Mandate Sinking Health Insurance Reform in Cal.

Several key Democratic legislators in the California Senate have turned against Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's health care reform plan, which had passed the House. A vote is expected later today. According to this morning's New York Times, they feared working people would end up paying the tab for the added costs of insurance because employer contributions were capped.

“I just came to the conclusion that the working people are going to end up paying for it,” said Senator Leland Yee, Democrat of San Francisco, who announced his opposition before a committee meeting last Wednesday. “There’s control for everybody else — the employers are protected and the insurance industry. The only group that’s vulnerable is the working people.”

Asked to surmise its odds of passage on Monday, Mr. Yee was blunt. “I wouldn’t bet 5 cents on it,” he said.