Oregon Public Broadcasting

The Senate Finance Committee votes Tuesday on a key piece of health care legislation. Oregon's Senator Ron Wyden, who's a member of the committee, has spent a lot of time and political capitol trying to influence the bill. April Baer reports.

Wyden took a break from the Capitol's furious health care debate Saturday morning, to visit the Portland Farmer's Market.

Ron Wyden "It's a beautiful fall day. A lotta folks have been asking about health care."

Even market shoppers in the heart of this Democratic district hint at the minefield of public opinion Wyden's negotiating.

Portlander Leslie Dye says he feels the government hasn't taken a hard enough line in favor of universal coverage.

Leslie Dye  "People don't realize what uninsured people cost the whole nation - we all pay for it, one way or the other.

While some worry Congress isn't going far enough, more conservative Oregonians who staked out Wyden's summer town halls don't necessarily welcome health care changes.   It's been a tough year for Wyden, who's staked much of his political career on a promise of health care reform. 

Wyden hasn't been able to move his Healthy Americans plan forward in committee. But he says that's not a failure.

Ron Wyden "If you look at what I proposed in the winter of 2006, most if what I proposed, which nobody said it could be done, is already showing up.

April Baer: Such as?

Ron Wyden "Well, such as the ideas that insurance companies can't be allowed to cherry pick, that you've gotta have these large groups where the consumer has more bargaining power."

Wyden also hit a wall last week when he failed to get a vote on a Free Choice amendment, to encourage people with insurance to shop around.

But Wyden says while that was disappointing, he expects several chances to insert the amendment before the Senate finishes.

Wyden's been very quiet on whether he'll help to pass Chairman Max Baucus' bill out of the Finance Committee tomorrow.

A "no" vote might win points with more conservative  Oregonians, but would further complicate his relationship with health care advocates.

Tom Chamberlain "I think Ron gets credit for being on of the first ones to offer a plan on health care to push the debate. I think he gets credit for that."

But AFL-CIO president Tom Chamberlain won't go much farther. The union has  sparred with Wyden over his mechanism for funding health care changes, Chamberlain predicts Wyden won't be able to overcome arguments about cost to get his Free Choice Amendment attached to the bill.

Still,  former Oregon Congresswoman Darlene Hooley thinks Wyden's chances aren't bad

Darlene Hooley  'He has, I think a few options."

Hooley remembers how Wyden successfully negotiated the 2003 debate on Medicare part D.

Darlene Hooley   "Look, in this process, you never say die, there’s always some vehicle that comes along or some process."

The committee vote is scheduled for Tuesday.