While Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus says a finalized health reform bill will be ready for debate by his group next week, some members say lingering concerns remain.

Max Baucus

Baucus (D-Mont.) told the Wall Street Journal that the bill, expected to cost $880 billion over the next decade, is “on track” for debate by the committee starting Sept. 23.

The Senate Finance Committee is the last Congressional body to finish its work on a comprehensive health reform bill.  Three committees in the House have completed their work. The compiled bill should be up for debate soon. Meanwhile, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committee finished its bill earlier this summer.

Baucus is part of the “Gang of Six” working to craft legislation after months of debates, mark-ups and other discussions on possible approaches to health care reform. It is expected that the Senate bill will not include a public health insurance option to compete with private insurance companies, as it has been one of the key elements of disagreement among committee members.

While Baucus is ready to move forward, others on the Senate Finance Committee have concerns still, according to the Journal.

Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) has expressed his desire for additional steps to make insurance more affordable for the middle class, and Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) voiced skepticism of new taxes and other mechanisms to pay the $880 billion required to pay for reform.

Kerry supported levying new fees on health insurers, pharmaceutical companies and others in the health industry to meet the bill’s price tag, according to the report.