Obama To Congress: Wrap Up Health Care

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama sees both "unprecedented consensus" from outside Congress on his drive to remake the nation's health care system and obstructionism by some on Capitol Hill.

"The historic movement to bring real, meaningful health insurance reform to the American people gathered momentum this week as we approach the final days of this debate," Obama said Saturday in his weekly radio and Internet video address.

The consensus "includes everyone from doctors and nurses to hospitals and drug manufacturers" – even Republican governors and former GOP lawmakers, Obama said.

It does not extend to congressional Republicans, however, as nearly all of them oppose the Democrats' health care proposals.

The president noted that California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, former Senate Majority Leaders Bob Dole and Bill Frist, all Republicans, and former Health and Human Service chiefs Louis Sullivan and Tommy Thompson, who both served in Republican administrations, have all come out in favor of overhauling health care, even though they differ on some specifics.

Dole said in an interview on the Fox News Channel late in the week that he has not endorsed any plan but is recommending that congressional Republicans "stay in the game" so they can have more impact on the final legislation through compromise and amendments.

"These distinguished leaders understand that health insurance reform isn't a Democratic issue or a Republican issue, but an American issue that demands a solution," Obama said.

Democrats have made significant strides since Labor Day, when they returned to the Capitol after an August spent absorbing attacks from noisy conservative critics over health care.

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A health care bill soon to emerge from the Senate Finance Committee is the only one judged to meet Obama's conditions for expanding insurance coverage without raising the federal deficit, while also slowing the rise in medical costs.

Yet Obama said he recognized the issue remains divisive among members of Congress.

"There are some in Washington today who seem determined to play the same old partisan politics, working to score political points, even if it means burdening this country with an unsustainable status quo," Obama said. That "status quo" includes rising health care costs, diminishing coverage and arbitrary decisions by big insurance companies, he said.

Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell differs with Obama's views on cooperation.

"I've spoken about reform 44 times on the Senate floor on the need for health care reform," McConnell said. "But higher premiums, higher taxes, and more government? That's not reform. And this is precisely the problem Americans have identified with advocates of the administration's health care plans."

In the the Republican radio address, Sen. George LeMieux of Florida acknowledged deep problems with the health care system, but cautioned "the solution should not be worse than the problem we are trying to solve."

"We in the Congress have a duty to tackle this problem, but the solution we settle upon should not be rushed," LeMieux said in the GOP's weekly address. Democrats maintain Republicans are simply trying to delay action.

LeMieux said the Democrats' approach would:

_cost $1.8 trillion over 10 years, more than twice the total for the Senate Finance Committee's bill, as projected by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office.

_add a new tax burden by penalizing those who do not buy health insurance.

_deny millions of people the choice of health plans that best suit their needs by forcing them onto Medicaid.

_take about $500 billion out of Medicare.

"Taking money from a program already in financial trouble is not responsible," LeMieux said. "It's not fair to our seniors who paid into the program, and it's not fair to our children and grandchildren who will be burdened with massive debt obligations."

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On the Net:

Obama address: http://www.whitehouse.gov

GOP address: http://www.youtube.com/user/gopweeklyaddress

Comments

[Crumbx]

Note to LeMieux: Have you ever checked out your statement received by the Social Security Administration regarding monies paid into Medicare? It's ridiculously low for every American. They probably use all their monies put in in their first two years of being on Medicare. I worked 45 years yet have only paid in $8,000 in Medicare total. My husband paid in $18,000 total. As we approach age 65 we have used $25,000 in health care already just this year through our employer sponsored plans. If we live past age 65 we will probably use that amount and more. What is so sacred about a 1.45% tax or even a 2.9% tax (self-employed) that it couldn't be raised to make the program solvent? I've often wondered why single payer, including the elderly wouldn't be the best way to go with private insurers offering concierage plans for the rich so they would shut up.

[William1950]

we have been sold out .. by democrats and by republicans... supposedlly there to represent us... but they instead are engaging in treason ... by taking bribes to help bring about our destruction .. to fill their own pockets.
none of them are really trying... HR676 was a good bill... not even given a chance.
yeah, I will conceed that a precious few senators and congressmen are trying to help, but their voices are silenced by the money flowing into our government representatives personal coffers .. and we citizens are left out in the cold... forget about france, forget about canada and the UK... our model will soon be bangladesh, or the whoever the poorest country is.. we are soon joining the third world.
unless we wake up, but we are too busy fighting each other.

[WeMustSpeakOut]

You said it William.
This bill is a dog, no matter what the final iteration ends up being.

HR 676 was a beautiful thing so naturally it died. It simply wasn't exploitable enough for our corporate wh@re government and the corporations that own them.

Every time the President refers to "health insurance reform", I cringe.
This is not about our health, this is just more profiteering under the guise of "reform."

Take billions away from Medicare? No!
The President says this will control costs? How? Are there cost caps?
I have not seen evidence of such.

This is another corporate boon, courtesy of our corrupt government.
Buy a plan or pay a fine, and if you do buy it you will be taxed on it.
Win-win for them; more tax revenue from common folk and billions more
to the insurance sharks so they can reward our government traitors with
millions for services rendered.
Now that most definitely makes me sick.

[plaidsportcoat]

Raise Taxes on the Richest One or Two Percent
...and save tons of money by bringing troops home to defend us HERE, by protecting our ports, nuclear plants, food and water supplies -- all the security issues republicans stripped out of the budget.
save HUGE money by leaving skeleton crew security teams and spies around the world, if must be -- but keep the troops right here. For Civil Defense. Stop paying private contractors as well as the DEA outrageous amounts of money to make America hated around the world, and put that dough into health care for all.

[norkas]

I feel so sorry for todays billionaires they may have to pay a little more taxes. Warren Buffet is corrects when he says he pays less taxes then most of the middle class.

We need a Public Option NOW and the majority of Americans want it.

How wonderful a insurance company decides if they are going to make life decisions if they will cover you or not for urgent procedures or they may drop you because THEY say your condition is pre existing.You go bankrupt trying to pay for medical bills. You loose your house and your family is in chaos.

No more people Barak Obama stand up and stuff the public option down the Republicans throat and blue dogs enough is enough.

Show your stuff and speak from the heart and show what humanity is going through in America and how small business who supplies most of the jobs in America can no longer continue paing these blood suckers.

Only G-D should decided if i will live or die not a Insurance company.

WE THE PEOP;E

[LaurenMarie984]

LeMieux is NOT a real senator - he's never held elected office and is literally Charlie Crist's place holder until he can run in 2010. Both of them are tools and this jacka$$ should not be allowed to have any action on this matter

[meko]

The problem is that so many Democratic senators have been bought off. I'm beginning to doubt we have any voice in our government on this.

I don't understand why people aren't protesting at the homes of insurance CEOs and those of the senators they bought. Why people aren't showing up at their children's weddings with signs that say, "a child died to pay for that white dress, and another 5 died to pay for the rest of your party." Maybe with enough public shaming they wouldn't fight so hard against it.

Then again, given that blocking our ability to sue the insurers that we'll be forced to buy worthless plans from is one of the few things that appears to be a likely part of this this legislation, maybe there will be no recourse for us to act within the law. Maybe these con men will be allowed to take our money and kill our children when they decide they don't want to follow through on the benefits they sold us. Who knows, perhaps if we turn to the mafia to enforce our contracts with insurers and a couple of CEOs face real consequences for violating their contracts, real change will take place.

I think that's a lot more likely than some bought-off senator making a difference.

[Kevins]

We gave Republicans a chance to lay out reasonable suggestions,
On the subject of Health Care Reform,
And we got "Obama is a racist who hates his own white mother; Obama is every scary political ideology personified with fangs; Obama is unborn...."

It's time to get back to the job at hand,
And get something done for 63.25 Million of us
Who voted for President Obama
And want our country not to fail, but to get something done.

Thanks a lot for the "help", Republicans.
We can take it from here.

[Kevins]

The President is right.
Republican obstruction is becoming moot. This stream is flowing right past them.

It seems unlikely they will invent any new objections at this point. They've sort of run through their stock of scary stories.

[einstein10]

Obama fastracked billion dollar bailouts for banks and corporations without much compromising.

This is a National emergency!

Single-payer is the ONLY way to cut costs. We don't need or want mandates.

The current proposals will be a catastrophe for small business & self-employed.

[NCIndependant]

The key shift was the one from "health care reform" to "health insurance reform". That was when I knew we (the people) had lost.

[sviolette]

It's always been about health care insurance reform. They aren't trying to change the way we get health care it's how we pay for it.

[sense oar sheep]

how can we wrap up health care in a day when the entire health care system is wrong?

corporate profiteers and inept veteran's services

can't fix a broken system over night if the system demands $$$$$$$$ without providing necessary services, VA Hospitals included

[einstein10]

The proposed bills are so bad, so stupid, so ridiculously overcomplicated. It's enough to make people sick!

PLUS, even more outrageous, lawmakers and the public will only have 72 hours to review the final bill before it goes to vote!

Other countries have figured this out, France, Germany, Britain, Mexico, Canada Holland, etc. They pay far less and have better outcomes.

Wake up America!

[Sweetbay]

Only 72 hours? Oh, my. Impossible you say? Not.

That's three days to read a bill that should take the average reader about 12-13 hours to read.

You wake up.

[einstein10]

Not impossible, only outrageous.

Deciders given ONLY 72 hours to read and study and think about it.

If that's all it takes, why not just come up with a new great single-payer bill and fast-track it?

[Kevins]

When YOU wake up, you'll be able to read about how Americans reformed their broken Health Care system--and went on to other pressing problems of the day--while Republicans watched like lumps from the side-lines. Not lifting a finger to help.

Squawking "NO!, NO!" over and over again.

[Sweetbay]

"Taking money from a program already in financial trouble is not responsible," LeMieux said. "It's not fair to our seniors who paid into the program, and it's not fair to our children and grandchildren who will be burdened with massive debt obligations."


Translation: Republicans don't want to have to tell our insurance company donors that we are cutting their sizable 20-30% profits out of Medicare. If we can stop this legislation, taxpayers will continue to provide those profits to the industry and we can continue to receive those big donations to our campaign coffers.

[texfly]

HR676
- 27 pages of lovliness. Easy to read and undestand
- where's the CBO on this (as if I'd believe them)
- add amendments that make sense
- keep us infromed aboutthe debate

$2 triiloin over 10 years amount to about $5/day/household. Easily covered by a TAX, yes a TAX, on fast food, soda, sugary items, cigarettes..., I willing to bet that such taxes would have little negative impact on the sales of these items.

[Trogenhorse]

How about $5 dollars across the board? As a health care provider I find something unsettling about using taxes on cigarettes to support good health care.

[texfly]

Just on cigs? I agree. My point was basically the $2 T over the whole population is relly not much.

I'm for taxing the rich and restoring the middle class via energy investment of taxes. Healthcare fits in too.

[Sweetbay]

I have a problem with "hidden" taxes. That is how the republicans got all their tax increases over the years.

Taxes on products that are used mostly by middle and working classes continues the disproportiate share of taxes.

Give me an increased income tax to compensate for health care reform. I support it as long as the excessive profits are taken out of the system and the health care providers are given the necessary incentives to improve their outcomes while reducing costs.

[texfly]

I agree with your income tax position. My point was that $2 T is really not such a big amoungt when distributed ove rthe whole population.

That said, sales taxes at the point of purchase are not what I call hidden. They are regressive, but if they impact harshly on the pooerer end of our society, it may cahnge behavior and promote healthy choices. At the same time, it does pay for coverage.

[Kevins]

I think people making over $250,000 could help a little, instead of always taking tax CUTS.

[texfly]

Agree. They should actually help a lot more than they do.

[L0ve PEace]

Get-'er-done

[Montagraph Monty]

It's obvious that the American Public does NOT WANT his health care, so why does he insist on passing it!

[Nijel]

we all want better health care, but i think the politicians are confusing that with "they will take ANY bill passed that says 'health care reform', no matter how bad, as a job well done".

[OpposingViewpoint]

They will accept anything that will pass on the floor, call it a "win", and begin in earnest their campaigns for re-election to the "Self-Enrichment Zone". There are numerous issues with this scenario, the least of which is not, who will be the "winner". I will allow you the honor of naming the losers, only one guess permitted.

[meko]

Progressives keep getting told that the only way for the guys in the blue shirts to win is to pass the legislation that the guys in the red shirts want. I don't get it. I didn't vote for a team name. I voted for policies. If my team is just going to support their policies, then I want them to go down so I can get a better draft pick.