What aspects of the health care legislation would be implemented right away?
If approved, most provisions in the legislation would take years to get started. For instance, individuals will not be required to buy insurance until 2013 in the House bill and 2014 in the Senate bill. The proposed government-run insurance program would start in 2013 in the House proposal and 2014 in the Senate measure. Other provisions would begin almost immediately. Both the House and Senate bills would create a temporary, high-risk insurance pool shortly after the legislation is signed into law that would allow people with pre-existing conditions who have been uninsured for at least six months to enroll. Under the House bill, the government would spend up to $5 billion to finance the program. Both bills would, within six months, prohibit insurance companies from imposing lifetime limits on how much they will pay out and from dropping coverage if an enrollee becomes ill. The House bill would require insurance companies to cover dependent children on family plans up to age 27; the Se
