Sen. Thomas Carper (D-Del.) also opposed Sen. Nelson's amendment that would have squeezed $106 billion from the nation's pharmaceutical sector. Delaware has a large industry presence.
Ricky Carioti-The Washington Post
Sept. 24
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) has expressed concerns that the health-care bill will be passed without any bipartisan support.
Ricky Carioti-The Washington Post
Sept. 24
Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) and Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) read over an amendments page. The committee passed twenty-nine amendments out of over 500 as of Wednesday.
Ricky Carioti-The Washington Post
Sept. 24
Republican Sens. Mike Crapo (Idaho), Jim Bunning (Ky.) and Sen. John Ensign (Nev.) speak to the media at lunch recess. One amendment presented by the GOP attempts to restore full funding to a private health insurance program called Medicare Advantage.
Ricky Carioti-The Washington Post
Sept. 24
Sen. Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.) have a word with each other during the mark up. Kyl warned that seniors "have reason to be worried that portions of this bill could affect their care." Earlier in the day, the Senate panel blocked a measure on drug rebates for low-income seniors.
Ricky Carioti-The Washington Post
Sept. 24
Sen. Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) leans in for a quick conversation with Sen. Max Baucus during the hearing.
Ricky Carioti-The Washington Post
Sept. 24
Sen. Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) after the lunch recess.
Ricky Carioti-The Washington Post
Sept. 24
Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) is questioned by reporters during recess.
Ricky Carioti-The Washington Post
Sept. 24
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), the ranking Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, listens during the debate.
Ricky Carioti-The Washington Post
Sept. 22
Sen. Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) greet each other prior to the opening statements in the mark up session of the health-care reform bill. Grassley, the ranking Republican on the committee, said that Democrats have tried to rush the bill through Congress.
Ricky Carioti-The Washington Post
Sept. 22
Sen. Baucus prepares for debate with his colleague Sen. Grassley at right. Baucus quoted former president Harry Truman in his opening remarks, saying "Progress occurs when courageous, skillful leaders seize the opportunity to change things for the better."
Ricky Carioti-The Washington Post
Sept. 22
Sen. Kent Conrad (D-N.D.), leaning forward into the microphone, is a member of the Senate Finance Committee and chairman of the Senate Budget Committee.
Ricky Carioti-The Washington Post
Sept. 22
Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) told the committee during opening remarks that, "I believe we can do more for low- and middle-income families while keeping the overall cost of the bill reasonable."
Ricky Carioti-The Washington Post
Sept. 22
Sen Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) praised some elements of Baucus's bill, like the lack of a public option, but said she is still concerned about the affordability of health insurance for middle-class families.
Ricky Carioti-The Washington Post
Sept. 22
Baucus's strongest supporters appear to include moderate Democrats in both chambers, including the 52-member House "Blue Dog" caucus.
Ricky Carioti-The Washington Post
Sen. John D. Rockefeller IV (D-W.Va.), left, described Baucus, right, as "our General Eisenhower," after comparing the legislative process that Baucus has been leading to D-Day.
Ricky Carioti-The Washington Post
Sept. 22
Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) is an advocate for including a public option in the final version of the bill. During his opening remarks, Schumer stressed the importance of affordability since health care costs are higher in New York, middle and working-class residents will have a harder time affording insurance with the subsidies that they'll be getting under the plan.
Ricky Carioti-The Washington Post
Sept. 22
Sen. Baucus spent months trying to get Sen. Grassley on board with his health-are legislation, but in the end the Iowan was unmoved. Grassley said his overriding concern
was that there was a lack of guarantee that any bipartisan bill that he agreed to would survive a Democratic-led Congress.
Ricky Carioti-The Washington Post
Sept. 22
Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D-N.M.) listen during opening statements. Kerry said that the panel has not yet done enough make large employers "contribute their fare share" to health insurance coverage.
Ricky Carioti-The Washington Post
Gallery Credits:
Photo Editor, Producer Sam Funt
Save/Share +
CLOSE