Klobuchar: 'It's a good starting point'

Klobuchar
Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., seen here during hearings for Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor, says the health care reform bill released by Sen. Max Baucus is a "good starting point."
AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite

DFL Sen. Amy Klobuchar discussed the ongoing health care reform debate with MPR's Tom Crann and said the $856 billion health care reform bill introduced today by Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus is "a good starting point."

She commented favorably on several aspects of the Senate bill, including caps on out-of-pocket spending on health care and the removal of bans on pre-existing medical conditions.

Fees for medical device manufacturers remain a key issue for the DFL senator. Klobuchar said she remains hopeful that the bill can be altered to reduce the financial burden on the medical device industry.

She also spoke briefly about her vote today to bar federal funding to ACORN. "I think for most people, including myself, we were very troubled by some of the recent incidences," she said.

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