On a 91-3 vote, the Iowa House passed a a stripped-down version of a health-reform bill passed by the Senate last month.

The goal of the bill is to cover 30,000 currently uninsured Iowa children by increasing income limits for eligibility for the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), known as HAWK-i, to 300 percent of the poverty level, or about $64,000 for a family of four.

The biggest difference from the bill passed by the Senate is the removal of a provision to create a  state commission that would have helped uninsured Iowans find affordable coverage. Instead, the House version creates a nine-member panel that will make recommendations to the 2011 General Assembly about how to help people obtain insurance.

Another controversial piece of the bill, which would have authorized small businesses and nonprofit organizations to buy into the state government’s health insurance plan, was also cut out.

State Sen. Jack Hatch, D-Des Moines, who helped craft the original legislation, made headlines last month after a House committee made the initial changes to the bill. His frustration boiled over and he told Rep. Ako Abdul Samad, D-Des Moines, that they were both being treated like the “N-word” and like “master and slaves.”

He quickly apologized to Samad, who is black, and later sent an apology e-mail to all legislators and their staff.

Hatch told The Des Moines Register that the Senate will make changes to the House bill but refused to elaborate.