Since the health care debate began, Sen. Mary Landrieu has had her share of concerns over what should go into any bill–from bringing down costs and protections for small businesses to opposing the public option. Interestingly, the Louisiana Senator has been conspicuously silent on Sen. Harry Reid’s new bill, H.R. 3590–even though it doesn’t seem to address many of her original concerns. In fact, Sen. Landrieu’s position on the health care bill noticeably shifted on Wednesday after a meeting with Sen. Reid and administration officials. After the meeting, Sen. Landrieu suddenly changed her vote from “leaning no” to “officially neutral.”
Could it be what ABC News is calling the “100 million dollar health care vote?” Section 2006 of Sen. Reid’s bill increases federal Medicaid subsidies for “certain states recovering from a major disaster.” Although it takes two pages of the bill to explain what a qualifying state is, ABC News points out that only one state fits the criteria. You guessed it: My home state of Louisiana where Mary Landrieu happens to be Senator.
