The House committee eventually approved the bill, by a vote of 28 to 23, with all of the opposition coming from Democrats. One provision of the House Republican bill would require older Americans with income of more than $500,000 a year to pay higher Medicare premiums. This forces taxpayers to bear the cost of providing health care benefits for people who no longer need assistance, Republicans said. But in fact, he said, “every child who was eligible for this program as of a week ago is still in that program today.”The Senate bill does not specify how the government would pay for extending the children’s health program. Republicans and Democrats are working together and expect to agree on financing before the bill goes to the Senate floor.

Source: New York Times October 04, 2017 22:23 UTC