This report in the New York Times sounds like a pretty big deal:
Still, Mr. Baucus and Mr. Grassley expressed optimism in a joint interview on Thursday that 2009 is different, and that their backstage negotiations would soon clear remaining obstacles.
“As sure as we’re sitting here, it’s going to happen,” Mr. Baucus said in their committee’s hearing room, where they vowed to introduce legislation jointly by mid-month.
“It will get over the goal line,” Mr. Grassley said.
Also note this tidbit about how they're going to pay for it:
Remaining tax increases, Mr. Baucus and Mr. Grassley agree, should come directly from other health-related sources. They all but rule out Mr. Obama’s proposed limit on itemized deductions for high-income Americans or options tangentially linked to health care, like taxes on sweetened drinks and alcohol.
--Jonathan Chait