2/22/2010
Obama unveils health reform proposal
WASHINGTON, Feb 22 -- US President Barack Obama unveiled here Monday a health insurance reform proposal that would bridge the differences between the House and Senate bills.
Obamas proposal, released in a document, that comes ahead of the health care reform summit due on Thursday puts American families and small business owners "in control of their own health care." The proposal would also make insurance "more affordable by providing the largest middle class tax cut for health care in history, reducing premium costs for tens of millions of families and small business owners who are priced out of coverage today." This helps over 31 million Americans afford health care who do not get it today and makes coverage more affordable for many more.
It sets up a "new competitive health insurance market giving tens of millions of Americans the exact same insurance choices that members of Congress will have." The proposal also brings greater accountability to health care by laying out commonsense rules of the road to keep premiums down and prevent insurance industry abuses and denial of care.
It would also put the budget and economy on a more stable path by reducing the deficit by USD 100 billion over the next 10 years and about USD one trillion over the second decade through cutting government overspending and reining in waste, fraud and abuse.
Obamas proposal bridges also include new provisions to crack down on waste, fraud and abuse.
In this regard, White House Communications Director Dan Pfeiffer said at a briefing that since the Senate passed their version of health reform on Christmas Eve, the House and the Senate have engaged in a process to try to bridge the differences between those two bills.
He added that this proposal is viewed as "the opening bid for the health meeting" on Thursday.
"The president believes strongly that the meeting would be most productive were we to come to the table with one proposal that addressed these concerns, as opposed to a series of proposals in two different, competing bills," the official affirmed.
AFP
Obama unveils health reform proposal
WASHINGTON, Feb 22 -- US President Barack Obama unveiled here Monday a health insurance reform proposal that would bridge the differences between the House and Senate bills.
Obamas proposal, released in a document, that comes ahead of the health care reform summit due on Thursday puts American families and small business owners "in control of their own health care." The proposal would also make insurance "more affordable by providing the largest middle class tax cut for health care in history, reducing premium costs for tens of millions of families and small business owners who are priced out of coverage today." This helps over 31 million Americans afford health care who do not get it today and makes coverage more affordable for many more.
It sets up a "new competitive health insurance market giving tens of millions of Americans the exact same insurance choices that members of Congress will have." The proposal also brings greater accountability to health care by laying out commonsense rules of the road to keep premiums down and prevent insurance industry abuses and denial of care.
It would also put the budget and economy on a more stable path by reducing the deficit by USD 100 billion over the next 10 years and about USD one trillion over the second decade through cutting government overspending and reining in waste, fraud and abuse.
Obamas proposal bridges also include new provisions to crack down on waste, fraud and abuse.
In this regard, White House Communications Director Dan Pfeiffer said at a briefing that since the Senate passed their version of health reform on Christmas Eve, the House and the Senate have engaged in a process to try to bridge the differences between those two bills.
He added that this proposal is viewed as "the opening bid for the health meeting" on Thursday.
"The president believes strongly that the meeting would be most productive were we to come to the table with one proposal that addressed these concerns, as opposed to a series of proposals in two different, competing bills," the official affirmed.
AFP
