By Kermit Miller
Monday, October 05, 2009 at 6:14 p.m.
Read more: State, Politics, Health, Local
JEFFERSON CITY -- He's worked to sell it to voters on the stump.
"I will not accept the status quo as a solution... not this time... not now,” President Barack Obama said. “The time for bickering is over.”
And he rallied doctors to his cause in the White House rose garden.
"Some of the people who are most supportive of reform are the very medical professionals who know the health care system best,” Obama said.
It's now crunch time for the Obama Administration on the Health care debate. With the last of the five bills out of the senate finance committee this weekend, a lot of reconciliation lies ahead.
"I think there's a chance that we'll have some kind of public option,” Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill said. “But it probably will be a very moderate program that will be severely limited in terms of its ability to grow...and who can access it.”
Sen. Kit Bond made clear his disdain for the president's idea of health care reform during remarks to Jefferson City Rotarians. And he told reporters afterward he feels railroaded.
"The Democrats have fought us on demanding we'll get at least 72 hours to see the bill before we vote on it,” Bond said.
“I remain optimistic that we're gonna get a bill passed,” McCaskill said.
Bond stopped short of saying he is ready to vote no.
But he said none of the bills contain what he believes to be necessary.
He said those elements are malpractice reform, pooling options for small businesses, and granting consumers the ability to buy health insurance across state lines.