The latest American health-care reform plan is unveiled in the Senate

WHEN Barack Obama outlined his vision for health reform to Congress on September 9th, he insisted that any bill must cut the uninsured by 30m, cost only $900 billion and raise the federal deficit not “one dime”. The leading congressional bills thus far fail the test, but Max Baucus, the head of the Senate’s powerful Finance Committee, now says he can pull this off.

After intense bipartisan negotiations, Mr Baucus unveiled his bill on September 16th. His effort would force most Americans to obtain cover, but in return insurers must agree not to drop coverage because customers have “pre-existing conditions” or because spending caps have been reached. …