How long will it take to reconcile this?
For what seems entirely feasible, at least February. At the earliest. Even then, I could see it getting pushed into the late spring if the Progressives want to put up a fight.
What more compromises will have to be made so both bills are equal? Could they just amend the bill later to add more stuff to it?
This depends on what version of the bill you want to talk about. As noted above, it depends on what the Progressives in the House want as well. It would seem more likely that the House will get its way in making the bill a few shades more Progressive than what has shown up from the rather Conservative Senate bill, but even then, its still up in the air. Obama is due to take a more personal role in aiding the drafting of the legislation, apparently. We'll see what that does.
NPR has a nifty graphic for the comparisons of the bill HERE.
And I havn't been following it as I should...what's the provision for abortion and the public option in both bills?
In the House version of the bill, a fairly weak Public Option is included that goes into effect in 2013. It would be government run, likely a mirror of Medicaide or Medicare for everyone else. The Senate bill doesn't have a Public Option, and instead introduces OPM-style plan exchanges that are supposed to get you cheaper premiums with the same levels of coverage. The Senate will also include some fairly strong subsidies for coverage as well, as I recall, keeping it open for people who make up to 400% over the poverty line ($88K as I recall). In terms of abortion rights, the House bill strongly prohibits the spending of Federal money on the operation, essentially making it so they cannot perform them as such with the Public Option. Provisions already exist that do not allow for the Feds to provide money for abortion, so that essentially became an erosion of Women's rights once again. The Senate plan does not include the abortion restrictions, instead sticking with what is already on the books. In both cases, people would have to spend private money on the operations, outside of their federally subsidized coverage.
When do you think this bill will be signed?
That depends on a wide variety of things. If it can go into conference committee, be sorted out easily and speedily, it would seem somewhat likely that the bill would pass fairly easily in the House and Senate. At the earliest, the end of February. However, a date in April or May seems far more likely.
I have heard people say those who can't afford it will be FORCED to take coverage and if they don't they could be fined or worse?
It sounds as though it is fairly unanimous that it is the case... From the NPR Page:
Individual Coverage
Senate Bill: Requires most people to have health insurance or pay a penalty, which starts at $95 in 2014 and reaches $750 two years later.
House Bill: Requires most people to get health insurance or pay a penalty of up to 2.5 percent of their income. This mandate (along with subsidies for the poor) extends coverage to 36 million Americans.
Employer Coverage
Senate Bill: Does not require employers to provide health insurance. The bill would charge companies with over 50 employees a penalty for any employee whose health insurance the government ends up subsidizing.
House Bill: Requires employers to contribute to health insurance for employees. But businesses with payrolls under $500,000 are exempt; that's about 86 percent of all American businesses.
I would care to suggest that a lot of the whining on both sides is a lot of political mubmo-jumbo, and without knowing what
exactly the government will be offering (subsidies or Public Option), having requirements for coverage and complaining about the cost(s) aren't easy to do at the moment.
What about these people in sound of protest that talk about "death panels" for those who say they will decide the fate for those who seem to be just a burden to the system, mainly the very sick and elderly who won't live much longer anyway?
What about them? As a corporate-funded movement lead by talking heads and political opportunists with no real teeth behind their attacks, they don't have much of a voice in the current discussion. Generally speaking, if these healthcare provisions do "work" (and that is a blanket statement), the Republicans and the Tea Baggers are going to face a lot of issues later on down the line, politically speaking.
And when do you think the actual national healthcare will be reality and not just paperwork?
As I recall, the House version doesn't go into action until 2013. The Senate version even later, in 2014. Why? To save money.
And lastly...how much is this going to cost us in artificial money that doesn't really exist?
As I recall, the House version was something over $1.1 Trillion over 10 years with no solid figures on long-term cost savings. The Senate version carries a price tag of just under $900 Billion, but has a cost savings of $1.3 Trillion over 10 years.
In the end, I personally don't care much for the Senate version of the bill, but hope to see a lot of its more Conservative segments pushed in a more Progressive way to create a solid foundation for reform later on. Any way you look at it, generally speaking, this bill creates a lot of opportunity for a wide variety of changes in our healthcare in the coming decades. Depending on who is in power will likely determine the direction it takes. Without a Public Option, I do fear that the bill does not have the same level of bite to it as it does with these OPM-style exchanges... But as someone who is losing their health coverage
right now, most of these seem as though they will be somewhat beneficial to me later on down the line.
