The results of yesterday's vote in Massachusetts have given Republicans 41 seats in the senate. This is a critical number because 41 votes allows them to block a new bill. It was expected that the health reform bill would need to be edited and passed through the senate again, since there were several issues that face opposition within the Democratic voters.
To compensate for this opposition, there is a proposal that the House would then pass a second measure making changes to the Senate bill. That measure could then pass through the upper chamber at a later date under special budgetary rules known as reconciliation, which allow legislation to pass with a simple majority.
Since Democrats and allied independents still control 59 seats, strategists believe it would be relatively easy to pass a second measure that would contain compromises reached between Senate and House negotiators, such as a limit on the tax imposed on high-cost insurance plans.
But Democratic lawmakers were split Tuesday evening over the prospect of passing the Senate bill and hoping for a later fix.
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The Hill.
The results of yesterday's vote in Massachusetts have given Republicans 41 seats in the senate. This is a critical number because 41 votes allows them to block a new bill. It was expected that the health reform bill would need to be edited and passed through the senate again, since there were several issues that face opposition within the Democratic voters. 
