Nov. 7--U.S. Rep. Brian Baird said Friday that he would vote against the Affordable Health Care for America Act because Congress still lacks reliable estimates of how the legislation will affect premiums paid by people who already have insurance, including those on Medicare.

"This is no small matter," Baird said in a statement issued Friday, before the vote. "To insist that members vote on this legislation without having cost estimates of Medicare and Medicaid impacts ... or an estimate of premium impacts from the Congressional Budget Office seems premature and unwise."

His statement drew a sharp response from state Democratic Party Chairman Dwight Pelz.

"The Washington State Democratic Party will be very disappointed in any members of our delegation who don't support President Obama and Speaker (Nancy) Pelosi" on health care reform, Pelz said.

"There's a time in history when you can move a major issue forward," Pelz said. "The Democratic majority in the House is ready to pass a health care reform bill, and we hope that Brian Baird will join us."

Baird, D-Vancouver, said in an interview that he expects the vote to be close. "I've had calls from Cabinet secretaries," he said.

Baird said he also objected to the House leadership's ruling that only one amendment to the health care reform bill, from House Republicans, would be entertained on the House floor.

"For a matter of this importance, and on which reasonable people can and do disagree, there ought to be more opportunity granted for amendments on both sides."

Baird said he found many things worth supporting in the revised bill.

"To name just a few, the current bill would allow negotiations for prescription drugs under Medicare Part D, promote alternatives to malpractice litigation, and allow for cross-state agreements to purchase cross-state insurance," something especially relevant to border districts such as his own, he said.

Other provisions Baird said he supports would correct a Medicare payment disparity that penalizes Washington for keeping Medicare costs low and end the anti-trust exemption long enjoyed by insurance companies.

"I will wait to make a decision on final legislation until this critical information becomes available and when the House and Senate together produce one bill," he said.

David Castillo, an Olympia financial adviser who is campaigning to defeat Baird in 2010, called the House health care reform bill "a thinly veiled attempt to move our country closer to a government-run system." He said it will do nothing to control health care costs.

Controversy has followed Baird as health care reform moved into the spotlight. He swore off his trademark town hall meetings in favor of telephone town hall meetings this summer, saying he was concerned about live meetings' being disrupted by rancorous protesters. But he changed his stance and held five public meetings throughout his district. During those meetings, he said he hadn't made up his mind on whether he'd support the reform bill.

Kathie Durbin: 360-735-4523 or kathie.durbin@columbian.com.

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