Sen. Ben Cardin said he is optimistic about a possible bipartisan health care bill. He made the comments on Friday while speaking with WYPR’s Tom Hall on Midday.
The senator referenced two meetings earlier this week where both Democrats and Republicans had “informal discussions” about health care. The talks were led by Republican Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee and Democratic Sen. Patty Murray of Washington.
“They’re talking about a bill that will get a broad consensus support that deals with the immediate problems of stabilizing the individual marketplace and the rates that have been charged,” Cardin told Hall.
Cardin said he is less optimistic about Congress reaching a bipartisan consensus on tax reform. However, he said he would be willing to support lower taxes on businesses as long as the overall plan doesn’t increase either the debt or taxes for middle income earners.