President Obama and key congressional leaders announced on Wednesday that the House of Representatives will vote on a comprehensive health care reform package before August.
“Our legislation will be on the floor by the end of July, I am quite certain,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said outside the White House.
Mr. Obama and Vice President Joe Biden had just finished meeting in the Oval Office with congressional Democratic leaders heading up health care reform, including Pelosi, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, House Ways and Means Committee Chair Rep. Charlie Rangel, House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Rep. Henry Waxman, and House Education and Labor Committee Chair Rep. George Miller.
“We’ve got to get it done this year,” Mr. Obama said with respect to health care reform. Repeating himself for emphasis, the president said, “We’ve got to get it done this year. Both in the House and the Senate. We don’t have any excuses. The stars are aligned.”
The president played down criticisms about the cost of health care reform – the administration has estimated the president’s reform proposals would cost the federal government at least $634 billion over 10 years.
“People across the political spectrum like to throw barbs…about debt and deficits,” Mr. Obama said, adding that “the most significant driver by far (of growing national debt) is ever-escalating health care costs.”
Still, Mr. Obama and Pelosi acknowledged other financial strains on the federal government that cannot be ignored in the health care debate, namely social security and Medicare.
“Health care reform is entitlement reform,” Pelosi said.
Officials on Tuesday said Medicare will pay out more in benefits than it collects this year and will be insolvent by 2017.
“As we learned yesterday, pressures on Medicare are growing, which only underscores the need for reform,” Mr. Obama said.
The president called “affordable, accessible, high quality health care for all Americans” one of the “key pillars of a new foundation for our economy.”
The president pointed to his meetings this week with business leaders and health care industry representatives as an indication of the broad support for health care reform. He said he will continue meeting in the coming weeks and months with congressional leaders on the issue.
“I’m committed to building a transparent process to get this moving,” Mr. Obama said.
Representatives of the health care industry on Monday said they could curb the growth of health care costs by $2 trillion over 10 years. The president said that along with bringing down costs, any package for reform must uphold two other basic principles: “Americans have to be able to choose their own doctor and plan, (and) all Americans must have access to quality and affordable health care,” he said.
Pelosi praised the president for his leadership on health care, saying that Mr. Obama has done more to promote the issue than has been done “since Medicare was established.” She mistakenly said the program, which was signed into law in 1965, dates back to the 1950’s.
(Source: CBS2 HD)
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14 Responses
1. If the plan results in any people getting inferior health insurance to what they have now, there will be tremendous outrage. However any program that provides adequate medical care to everyone will be very expensive. For cultural reasons, American tend to “fight” diseases even when hopeless, which runs up bills.
2. Given that Orthodox Jews are among the least desirable groups to sell health insurance to (along with Mormons, gay men, smokers, obese, etc.), a national system that prohibits discrimination on the basis of the liklihood of filing a claim would benefit us. The only frum Jews who do well under the current system are those working for very large companies or civil service. However once you ban discrimination based on “insurability” there is no longer a health “insurance” system but a centralized health service (even if administered by insurance companies).
Which will cost us many more billions of dollars than the government is willing to admit too. Which is why we will all be carrying a greater tax burden then we do now and this myth of the 95% receiving a tax break will be shown that is is only a myth.
It will also start rationing. Go ask the Canadians and the English. Akuperma, you will not get the procedure that you need, the test that you need, nor specialist that you need nor your family members once nationalized healthcare starts. It will be similar to the quality of care you get at your local DMV or at the post office.
What I love about socialists is that they want to live in Utopia. Let’s all have great medical care in the US, but we don’t have to pay for it. Hillary tried to socialize medicine in the 90’s, but it didn’t work. If we want excellent medical care, then we have to pay for it. Or we could be like Canada and others were the doctors don’t care- medicine is just another 9-5 job. They don’t practice at night or weekends. Go to the ER and wait 18- 20 hrs. What happened to Richardson the wife of Liam Neeson is typical; it happens here but not on a regular basis. Our system usually works. We can do more to get rid of insurance fraud and medical incompetence, but if you don’t pay for services- then you don’t get serviced. Nobody works for free. The gemorah says a doctor who doesn’t charge is worth nothing!
#2 – We already have rationing – haven’t you noticed people who going “schnorring” for money
for medical procedures that they feel they need but that their insurance won’t pay for (or that they can’t afford). If you are concerned with rationing (other than on the basis of who has money), you should be supporting a single-payer entitlement plan that is legally required to provide reasonable care without regard to cost.
Frum Jews have a problem getting health insurance (insurance companies look at us, look at the kinderloch, and look the other way). Anything that lets us get health insurance is a good deal, espeically for business that hire many frum Jews, or kollel families.
And next time someone does an appeal for someone needing medical care, take the money you save in taxes and give it to them.
Rabosis and Rebitzens,
We need to make sure this doesnt happen. The govt CANNOT get involved in healthcare. They had their chance with medicare/medicaid and look how that turned out.
Dont think this wont effect each and every one of us. There is no way the govt could afford this any more than they could afford social security.
Do you want them to be in cotrol of mamesh EVERYTHING in your life? They will decide even more what you could eat, what you could wear, EVERYTHING all under the guise of “We are paying your healthcare so we are making sure you do healthy things,” even if they have nothing to do with health. Do you want them to tell you that you cant have any more sugar, any more flour, any more ANYTHING??? How about no more swings because a kid “could” fall off? Examples are rediculous but this is what we are in for.
What about taxes?? Someone has to pay for this mess. So they will have you thinking that if you wont be making over 250k you will be ok. Tell me, what is the incentive to make that amount of money if we will be killed with taxes?! Besides if they tax the dickens out of those people there will be less of those people and owners of businesses will cut workers so they could make money. Can you imagine that, business owners WANTING TO MAKE MONEY?!?!
When they wont get enough money from the quote unquote rich, they will make “rich” from 100K, then from 50K, then 10k, etc. Either way there is no escape because the costs will go up and up because someone HAS to pay for it. They are on drugs if they think costs will go down.
You want the govt deciding that it isnt worth saving your life because you outlived your usefulness?? How about if your dear relative is CHV sick and the govt doesnt want to pay for a lifesaving operation when if you had private insurance they would pay?
BTW, since the obama & his socialist buddies want everyone beholden to the govt, they will tax any private health insurance you may have be it that you pay for out of pocket or that your employer pays for out of the goodness of theie heart.
We CANNOT go down this path. It is imcumbent to let Congree know that they WILL NOT get away with this socialist path they are sending us down.
It is disappointing and almost sad to see that there are so many in our community who seem to feel that only the wealthy are entitled to the best or at least proper healthcare. What shame it is that in our country Doctors have to compete for the best positions in the highest paying jobs in the welathiest communities. In countries like Canada and Israel this doesn’t happen, and all people get treated fairly and respectfully. What happens when someone from fancy Greenwhich Connecticuit gets into a car accident on the Van Whyck and is taken to Jamaica hospital? He doesn’t get treated by the same high class dr. he would if he ended up in greenwhich hospital.
Under a more sensible healthcare system, it wouldnt be the case.
Oy, StamYid,
If “fairly and respectfully” does not include adequately and optimally, then you are correct…
6,
Socialized Government Healthcare won’t put ‘fancy’ doctors in different places. We need to remember that in the US we have choices of where to go. you example is very flawed because the poor shlub that has a heart attack in a ‘better’ area may get to a better hospital. According to your logic that isn’t fair either.
This is a liberal way to get more people dependent on the government so they continue to vote for the people who constantly give hand outs. Well these hand outs will cost everyone. Im telling you now when its ch’v your mother, your father, or any other relative that can’t get treated because the government says the risk is far less than the reward.
Government involvement in anything NEVER makes it better and healthcare will just be another one of those things.
#6 Yet in Canada if you need emergency surgery you take a number and you wait in line
just like the MVD or food stamp sec 8 office
do you want to go in an emergency room and the nurse should act o you as the clerk in the food stamp office? then go ahead and nationalize the health care system after all its only government institution!!
affordable, accessible & qualitative does not equal “handout”.
Healthcare should not be regulated to who can afford better quality care and who can afford no basic care whatsoever like who can afford to take lavish vacations and who cannot.
Besides, these new healthcare reforms would do wonders for the Kollel community lifestyle.
10,
I dont care who it helps. The country cant afford it no matter what! I say this having a brother in law BH sitting and learning as well as another one who is KNH the Mashgiach of a well known yeshiva.
You are falling for the falicy that people cant get healthcare if the cant afford it. Have you been to the hospitals and seen the people there??? In this country people cannot be turned away from receiving treatment. This is something the Obamanation & his band of street thugs wont tell you.
Having insurance is NOT a guarantee. There is no such guarantee. The Dec of Independence guarantees you Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. No place is there anything about free health care.
This is socailism and I hope it fails. I could assure you there is a major political revolt in the process of happening. People are NOT happy with the far left this country is headed and Congress is in for a major suprise in 17 or so months.
Mark Levin, I can not publicly thank-you enough for standing up for conservative principles.
The people who go schnorring for money to pay for doctors, medicine, and procedures that they need do not decide on their own unilaterally they need XYZ but rather go for second opinions from specialists. It is the recommendations of the specialists that these people rely on to seek specific medical care.
What would reduce the cost of healthcare in this country would be tort control and reform. Then the insurance rates would go down. A Gammagobulin that cost $7.00 thirty years ago now costs $160.00 and not because of the selfishness of the drug companies but rather because of the insurance costs of research and development.
Ask any Israeli if they are happy with their nationalized healthcare or prefer the American system.
StamYid, you unfortunately are terribly misinformed. You still think that the government can improve our lives. It is the government that has worsened it.
Oh, incidentally, that photo of the President is different than the others that I have seen. They forgot to erase that horizontal crease from his chin with Photoshop.
Thank you Flatbush Bubby. There are far too many people such as StamYid1, akuperma, and others who frequent this board (and you know who you are) who need to hear the words of President Reagan who said the following:
“Welfare’s purpose should be to eliminate, as far as possible, the need for its own existence.”
“Are you willing to spend time studying the issues, making yourself aware, and then conveying that information to family and friends? Will you resist the temptation to get a government handout for your community? Realize that the doctor’s fight against socialized medicine is your fight. We can’t socialize the doctors without socializing the patients. Recognize that government invasion of public power is eventually an assault upon your own business. If some among you fear taking a stand because you are afraid of reprisals from customers, clients, or even government, recognize that you are just feeding the crocodile hoping he’ll eat you last. ”
“Government is not the solution to our problems; government is the problem.”
ML