Carper: Dems preparing alternative to 'Cadillac' tax

Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) on Thursday said that Democrats were preparing a healthcare inflation tax as a "fall back" for the so-called "Cadillac" tax is removed from the bill.

"The only reason we would do this is that we want to have a fallback in case there is no agreement," he told reporters.

"We want to have something ready to offer that might meet our needs...that can raise a fair amount of money," he added.

Earlier on Thursday, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) introduced an amendment to remove the excise tax on high-cost healthcare plans from the bill. The tax is opposed by several Senate Democrats and labor interests who say that the tax takes too high a toll on middle-class worker's healthcare plans.

Union opposition could pose a problem for many Democrats who count labor as a powerful base of support.