Today on the chrismas eve, the US Senate passed the final healthcare bill with a vote of 60-39 along the party lines.

Now the bill goes to conference committee to reconcile with House version of the bill.  In another news, House Speaker Pelosi has told her team to reconcile the bill prior to state of the union address.

The Senate bill has a tag of 871 $billions compared to house bill of about $1 trillion.  These costs are however misleading as it does cost the government or people to treat the uninsured.

It is fair to say that it is not additional cost but a cost transfer.  Bill is expected to reduce the cost through exchange programs in each state.  However, there is no clear and direct measures to cut cost.

Insurance companies have been mandated to spend 85% of the revenue for clinical purposes.  But it is not the insurance companies that are driver of the cost. 

Insurers however have failed in their mandate to cut cost.  They have rather become a simple ATM or money distributor without much added value.