HEALTH CARE REFORM: Signed into law by President

FINAL VICTORY OR ANOTHER BATTLE?

Claiming a historic triumph that could define his presidency, a jubilant Barack Obama signed a massive, nearly $1 trillion health care overhaul on Tuesday that will for the first time cement insurance coverage as the right of every U.S. citizen and begin to reshape the way virtually all Americans receive and pay for treatment.

After more than a year of hyperpartisan struggle — and numerous near-death moments for the measure — Obama declared “a new season in America” as he sealed a victory denied to a line of presidents stretching back more than half a century. Democratic lawmakers cheered him on, giving the White House signing ceremony a rally-like atmosphere as they shouted and snapped photos with pocket cameras or cell phones.

Democrats have hailed the approval of legislation extending healthcare to an additional 32 million Americans as a historic advance in social justice. The speaker of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi said it was comparable to the establishment of Medicare and Social Security.

The bill was passed in the House on Sunday evening by just seven votes. Republicans have vowed to continue to challenge it, saying it is too expensive and promotes big government. Senator John McCain, the defeated presidential candidate, warned that outside the capital “the American people are very angry”. “They don’t like it, and we’re going to repeal this,” he told ABC News.

President Barack Obama is expected to sign the bill as early as Tuesday, after which it will go to the Senate where Democrats hope it will be passed by a simple majority under budget reconciliation. The House approved the bill passed by the Senate on Christmas Eve by 219 votes to 212, with 34 Democrats joining Republicans in voting against it.

Victory was assured only hours before voting started, when the president agreed to a deal with conservative Democrats to reiterate in an executive order that money provided by the bill could not be used for abortions. Democrats were jubilant after the vote, with House Majority Whip Representative James Clyburn describing it as “Civil Rights Act of the 21st Century”.