Doing health care through reconciliation is even harder than I thought

I was so focused on provisions that would not affect the budget and might therefore have to be removed, that I forgot to think about provisions that would affect the budget. Unless Senator Reid can find ways to make these bills not violate two other tests, he will need 60 votes even to pass a reconciliation bill. Even through reconciliation it would be very difficult for Senator Reid to implement a 51-vote strategy.