After months of negotiations, hours of committee meetings and hundreds of amendments, the Senate Finance Committee has voted to move its health care reform bill out of the committee phase thus moving health care reform efforts closer to the finish line.

The vote was 14-9 with Senator Olympia Snowe (R-ME) as the sole Republican vote for the bill.  Snowe said in her remarks that she will vote “yes” today, but that did not mean that she will vote “yes” in the future.  Iowa Senator Charles Grassley (R) voted “no” stating in his remarks, “This bill is already moving on a slippery slope toward more government control of health care.”

The committee’s move completes the committee phase on health care reform, as the other four Congressional committees (1 Senate, 3 House) have completed work.  The Finance bill will now be melded with the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions bill before moving to the Senate floor for a vote.  Meanwhile, the House continues to wait and see what results in the Senate before taking its bill to the floor for a full House vote.

Many are speculating that the health care reform debate will continue, and some are questioning whether or not a bill will make it to the president’s desk before the Congressional Thanksgiving recess in November.