(Thumbnail image: The New York Times)

“On this vote the yays are 60, the nays are 40.  The motion is agreed to.” (Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-NH)

Supporters of health care reform are saying it’s about time. Just after 1 a.m. Monday, the U.S. Senate voted to end debate on a health care reform bill. That means Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s goal of passing the bill by Christmas Eve just might be within reach.

We have perspectives from WIVB, Fox News, The Economist, and The Marco Eagle.

Before we look at where health care reform could go from here, let’s compare what the Senate bill looks like now with its cousin in the House, and how the bill changed over the weekend.

Here’s the CBS-affiliate in Buffalo, New York and Fox News.

“Right now the House bill has a public option; the Senate bill does not.  The House plans to tax millionaires; the Senate taxes high-end health care plans.”(WIVB)

“Here are the changes Democrats made this weekend. There are restrictions on abortion funding, so no tax dollars would pay for abortions, and a tax on Botox is out, but it’s been replaced with a tax on indoor tanning.” (Fox News)

The 60-40 vote landed strictly within party lines, a fact The Economist suggests Democrats may regret later.

“…The bill passed the House on a margin of just five votes, and in the Senate it has no safety margin. With no bipartisan support at all, Democrats will be held solely responsible if the reform turns out to be a disappointment.”

For some, those risks just don’t outweigh the benefits of reform. An editorial in The Marco Eagle of Marco Island, Florida reads:

“The bottom line is despite the fact that any proposed bill, which will be able to pass, will be far from perfect and will not solve all our health care problems, the consequences of inaction and keeping the status quo will be much, much worse for the medical and financial welfare of our citizens.”

So do you think the Senate will make Majority Leader Harry Reid’s deadline of passing healthcare reform by Christmas Eve? What do you think of the current version of the bill in the Senate?

Writer: Christina Hartman

Producer: Lee Morehouse