The Senate voting on various amendments for the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act has begun, with bipartisan and Democratic initiatives being initially successful on Thursday. As reported in DM 10879, Senators Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) and Olympia Snow (R-ME) had presented an amendment to guarantee women access to critical preventive services and that such services covered under health insurance plans would include those that are based on guidelines supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration. Under this amendment, women will be able to obtain screening including mammograms, diabetes testing, and heart disease screening.

"Under my amendment, we are saying goodbye to an era when simply being a woman is treated as a pre-existing condition," Senator Mikulski said on her Web site after the amendment passed. "We are saying hello to an era where decisions about preventive care and screenings are made by a woman and her doctor -- not by an insurance company, Members of Congress, or a stranger -- and women are guaranteed preventive screenings and care at no cost."

Senator Snowe pointed out after the amendment's passage that the amendment would not be construed to prohibit an insurer from providing coverage for services in addition to those recommended by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force or deny coverage for services that are not recommended.

"While Americans may have differing and conflicting opinions on how best to reform our ailing health care system, the one area where we can find common ground is prevention," The Senator stated on her Web site. "We've heard time and again that emphasizing primary care and prevention early leads to longer, healthier lives and this amendment will guarantee that every woman, regardless of economic status, will be afforded the same access and opportunities to utilize prevention tools that help keep us healthy."

Senator John McCain's (R-AZ) amendment to remove extensive cuts in the bill pertaining to Medicare was voted down. However, Michael Bennet (D-CO) and other Democrats had submitted an amendment on Medicare that would ensure the bill would not reduce any access to basic guaranteed Medicare services. The amendment would also extend the solvency of the Medicare program. Bennet's amendment was successful in the vote. Senator Bennet stated in a press release that this amendment had the endorsements of the AARP, the Alliance for Retired Americans, and the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare.

Bennet commented on his Web site: "The passage of this amendment means that we are making it absolutely clear that nothing in this bill will cut guaranteed Medicare benefits for our seniors. This bill will extend the Medicare trust fund, lower premiums, increase Medicare benefits, and improve access to providers for our seniors."

Read the details:

Senator Mikulski's statement: http://mikulski.senate.gov/record.cfm?id=320404&

Senator Snowe's statement: http://snowe.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=PressRoom.PressReleases&ContentRecord_id=55947c63-802a-23ad-4e03-a4fb7a634b61&Region_id=&Issue_id=

Senator Bennet's statement: http://bennet.senate.gov/newsroom/press/release/?id=597a811e-8224-4b7e-8797-c0339b341552

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