former president bill clinton, who of course failed on health care reform, but they still believe here at the white house that he has the air and the respect of many democrats so he's helping in reaching out and making phone calls as well to try to convince those democrats who are still sitting on the fence, wolf. >> and assuming they pass the senate version on the house floor, when will he sign that into law? >> reporter: i'm told my a senior administration official that despite what had been out there that perhaps that he would sign it tonight that he would not sign it into law tonight, perhaps tomorrow but they're not giving any time frame, just that it won't be sgloent is it going to be a big deal? will he invite the whole world over or a relatively modest signing ceremony. >> reporter: the guidance we're told is it will be low key because they still say, as we all know, that this process still has several other steps. the senate will still be making some critical votes, so it will be very modest. there won't be any grand celebration yet, just an acknowledgement of what has happened and there's still a lot more work to be done.

>> david gergen, our senior political analyst, will join us throughout the afternoon into the evening as well. a little historic perspective on this day, david. big deal, not such a big deal, what do you think? >> this is one of the most important moments in american social history since the mid-1960s, wolf. that's when medicare and medicaid and civil rights one and civil rights two were passed, momentous decisions that reshaped our country for a long time thereafter. here we've now come to that juncture where we have to decide are we going to reshape our health care insurance system. and so it's a -- this is a bill that's an idea, a dream, that has been pursued by presidents steadily since harry truman back in the mid-1940s, late 1940s. it's eluded every appellapresid. i was there in the white house when richard nixon went down over health care. i was there when bill clinton went down over health care.

barack obama has already brought this farther than anybody else. all eyes are not only on barack obama but nancy pelosi. i can tell you, wolf, that the eyes of the country are on this one today. i've been back in bacoston for couple of days and every conversation i've had has ended with how's it going to come out on health care. >> the house floor is getting ready to come into session within the next moment or two. they will bring down the gavel. as dana bash, our senior congressional correspondent pointed out, it's going to be almost like a regular business hour, the voting won't start at least until after 2:00 p.m. eastern, maybe even closer to 3:00 p.m. eastern on the first rules resolution that will have to come forward before they formally take up the senate bill. david gergen, stand by for a moment. sanjay gupta, our chief medical correspondent, is here watching all of this unfold with us. sanjay, assuming, it's still an assumption because the drama is

there, 216 is the magic number for passage or for failure of this senator bill. but assuming the senate bill passes and the president signs it either later tonight or tomorrow, that is the law of the land. practically speaking, whatever the senate does on the sidecar, the reconciliation bill, the tweaks, the changes, what does that new law of the land 9 average folks watching. >> for a lot of people who are not sick and have employer-based coverage, it may not mean a lot to them frankly right now. the people who will be most impacted earlier on are people who are uninsured and have some sort of medical problem. for a couple of reasons. first of all, you're not going to be as easy to circle someo someone -- to cancel someone's policy after they become sick. also this idea that ultimately this pre-existing condition term gets thrown around quite a bit. they're not addressing the pre-existing conditions but are creating high-risk pools where people if they had an illness in the past, they have been unail

to get health care insurance, they can join one of these pools. those are two big things. we talk about kids being covered up to the age of 26 under their parents' plan. that's something else. the medicare issue is part of this companion bill or whatever we're calling it exactly so we don't know exactly how that's going to play out, at least in the months to come. >> you know, they're just doing the opening prayer. nancy pelosi, the speaker, has gavelled the session. let's listen in. >> for us, lord, it is spring. the equinox has silently occurred, but we may not have been aware, because our earth was spinning so fast and we did not notice our tilt to your sun. help us, lord, to understand our ever-changing world better. never let us lose perspective. although it is spring for us, for another half of the world it is the beginning of fall. help us to hold on to you, lord,

now and forever. amen. the chair has examined the journal of the last day's proceedings and announces to the house her approval thereof, his approval thereof. the journal stands as approved. >> mr. speaker. >> for all purposes the gentleman from oregon rise. >> i request the question be put on agreeing to the speaker's approval of the journal. >> the question is on agreeing of the speaker's approval of the journal. those in favor, please say aye [ response ] >> those opposed no. >> no. >> the ayes have it. the journal stands as approved. >> mr. speaker, mr. speaker. >> i respect fully request the ayes and nays. >> a sufficient number having

risen, they are ordered purr subt to cause 8 of rule 20 for the proceedings on the question are postponed. >> all right, so they're beginning the process. they have got a lot of parliamentary maneuvering that they're going to be doing in the first hour. they'll also allow members to have some one-minute presentations of their own. we're going to be going back and forth and watching what's going on very carefully. the real substance of this historic day, this important day here on capitol hill won't really take effect at least for an hour, so there's some ability that we all have to digest what is going on. we're going to watch it very closely. we'll go back to capitol hill. this is a sunday candy crowley that's not like any other sunday here in washington. normally these ladies and gentlemen in the house are not working on sundays. >> well, they would take issue with that. some of them are back home in their districts, as they like to say, on their work period, working district. so they would argue with that. but nonetheless they're not here in washington. they tend to get out of town on friday and go back home and raise money or hold town hall

meetings, whatever. so obviously this is a very -- has a very different feel to it. and one way or the other, pass or fail, it's historic. if they can't get this passed, whoa. katie bar the door, it's a whole different game. if what we expect will happen is that it will pass, it's still a big moment. i mean not since -- as david mentioned, not since the 1960s have we seen this massive a piece of social legislation. >> and remind our viewers why we're all here today, exactly 72 hours after this legislation was formally posted on the web. >> well, we are here today so the democratic party can pass health care reform, which they have been working on not only for the last year, wolf, but they have been working on it for the last 16 years, shall we say, since hillary clinton tried to pass health care reform in 1993. and even before then. this is really a defining moment

for this presidency. and for his party. we expect this to pass along party line votes. there are some things that are still not resolved, which is why we're not sure what the votes are going to be, and i was just talking to a democratic source who said that they think they're working out a compromise with those anti-abortion democrats, perhaps an executive order coming from the president which says that no federal money will be used to pay for abortions in any way. but this is definitional. for the party, for this presidency, and also for the future of what barack obama will be able to accomplish as president of the united states. >> we're going to bring donna brazile, who's here, alex castellanos who's here, we're going to continue our assessment of what's going on. will bart stupak, for example, the democratic congressman from michigan, very anti-abortion, will he go along with some sort of compromise and vote in favor of health care reform if, for example, the president of the united states signs an executive

order reaffirming the so-called hyde amendment which prevents federal money from being used for abortions. stand by, the debate is only just beginning. our coverage will continue right after this. at northern trust, we understand... that while you may come from the same family... you know, son, you should take up something more strenuous. you have different needs and desires. - i'm reading a book. - what's a book? so we tailor plans for individuals, featuring a range of integrated solutions. you at your usual restaurant? son: maybe. see you tomorrow. stairs? elevator. to see how our multi-faceted approach... can benefit your multi-generational wealth, look ahead with us at northerntrust.com. ♪ ahh ♪ ahh ♪ ahh ♪ ahh ♪ ahh ♪ ahh ♪ ahh ♪ ahh ♪ ahh ♪ ahh ♪ ahh ♪ ahh

♪ ahh ♪ ahh ♪ ahh ♪ ahh, ahh ♪ ahh ♪ ahh ♪ ahh ♪ ahh ♪ ahh ♪ ahh, ahh ♪ ahh ♪ ahh ♪ ahh, ahh, ahh ♪ ahh, ahh, ahh, ahh [ male announcer ] at ge, we've dedicated some of the best minds and the most advanced technology to bring better health to more people. it's an idea we call healthymagination and we think it just might catch on. ♪ ahh, ahh, ahh, ahh ♪ ahh that was very nice.

why my braids were so tight, but i know there is a better way, and i know that because members of the congressional black caucus worshipped this morning at the mount zion baptist church. and pastor smith said to us to call upon healing the land. we'll be able to heal the land by voting this evening on a health care bill that will help those who cannot help themselves. those single mothers, those people with pre-existing disease, and i have the dishonor of being a member of congress representing the state of texas that has the highest number of uninsured. and so today, there will be no shame in my vote, because i'll vote for those texans who are not here and cannot speak for themselves. and seniors will have insurance. and 95% of americans will have insurance. this is a day --

>> the gentleman is correct. would members take their conversations off the floor. this young lady deserves to be heard. >> sheila jackson lee, the congresswoman, was briefly interrupted. he's going to finish up and there will be a republican response. these are one-minute presentations they're making. there's a little disorderly conduct. let's listen in. >> this is a day that courage will be the call of the day. i yield back. >> the gentleman from pennsylvania rise. >> permission to address the house for one minute. >> over the past 14 months i have held 235 meetings and town hall meetings -- >> the house will be in order. will members take their conversations off the floor. the gentleman deserves to be heard.

>> all right. a little drama on the floor of the house of representatives. they're making these one-minute presentations, brief presentations by democratic and republican lawmakers. >> the gentleman will continue. >> there's been a little bit of conversation going on, shall we say, a little disorderly conversation. as a result, there was that pause. but let's listen in briefly and then we'll resume our discussion here. >> there is much we can agree on with each side of the aisle but we still did not fix the underlying problem of health care. we still will have 700 billion in waste, we still will have 50 billion wasted each year in hospitals alone. we'll have a medicare program going bankrupt sand instead take another $500 billion from medicare, take $52 billion from social security.

we cannot confuse anger with action, we have to understand that we will not give up on real health care reform that really cuts costs and saves lives to make it acceptable to all. we will never, never, never give up. >> will members to my left please control their comments. the gentleman deserves to be heard. >> all right. so still some extracurricular activity going on on the house floor that's interrupting these one-minute presentations by democratic and republican members of congress. it's only just beginning. it's probably going to heat up as this day continues. that was timothy murphy, the congressman from pennsylvania. earlier sheila jackson-lee the democratic congresswoman. very, very different perspectives. alex castellanos and donna brazile will help us better appreciate some of what's going on right now. donna, very quickly, you're well plugged into these democrats. when they say they have these

216 votes, otherwise they wouldn't be doing this extraordinary sunday session today, do they have the 216 votes in the pocket right now? >> yes. i talked to a few lawmakers, including my own congresswoman, who unfortunately she doesn't have a vote but she has a loud mouth and a great voice, champion for democracy here in the district of columbia. what congressman norton told me today as she was preparing to go up there, she said, look, we have the votes and clearly some members will be told that this is a vote of conscience. if you can't cast this ballot, we understand. but there's no question that they have the votes. and, wolf, you have to give speaker pelosi a lot of credit for being able to bring the caucus together to get these votes and to unify the party soon after the vote is cast tonight. >> you've been talking to republicans, alex. and this is a dramatic day, you know. the democrats may say they have the votes and donna brazile is very well plugged in. she thinks they have the votes. the democratic leadership, they say they have the votes but earlier we heard from john

boehner, the republican leader in the house, not so sure. what do you think? >> well, right now it appears that they do. they certainly wouldn't be bringing it to a vote if they hadn't. but this is a seminal day. this is much bigger than even just health care. this is the day where we're seeing a realignment in american politics. democrats hope this is a renewal of the new deal and will lock them in for 25 years. republicans are thinking the democrats are touching a hot stove here and debranding themselves as a party of economic responsibility and the party of the center and this will be almost like a reagan revolution starting today. so this is a big day. republicans, you know, have been telling democrats don't vote for this, but it's not because republicans care that much what happens to democrats, they're just trying to make sure this thing does not pass. they see it as a danger to the country. >> there will be a few dozen, donna, democrats who will not vote for this. hold on a second because dana bash has been working her

sources up on capitol hill. dana, there's been a lot of intrigue, a lot of interest on this day on some of those house democrats who are fierce leo posed to abortion and they are not in line, they don't like the abortion language that's in the senate version. bart stupak from michigan among them. what are you hearing? is there some sort of side deal that will allow bart stupak, for example, to vote yes in favor of the senate bill? >> reporter: the answer is they are working on it but they're not there yet. bart stupak himself just told our lisa jansen he is still a no. however, he has been working with lawyers from the white house and even met with them this morning. and what they're working on to bring bart stupak over the line is an executive order, by the president obviously, that essentially restates the law, and the law being on abortion that there would be no taxpayer dollars used to fund any abortions. that's really the bottom line

for bart stupak and he and maybe about seven at the point, seven other anti-abortion democrats simply say that they don't trust that the way that the language is currently written in the senate bill, which is what they're going to vote on, goes far enough in making that clear that that's the law of the land. so because the house speaker has said he's not going to get any more votes on the house floor today, the compromise deal that they're working on is the president writing an executive order. we've talked to many, many members of the democratic leadership this morning. they all say they're fine with it. abortion rights democrats say they're fine with it. at this point it's just getting the language right of it and when they get that, bart stupak will probably be a yes and maybe bring six or seven democrats along with him which would be really critical. no question that would put democrats over the line probably relatively comfortably if that happens. >> that would be very, very significant if in fact that happens and it would guarantee a democratic win on the house floor. there's still doubt, a little bit of doubt. there's no guarantee at this

point but if bart stupak and some of those other democrats who oppose abortion decide to vote yes, it looks like that would clearly allow this legislation to go forward. we'll take another quick break. as we go to break, let's flicli in to what's happening. >> will we choose to go where government forces choices upon us. will we choose to uphold the sacred motto "we the people" or will we return to the chains and slavery of government and choose "we the subjects." our choice is clear. we have wind. we have solar, obviously. we have lots of oil. i think natural gas is part of the energy mix of the future. i think we have the can-do. we have the capability. we have the technology. the solutions are here. we just need to find them here.

the discussions on the floor of the house of representatives are continuing right now. these are very brief presentations by members of the house, democrats and republicans. one-minute presentations and they're timed. usually if they go more than a few seconds over, they're gavelled down and told to effectively shut up. one minute is one minute in these presentations. they want as many of these 435 members of the house to get a chance to make their little statement. those statements are significant. candy crowley, because a lot of these members, they will have that videotape of their one-minute statement, if you will, and they'll send it back, put it up on their web and be

able to use it for whatever political purposes they want. >> exactly. make no mistake about this. win or lose today, this health care bill, this will be an issue, maybe not the issue, believe it or not, in the november elections. it may be more the economy than health care, but nonetheless what you will hear today are the political arguments beginning to take shape as they move into november. >> and they're also doing, by the way, some other business even as these do these one-minute presentations on national women's business month, for example. that's coming up. i suspect there's going to be a lot of support for that legislation. >> i think so. it's going to be real popular. >> not a lot of real opposition. you were going to make a point, gloria. >> you know, heading into this, i think the democrats know this is a real political risk for them, obviously. and if they hadn't pursued comprehensive health care reform where would they then be. that's the calculation now. if they pass comprehensive health reform, maybe they'll lose ten or so more seats. but if they had done nothing,

their calculation is that they would have -- could really have lost control of the house. now, some republicans, alex, say they're going to lose control of the house because of health care reform. but their argument is people will see some of the impact within the next six months and that that in the end will be good for them and they look like they're a governing majority at least that can get something done. >> i think most republicans would tell you, though, that passing something now is going to hurt the democrats with this argument, that this is going to be a brake pedal election. washington is out of control that, we've had elections in new jersey and virginia, even in massachusetts, the most democratic state in the world, telling democrats don't do this. and guess what they're doing anyway. so now it's not about health care, it's not even about the economy. you're doing health care, not listening to people on the economy. it's washington has just lost touch with us completely and it's a populist revolution that's out there. the tea party is only the tip of the iceberg, so, you know, would the democrats have been better

off if they had grown the economy first? and concentrated on that and dealt with unemployment? i think so. now i think a lot of democratic congressmen are going to have their own unemployment issues in november. >> well, what's interesting is that whether it's the economy, health care, job creation, republicans have made the calculation that it's better to sit on the sideline and say no than to get in the thick of the game and help move the ball down the court when it comes to moving the agenda forward. that's the history. all you have to do is look at the debate and listen to what we'll witness in a few hours. the cost of inaction is great. if the democrats failed to act today, they understand that they will go back to their constituents and say, you know what, i spent one year debating this issue and using up all our political capital. right now we can't help you with your premiums or your small businesses. >> hold those thoughts for a moment because dana bash is up

on the hill and she's getting some information. i want to take a quick break. as soon as she clarifies what she's learning, we'll go to her and our coverage will continue right after this. to cover up flaws and make skin look pretty but there's one that's so clever, it makes your skin look better even after you take it off. neutrogena healthy skin liquid makeup. 98% of women saw improvement in their skin's natural texture, tone, or clarity. does your makeup do that? neutrogena® cosmetics recommended most by dermatologists.

is to reproduce every color in the world on tv. introducing quattron quad pixel technology. it adds a fourth color, yellow, to the standard rgb color system, creating a vast array of colors you can't see with your tv's three color technology. but, you can see this.

whoa! oh my. [ male announcer ] quattron from sharp. you have to see it, to see it. [ engineer laughs ]

let's go right to dana bash. she's up on capitol hill. what are you learning, dana? >> reporter: even as we get closer to the vote, some of these formerly undeclared democrats who we've been watching or breaking and they are before the vote giving how they're going to decide. gabrielle giffords is going to vote yes for this bill. she's really one of those from ground zero politically. she's from arizona. she is a new member. she is going to probably have a very tough re-election this year and one of those when we talk about members who are kind of on the bubble and may really have to fight for their job to keep their job because of this vote. she is one of them. she was on the fence and she is now saying she is going to vote

yes. brian baird is another one from washington state. he is now saying he is going to vote yes. so a couple of good breaks for the house democratic leadership just in the last couple of minutes. i want you to look at what's behind me. you can probably see a little commotion. what just ended was the democrats' last big rally, wolf. democrats last big meeting. the house speaker was there, all of the leadership and most of the democratic caucus for the leadership to give them one last push, one last hurrah, if you will, to say we really want to get this done. democrats meet a lot but for this particular meeting it was quite important given where they're about to head and i just saw the house speaker and the rest of the leadership go from there and head out the door to walk over to the capitol to begin this debate and to be presiding in earnest. >> dana, correct me if i'm wrong, with these two undecided democrats now deciding to vote yes in favor of health care reform, they must be right around 216 by now, i assume? >> reporter: they certainly are

getting there. they are being very, very cautious about telling us they have reached internally that magic 216 number. to say that explicitly. however, there certainly is a lot of optimism and a lot of democratic leaders smiling and feeling good. so there's no question they do feel confident. actually i just want to tell you, i just got on my blackberry, we're talking about the confidence but there are some things that are not breaking their way. john tanner, he is a retiring member from tennessee, he is somebody who actually voted no last time. democratic leaders were hoping they would be able to switch him because he is leaving. he doesn't have the political baggage, if you will, of voting for this. he's going to vote no and stick with his no vote so there's something that's not breaking the democrats' way. they were actually hoping to hold him in the bag, if you will, and keep him for the last minute if they needed an extra vote, they would ask him to come along. he's saying now he's voting no. maybe that is an indication that they don't need him to do that later. >> that's interesting. one quickly, bart stupak, the

democratic congressman from michigan, dana, just clarify what we know right now.ly oppos senate language in this legislation but is sending some signals if something happens he might still vote in favor of it? what do we know? >> that's right. we know that they seem to be very, very close to a deal that will bring bart stupak into the yes column on this health care bill. he himself told our producer, lisa jansen, that just a few minutes ago. he and some of his colleagues who are fellow anti-abortion democrats have been working with the white house, white house lawyers specifically, to try to come up with language on an executive order that the president would sign to make them feel more confident in what their goal is. their goal is they do not want taxpayer dollars to be used to fund abortions. many people who are voting for the senate bill feel that the language in the bill suf sufficiently explains that and

prevent that from happen bug bart stupak and some of his colleagues are not sure. it sounds like they're very close to working it out. if they do, that will bring bart stupak and probably about seven other democrats who are against abortion staunchly over to the yes column. that would be very big for the leadership. >> that would be huge because it would give them a significant cushion going over 216. dana, stand by. i know you're working your sources. a dramatic day up on capitol hill. david gergen is watching all of this, our senior political analyst. david, the white house makes the point that there's the hyde amendment, which prevents federal taxpayer dollars from being used for abortion and that really that's the law of the land and nothing else is required, nothing in the senate language changes it, the house language, which was a little tougher, certainly didn't change the hyde amendment. why is there -- why are there these doubts that bart stupak and these other anti-abortion democrats are having as far as federal funding for abortion is

concerned? >> well, wolf, there have been two different approaches on how to carry out the hyde amendment. one was the bart stupak amendment placed in the original house bill, which was very airtight in the eyes of many pro-choice democrats, including nancy pelosi. it was actually a step backwards. it would have diminished women's access to abortion. and then there's the senate version, which in the eyes of the catholic bishops and bart stupak, does set up two different funds, but they think that while the money is compartmentalized that the federal government will be indirectly subsidizing abortions, so bart stupak and his colleagues have held out for something closer to the original house version. they're not going to get that. this executive order is interesting because it's hard to see how the executive order will be anything more than a promise that the senate bill will still be the law of the land. the senate version would still be the law of the land, this

indirect subsi deization as stupak sees it. but if he is going to come over based on this promise by the president to enforce it as closely as you can, as you say, wochl, if he brings bart stupak over along with his colleagues, it's a done deal and they'll win handily. we'll really watching this minute-to-minute to see because i think this will be the clear turning point if bart stupak dwra agrees to the executive order. >> that will give them enough to get over 216. 216 plus is what they need. i just want to clarify one thing. in that side agreement, the reconciliation bill, the changes to the senate version, they can't change the language on abortion because the reconciliation process can only deal with funding, with appropriations matters, can't deal with policy issues, that's why they can't tweak the language on abortion in the reconciliation legislation. we'll take another quick break. we'll continue our special

coverage on this important day in washington right after this.

we're watching what's happening on capitol hill and we're going to be here all day long. this is a moment in american history when health care reform may or may not pass in the next few hours. we will know whether or not it will become the law of the land. i'm wolf blitzer here. we're reporting it together with the best political team on television, including candy crowley, who is here. candy, as we watch this unfold in the next hour or so, they're going to probably have the first of several votes. >> they have three important votes. a vote on the rule, which just

sort of sets up the terms of the debate, unlike the senate where you can pretty much debate add nauseum and often they do and then they will have a vote on the senate health care reform bill that. then goes to the president if they vote yes. and then a vote on the fix-it package, which is basically the things they didn't like about the senate reform bill and that bill is the one that goes to the senate, which is why we're not quite at super, super sunday yet. >> and then gloria, in the senate that, could take a week, two weeks or forever for them to consider the changes in the senate, given the rules of the senate. even though it's reconciliation, you only need 51 votes to pass it, you don't need a super majority of 60. there are delaying procedures, amendments, all sorts of stuff the republicans can do to try to change it. >> and you think they'll do it, wolf? the answer is? >> i'm sure they'll try to make some significant changes. >> and when you have unlimited amendments in front of you and you have an election out there in november and republicans want

to make points, knowing full well that they may lose on most of them, but, you know, the question is what if they propose something that is irresistible for democrats to join, that they can put on this bill and if it gets changed in any way, shape or form, this fix-it package, then it's going to have to go back to the house and those house people who already distrust the senate, you know, more than they distrust senate republicans, i mean house democrats are very, very nervous about their democratic colleagues in the senate. they're going to be really angry. they tried to get a letter in writing saying you're going to do exactly what we want you to do. i mean this is -- you know, this is not a healthy relationship between senate democrats and house democrats. >> the house democrats clearly don't trust the senate democrats. >> right. so senate republicans are going to come in and they're going to sort of have a little fun with this, i think. >> it's not up for a vote either

until -- because they're going to go to the parliamentarian. and if the parliamentarian rules with the republicans, the democrats are going to, in order to keep the bill intact, are going to have to disagree with the parliamentarian and overrule him, which then starts a whole other thing. >> take a look at this videotape we're just getting in. you interviewed congressman larson earlier on "state of the union." he and some others were involved. take a look at these pictures we're just getting in. some of the protesters were out there, they were urging them to get more actively involved. but let's listen to congressman larson right now. >> our final caucus on health care, a record number of caucuses. now we're locking arms, behind a man who led a nation across a bridge 44 years ago, 45 years

ago. and today, today is going to lead us across this street and to vote for health care for the american people. thank you so much. speaker of the house. >> i'm carrying this gavel that was just given to me -- correction, lent to me my chairman dingel. it's the gavel that he used to gavel -- it was used in the enactment of the medicare law. i will use it this evening when we cast a very successful vote for this important legislation. it's been a complete team effort, not only a team effort, a partnership with our leadership and every member of our caucus. we look forward to making this

historic day known to the american people about we're doing this for the american people, for their health, for their opportunity, for their job success and -- thank you. >> all right. so the democrats having a little pep rally just before this -- these key votes are about to unfold. key word -- key words from nancy pelosi, this evening she said the vote, suggesting we're going to be here for a while. but we're going to watch every step of the way. this is an important piece of legislation, a critical piece of legislation, whether you're for it or against it. you want to know if the way health care is provided in the united states stands or changes, how much change there is. sanjay gupta, our chief medical correspondent, is here and will help us break down what exactly will change if in fact this passes today and our coverage continues after this. is to reproduce every color in the world on tv. introducing quattron quad pixel technology.

it adds a fourth color, yellow, to the standard rgb color system, creating a vast array of colors you can't see with your tv's three color technology. but, you can see this. whoa! oh my. [ male announcer ] quattron from sharp. you have to see it, to see it. [ engineer laughs ] okay, we're going to get going right away. [ announcer ] he's never met an appendix he couldn't fix! the abdomen-ator dr. bob bergowitz! yeah, woo! [ announcer ] she's the queen of clean! the 2009 surgeon of the year, dr. nancy mendelsohn! [ male announcer ] doctors and nurses are true heroes. at ge, we're working to give them the innovation, fresh thinking, and advanced technology they need to keep bringing better health to more people. are you ready, mr. randall? let's do this! [ crowd cheering ] ♪

keller graduate school of management, you'll have a professor with you every step of the way. whether you take classes on campus, online, or both, you get the same attention, the same curriculum, and the same quality. 85 locations nationwide and online. discover how to grow the business of you... at keller.edu.

it was tough news to hear. everything changed. mom. ♪ i didn't know what to do. that's when i asked my doctor about exelon patch. he said it releases medicine continuously for 24 hours. he said it could help with her cognition, which includes things like memory, reasoning, communicating and understanding. [ female announcer ] the most common side effects of exelon patch are nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. the likelihood and severity of these side effects may increase as the dose increases. patients may experience loss of appetite or weight. patients who weigh less than 110 pounds may experience more side effects. people at risk for stomach ulcers or who take certain other medicine should talk to their doctor because serious stomach problems, such as bleeding, may worsen. [ woman ] mom's diagnosis was hard to hear, but there's something i can do. [ female announcer ] visit exelonpatch.com for free caregiving resources.

welcome back. we're watching what's happening on the floor of the house of representatives where over the next few hours there will be several votes that will have an immediate impact if in fact the senate version of health care reform is passed by the house and they're getting very close to the magic number of 216 votes. there will be immediate impacts out there and several long-term impacts, irrespective of what the senate does on the separate reconciliation bill, the legislation that includes all sorts of, quote, fixes or changes in the senate version. sanjay is here. you spent a lot of time, sanjay, taking a look at what really happens. give us a little primer on the immediate and the long-term impact of this senate bill

becoming the law of the land, if in fact it passes the house, and the president signs it either tonight or tomorrow. >> well, you know, if you look at people who are going to be the most impacted right away, it's probably people who are uninsured and have had some sort of medical problem. >> like 40 million americans. >> well, there's a lot of people who are uninsured, but thisunin people in particular. they've had some sort of medical problem which made it really hard to get insurance because premiums are exorbitant. >> pre-existing conditions. >> they want to set up i think within 90 days of an enactment if this passes this high risk pool -- pools across the country so that if you had a hard time getting insurance you can go to one of these high risk pools and get insurance. you've been waiting for medication, therapy, an operation. >> you can't be denied. >> and the way they're going to do this is help fund these high risk pools, about $5 billion tentatively possibly going to fund these. that's going to take place, you know, quickly, within about three months. but there are other things as well. a lot of them sort of think

about as consumer protection. for example people do get sick who are insured but there's a cap on how much an insurance company will pay for them. those caps both annually and over a lifetime will start to go away. that should take place this year as well. they also talked about things like young adults, you know, people who graduated from college for example but haven't gotten their first job being covered under their parents' plan until the age of 26. medicare is something that we talked about a lot and we talked about these drug discounts for seniors. the doughnut hole i think most people sort of understand that concept now but basically you get some sort of subsidies at the beginning of paying for your drugs. then there is a hole in the middle and you get subsidies near the end of your drug costs. they want to shrink that. it won't be right away but there will be some money toward that as well. those are some of the big things that happen at least initially if this passes. by the end of the year probably. >> those are things a lot of folks will like, gloria, but there will be other things a lot of folks won't necessarily like. for example some of the costs of all of this.

>> sure. >> no free lunch for example. there is going to be some -- there will be some cuts in medicare. half a trillion dollars in fact over the next ten years. >> right. >> or $50 billion a year. there's going to be some increased taxes on wealthier americans. there will be a mandate. if you don't have health insurance you'll -- if you're small business owner, you're going to be forced to provide health insurance or pay a significant fine to the federal government. >> you're going to have to pay a fine and if you're an individual you have to pay a fine just like we require people to have insurance on their automobiles you're going to have to buy into health insurance because that's the only way this can really work, wolf. i might point out, it's something that barack obama opposed, these mandates when running for the presidency but discovered you can't do health care reform unless you have these mandates because you have to make the pool larger. >> we'll continue our assessment of what's going on.

dramatic developments up on capitol hill. we're not going away. we'll be here for you and watching all of this unfold. stay with cnn for complete coverage. we should be looking closer to home. we have oil on our shores. natural gas can be a part of the solution. i think we need to work on wind resources. they ought to be carefully mapping every conceivable alternative. there is an endless opportunity right here.

all right. they're getting ready for the first of several votes on health care reform on the floor of the house of representatives. they're not there yet but we're watching very, very closely to see what's going on. our continuing coverage here on cnn. we're watching this unfold. donna, the republicans made a huge deal that this is going to be very expensive when all the

dust settles and that right now in these tough economic times when so many people are unemployed you can't start imposing all these new taxes and all these fees and it's going to undermine the economy. but before you answer that question, i'm told there's a little protest going on on the house floor. i'm curious to hear what's going on. all right. they've actually closed the mikes so we don't hear the protests. this vote they're having, this roll call is on a technical, totally different measure, nothing to do with health care reform right now so don't be confused by those votes you see on the screen right there. but there was a little commotion going on. a lot of raw nerves right now, very hard feelings. as you know, a lot of democrats want this. a lot of republicans say this is

going to be a disaster. country simply can't afford it. >> we've been looking at this through the prism of politics. that's very important. i'm a political animal myself. most americans are going to look at it in terms of their wallet. right now they understand they're going to be paying more in premiums this year because we have no health care reform. if you're small business owner you're paying more because you have to go into the individual market. if you have an existing plan you're spending at least another thousand dollars on uncompensated care. so long term this will reduce costs and the deficit. this will help many americans stay healthy and i think rather than look at, you know, some of the underlying politics we need to look at what's in the bill, what's good for the american people, what scientists rattle off in terms of the immediate benefits, inthe politics is a lot sexier. in fact i like the sex part, too. the truth is -- >> there's a benefit for that if they get the bill out.

>> hopefully a small benefit. let's not go there too early in the morning. i haven't gotten all my confessions out yet. the truth is that right now the american people will see their premiums rise unless we have something in place that will help them pay for health care in the future. >> to make health care costs less we'll spend a trillion dollars more. that doesn't add up to the american people. on top of that the democrats are going back i think an old, industrial-aged way of thinking, somehow washington is going to make something cost less. washington doesn't have a good track record. you know, big government does big, simple things well? build a road, blow something up. but complex things like health care, the most complex thing in the country, to manage that politically and artificially from washington and say you're going to reduce costs is very tough as opposed to the republican approach was manage it bottom up. put the price control mechanism at the bottom with doctors and patients. i think this is doomed to fail and most republicans do, too.