Pelosi Agrees To 72-Hour Review Before Voting On Healthcare Legislation

By Leah Valencia, University of New Mexico – Talk Radio News Service

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said she “absolutely” supports a 72-hour waiting period to allow Congress to read over the healthcare reform legislation before a final vote.

On Wednesday, Democratic members of the Senate Finance Committee rejected an amendment to put the bill online for a three-day waiting period.

House lawmakers then introduced a petition that urged Pelosi to hold a vote on the bill and give members of Congress and the public time to review the bill in its final form.

When asked by a reporter on Thursday about whether or not she supported a measure to put the final bill online for 72 hours she said, “Absolutely, without question.” Following the press conference, a spokesman for the Speaker confirmed that Pelosi had agreed to allow the waiting period.

The Speaker’s comments marked a slight departure from her position earlier this summer to allow 48 hours of review on healthcare legislation before bringing it to a vote.