US health bill faces final changes amidst violent threats (Roundup)

By Chris Cermak Mar 25, 2010, 21:23 GMT

Washington - The US Congress was set to approve Thursday a series of changes to the landmark health reform bill already signed into law by President Barack Obama as the divisive debate took a violent turn this week.

The voting Thursday was the final step in a complicated set of procedural manoeuvres that have played out in a bid to get Obama's top domestic priority through Congress. Republicans, united in opposition, have used every available procedure to slow the process.

There were reports of scattered violence this week as some opponents sent death threats to lawmakers who supported the health overhaul and vandalized Democratic Party facilities. A Republican also said a bullet was fired into a window of his office.

The Senate voted 56-43 on a 'reconciliation' bill that was first approved by the House of Representatives in a tight vote Sunday. The vote came after a marathon debating session that began Wednesday afternoon and ended at 2 am. The Senate reconvened at 10 am Thursday morning and took its final vote four hours later.

'We're all tired, but this has been a legislative fight that will be in the record books,' Harry Reid, the Senate's top Democrat, said ahead of the vote.

Yet Republicans who uniformly oppose the reforms had succeeded in finding two relatively minor provisions that had to be struck from the legislation, forcing the House to take yet another vote on the package later Thursday evening.

Obama on Tuesday already signed into law the dramatic overhaul of the country's health care system that aims to provide nearly all Americans with access to at least some form of health insurance. The president will give another signature on the new set of changes.

The president on Thursday took his case on the road to convince a sceptical public of the need for reforms, which also impose new regulations on insurance companies and constitute the most comprehensive changes to the US health sector in four decades.

Republicans are hoping to capitalize on public anger against the reforms during mid-term congressional elections in November, vowing to repeal the legislation if they regain control of Congress.

Obama challenged conservatives to 'go for it' during a townhall- style gathering in Iowa City, Iowa.

'If they want to have that fight, we can have it,' Obama said. 'Because I dont believe that the American people are going to put the insurance industry back in the drivers seat.'

The White House also appealed for calm as the protracted debate turned violent this week. Spokesman Robert Gibbs said 'we ought to be able to have a debate that is done in a way that's civil without any threat of violence.'

The brother of one lawmaker came home Tuesday to find that a propane gas line to his outdoor grill had been severed. Protestors have also shattered windows at a number of Democratic Party offices around the country.

During protests over the weekend, some lawmakers faced racial slurs and other epithets as they entered Washington's Capitol building to take their final vote on the legislation.

Some Democrats accused Republican leaders of encouraging the attacks with their over-heated rhetoric against the health reforms. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said it was important for members of Congress to 'understand the impact of our words on others.'

Those accusations were sharply rejected by conservative leaders. Congressman Eric Cantor, who said a bullet was fired through a window of his office in Richmond, Virginia, said Democrats should be careful not to 'fan the flames' by linking occasional acts of violence with the broader public opposition to the legislation.

'By ratcheting up the rhetoric, some will only inflame these situations to dangerous levels,' Cantor warned.

John Boehner, the top Republican in the House, told US broadcaster Fox on Wednesday that while public anger was justified, he was 'concerned about the amount of violence and anger that's out there.'

'It is not the American way. Yes, I know there is anger, but let's take that anger, and go out and register people to vote, go volunteer on a political campaign, and lets do it the right way,' Boehner said.