Democrats have, for the first time, secured a Republican vote on their health care plan.

Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, announced Tuesday afternoon that she will vote in committee for a bill that would expand Medicaid coverage and provide subsidies for low-income earners to buy health insurance. The bill, which she helped draft, is set for a vote in a matter of hours and is expected to pass out of the Senate Finance Committee. Snowe, along with five other members of the panel, spent months drafting the bill, but her support was up in the air until now.