The Healthcare Summit

Here’s the skinny from Medscape.

Anyone expecting some glorious “eureka!” moment at the White House healthcare summit today that would forge a compromise on contentious reform proposals between Democrats and Republicans has to be disappointed…

Was anything substantive decided at the summit? Obama and Democratic leaders strongly indicated that they may resort to the parliamentary procedure known as reconciliation if that is what it takes to get a bill passed. This would mean that the legislation could pass with a simple majority in the Senate, rather than the usual 60 votes needed to end a filibuster. Republicans characterize the tactic as pushing through the bill on a strictly party-line basis.

The public opposes using reconciliation by 52% to 39%, according to a USA Today/Gallup poll…

What’s next? Democrats could try to push through their bills through the reconciliation method by a party-line vote, although they acknowledge that is a high-risk strategy, if even possible.