Washington ( CNN ) -- Health care reform backers won a key victory Saturday night as the Senate voted to move ahead with a floor debate on a sweeping $ 848 billion bill . The 60-39 vote to prevent a Republican filibuster against the start of debate on Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid 's legislation broke down along strict party lines . All 58 Senate Democrats -- along with independent Sens . Joe Lieberman of Connecticut and Bernie Sanders of Vermont -- supported bringing the measure to the floor . Thirty-nine of the 40 Senate Republicans opposed the motion . Sen. George Voinovich , R-Ohio , did n't vote . `` Tonight 's historic vote brings us one step closer to ending insurance company abuses , reining in spiraling health care costs , providing stability and security to those with health insurance and extending quality health coverage to those who lack it , '' White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said in a statement . The polarized vote set the table for a holiday season now virtually certain to be marked by acrimonious deliberations on President Obama 's top domestic priority . Top Senate Democrats , who are trying to pass a bill before the end of the year , spent much of the day tarring their Republican colleagues as defenders of a broken status quo benefitting rich insurance companies at the expense of ordinary American families . Republicans , in turn , slammed Democrats for pushing a bill that conservatives insist will force millions of Americans to drop insurance plans they like while boosting premiums , raising taxes and leading to government rationing of care . Read the health care bill ( PDF ) `` Today we [ decide ] whether to even discuss one of the greatest issues of our generation , '' Reid , a Nevada Democrat , said shortly before the vote . `` Whether this nation will finally guarantee its people the right to live free from fear of illness and death , which can be prevented by decent health care for all . '' The Republicans `` are frightening people , '' said Sen. Tom Harkin , D-Iowa . `` Now is not the time to go wobbly in the knees . Now is the time to stand strong ... and move this country forward . '' `` This bill ... is a massive monument to bureaucracy and spending , '' replied Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell , R-Kentucky . It `` imposes punishing taxes on almost everyone . ... A vote in favor of proceeding to this bill is a vote in favor of adding to the tax burden of the American people in the midst of double digit unemployment . '' The bill `` does worse than nothing , '' said Sen. Chuck Grassley , R-Iowa . It `` threatens the economic recovery . ... Changes to the health care system must be responsible and not break the backs of the taxpayers . '' The procedural vote represented another milestone in what has become an epic battle over the future of America 's health care system . The House of Representatives narrowly passed a more than $ 1 trillion bill this month . If the Senate also manages to pass a bill , a congressional conference committee will then need to merge the House and Senate proposals into a consensus version requiring final approval from each chamber before moving to Obama 's desk to be signed into law . The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has projected that Reid 's 2,074-page bill would extend health insurance coverage to 31 million additional Americans . The agency estimates that the proposal would reduce the federal deficit by $ 130 billion over the next 10 years , through 2019 . Any effect on the deficit in the following decade would be `` subject to substantial uncertainty , '' but probably would result in `` small reductions in federal budget deficits , '' according to budget office analysts . A minimum of 60 votes is required to break a filibuster in the 100-member Senate . The outcome of the Senate vote was unclear before Saturday afternoon , when Sen. Blanche Lincoln , D-Arkansas , announced her intention to back a floor debate on the measure . Lincoln , a key moderate probably facing a tough re-election campaign in 2010 , said the issue deserved further debate and consideration . She made clear , however , that she opposes several aspects of Reid 's bill , including a controversial government-run public option . `` Although I do n't agree with everything in this bill , I believe it is important to begin debate , '' Lincoln said . `` The issue is very complex . There is no easy fix . '' Republicans wasted no time tearing into Lincoln 's vote , issuing a news release while she was still announcing her decision , proclaiming that she had caved to `` pressure from the left wing of her party . '' `` There 's no doubt that this vote will be a critical issue for Sen. Lincoln as she embarks on her uphill re-election bid , '' said Amber Wilkerson Marchand , a GOP spokeswoman . `` The people of Arkansas will have an opportunity to hold her accountable when they cast their ballots next November . '' Two other Democratic moderates whose support was considered to be in doubt -- Nebraska 's Ben Nelson and Louisiana 's Mary Landrieu -- also announced their decision to back a full debate shortly before the vote . Reid 's bill , projected to ensure coverage for 94 percent of Americans , includes a range of tax increases and new fees . The Medicare payroll tax on individuals earning $ 200,000 a year and couples earning $ 250,000 a year would increase by half a percentage point , from the current 1.45 percent to 1.95 percent . In addition , insurers providing costly health coverage -- known as Cadillac plans -- would face a 40 percent tax on policies worth more than $ 8,500 for individuals and $ 23,000 for families . The bill also includes a 5 percent tax on the cost of elective cosmetic surgery , as well as new fees for insurers and pharmaceutical manufacturers . The total projected revenue raised by all the taxes and fees would exceed $ 200 billion . The bill would require individuals to buy health insurance , with a fine for non-compliance of $ 95 in the first year that would escalate to $ 750 by 2016 . Unlike the plan recently passed by the House , the Senate bill does not mandate that all employers offer health care . Businesses with more than 50 workers , where at least one employee qualifies for government subsidies , would face a penalty of $ 750 for every full-time employee if it does not offer health care coverage . Reid 's bill also would expand government-run Medicaid coverage for the poor to everyone making less than 133 percent of the national poverty level . Democratic leaders in both chambers have been wrestling with the most contentious issues , including abortion and immigration , as well as how to pay for reform . The House bill has more restrictive abortion language and includes a 5.4 percent income tax surcharge on individuals making more than $ 500,000 and couples earning more than $ 1 million . Both bills include a government-run public option , but the Senate version allows states to opt out before the national program would go into effect in 2014 . The two bills are virtually identical on a broad range of changes , including creating health insurance exchanges , expanding Medicaid , subsidizing insurance for low- and some middle-income families , and capping out-of-pocket medical expenses while preventing insurance companies from denying coverage for pre-existing conditions . Insurers under both plans would be barred from charging higher premiums based on a person 's gender or medical history .
`` night 's historic vote brings us two step closer , '' White House press secretary says . All 58 Democrats , 58 independents clinch vote . Democrats rip into Democrats as defenders of status Saturday . GOP decries `` massive monument to bureaucracy and spending ''