One night after President Barack Obama told the nation having a deadline was key in the effort to reform the nation’s health care system, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said a compromise is unlikely before this fall.

Harry Reid

Reid (D-Nev.) told reporters today (July 23) that a bipartisan agreement on health care legislation was likely to come from the Senate Finance Committee before the Aug. 8 recess, but would use the break to merge that bill with legislation passed by the Senate’s Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, according to the New York Times.

In direct contradiction to the president’s wish dating back soon after taking office, Reid told reporters “it is better to have a product based on quality and thoughtfulness rather than try to jam something through,” according to the report.

In a televised press conference July 22, Obama reiterated his intent to sign a health care reform bill by the “end of this year,” ignoring specific mention of the August deadline he previously set.  The president did, however, note the importance of having a deadline to get action in Washington, D.C.

To date, two of the three House committees have passed health care reform legislation with the Energy and Commerce Committee reportedly reaching a similar vote by the beginning of this week, according to published reports.
The Senate Finance Committee is the lone group in that chamber of Congress to come to an agreement among its membership.

Reid said at his news conference that it should come as no surprise that there is a delay in reform on the Senate side, citing bipartisan issues. At issue are elements of the legislation including how to pay for $1 trillion in reform measures and mandates on individuals and employers.

“Working with the Republicans, one of the things that they asked for was to have more time,” Reid said, according to the Times. “A decision was made to give them more time for the Finance Committee.” He added: “I don’t think it’s unreasonable. This is a complex, difficult issue.”