"A Senate committee has approved a bill to reform US healthcare, a key step in President Barack Obama's attempt to overhaul the system. Senators voted by 14 votes to nine to pass the bill, with one Republican joining Democrats on the Senate Finance Committee in voting in favour. Senator Olympia Snowe became the first Republican to back the proposals. The reforms, intended to cut costs and make insurance more affordable, are Mr Obama's top domestic priority. The president welcomed the committee's decision, calling it a "critical milestone". "We are closer than ever before to passing healthcare reform but we are not there yet," he said. "Now is not the time to pat ourselves on the back... It is time to dig in further and get this done."" - Steven Perez from Bookmarklet