BY SARAH ROSS

MOLALLA- Despite the passage of health care legislation in the Senate over a week ago, controversy on the matter took center stage at Sen. Ron Wyden’s (D-OR) town hall in Molalla on Tuesday.

Numerous questions about the bill were presented to the Senator, including how the legislation would affect Veteran’s benefits, how it would be paid for, if it could get bipartisan support, if it includes abortion and illegal aliens, and if it would include a public option.

The Senator responded to these questions, making sure to refer back to the health care bill he crafted, which was not put before a Senate vote.

“I wrote a bill,” Wyden stated. “I really put 5 years into a different approach and I had multiple Democrats and Republicans with valid points. I went to see 85 Senators in their offices, both parties, just to listen to them….

“I think that [my] bill which guaranteed, in effect, better coverage for less money, and that’s what the Congressional Budget Office said, was the way to go. Now, my view didn’t prevail but we have to try to export as much of that approach with competition, choice, and markets as we can. We’ll try and get as much of that at the next stage as we can.”

The Senator said there is enough money in health care to pay for his plan, but that with the path this new bill is taking, money likely will have to be cut from other places in the budget.

He assured his constituents that the bill presented to the Senate, however, would not affect current veteran or military health care benefits. Additionally, he guaranteed that he did not vote to cover illegal aliens or public funding of abortion in this bill.

As for the public option, Wyden strongly supported and voted for such measures but made clear that a public option was not in the final Senate bill.

He did say that while he will try everything in his power to get bipartisan support, because of the party-line vote on the Senate bill, support from across the aisle is unlikely.

“I’m going to do everything I can to get bipartisan support at every level. Now, I’m not going to kid you or anybody else. This bill came out of the United States Senate on a 60-40 vote. That’s a fact.”

Even though health care legislation is in its final stages, town hall attendees in Clackamas County demonstrated that citizens are still concerned about the affects it will have.