Senate's healthcare draft calls for most to buy insurance, nixes public option

A draft proposal in the Senate to overhaul the nation's healthcare system would require most people to buy health insurance, authorize an expansion of Medicaid coveragem and create consumer-owned cooperative plans. The document addressed none of the funding questions that have consumed House and Senate negotiators, but it included an array of coverage provisions that were drastically scaled back from earlier versions as lawmakers seek to shrink the bill's overall cost. The proposal, for instance, would reduce the pool of middle-class beneficiaries eligible for a new tax credit meant to make insurance more affordable.