Obama: Don't squander chance to reform health care

[sasquatch]

Source: Associated Press

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama told the nation Saturday that his health care overhaul is financially sound and Congress should not squander the chance to make meaningful change. Republicans didn't relent in their criticism of his plan as a costly burden unwisely on a fast track.

For a sixth straight day, Obama sought to keep the focus on his chief domestic priority in the face of mounting resistance on Capitol Hill, including conservative Democrats. White House officials are worried they face a tougher road to passage than anticipated.

"This is what the debate in Congress is all about: whether we'll keep talking and tinkering and letting this problem fester as more families and businesses go under and more Americans lose their coverage," Obama said in his weekly radio and Internet address. "Or whether we'll seize this opportunity — one we might not have again for generations — and finally pass health insurance reform this year, in 2009."

Through the week, Obama tried to project confidence about his approach to cover millions of uninsured people. During a private meeting with Jewish leaders on Monday, he joked that the only thing more difficult than passing health care legislation might be negotiating Mideast peace.



Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090718/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_obama_health_care

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Crack that whip Mr.President.
Muerte al azul perros.

[FrenchieCat]

1. Also....

This estimate report released by the CBO on Friday evening Confirms Deficit Neutrality of Health Reform Bill:


http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x8535181

[Uncle Joe]

2. John Kyl is full of shit, the people want universal single payer health coverage by the government.

For profit "health' insurance is immoral, dysfunctional and illogical, it can only take away from the quality of health care, increase medical costs, put a major damper on the economy, and initiate an upward dynamic on exploding the deficit.

[Furlough]

16. yes profit is bad

everyone should just do things for free... yay everything is free! Now what is going to motivate or pay for companies to delevop new technologies and cures for these diseases, just good will? I never heard of good will paying for anything, although I might be wrong.

If you can't make a profit, nobody will do it.

[Uncle Joe]

18. Health insurance corporations don't develop shit in regards to health care, they only take away from

it, for every dollar profit they make, is one less dollar going to health care, take that to the grave with your pizza.

[WriteDown]

3. Translation: Don't squander chance for health insurance companies

to really rake in the dough. This is a bad bill being pushed through in the name of "doing something."

[Iowa]

6. Agreed.

I also found this statement interesting:

"...seize this opportunity — one we might not have again for generations..."

If we have to wait "generations" to get a piece-of-crap health-care reform bill written by insurance company lobbyists, then so be it.

But we don't necessarily need to wait generations - we could wait 3 1/2 years and throw enough of these sell-out Republicrats out of office to get real reform. I'd rather wait three and a half years and go for single-payer - or at the very least shoot for a viable, strong public option - which won't happen as long as we have a Caspar Milquetoast, corporate-owned president in office.

[WriteDown]

7. The Swedish model is just waiting to be implemented...

but I'm beginning to lose hope this will ever happen.

[dflprincess]

9. Exactly. (eom)

[Odin2005]

4. Heard Kyl on NPR spewing BS about "government bureaucrats getting between you and your doctor".

RIIIIGHT, now we have corporate bean-counters getting between us and our doctors. Asshole.

[InkAddict]

5. Is there a difference? Lobby, lobby, lobby?

[Ex Lurker]

8. the company I work for employs a lot of part time workers

if they're required to offer them insurance, I can almost guarantee those jobs will be eliminated instead. I fear this law will have many such unintended consequences. Not that I'm against health care reform, but I can't imagine that anyone will be satisfied with the result.

[xchrom]

10. 'Through the week, Obama tried to project confidence ...'

yeah -- that didn't go over so well for me.

this bill is a TRAINWRECK.

strengthen the socialized medicine part -- redo the medicare law that says government can't negotiate for drugs -- STOP inviting the insurance companies to the table -- they'll survive, we may not.

[Furlough]

11. hmm.. illegals getting free healthcare?

I don't think that's a very good idea considering we're so broke we are printing money. There has to be a better was to do this. Inaction is better than BadAction, at least we don't have to reverse Inaction. Government Never Repeals, maybe we should slow down and look at the bill.

[area51]

12. That's a typical rightwing talking point.

So if one illegal gets healthcare we should scrap the whole thing and let 273 people die here per day due to our pro-death, unregulated, for-profit system?

How about this? Treat illegals, then kick them out, and bill their government for their healthcare & transport costs? :eyes:

[Furlough]

13. Not right wing, just right

I don't agree that we should let people die, but I also don't believe health-care is a right. If you make health-care a right, then you are forcing someone else to perform a service. If you are OK with forcing doctors to perform a service at a certain price or for free, then you are OK with the government telling you that whatever work you do might one day be required to be a free service. It's a very slippery slope. I like your idea of billing the foreign country, but I think that's a logistical nightmare and would be impractical. How would America feel if I vacationed in France with my broken foot, had them perform the service and then get a flight back for free and have uncle sam get billed by France. That would end the day it started.

Again, I applaud your free thinking, outside the box attitude, but I don;t like the right wing talking point BS. I highly doubt you have read the health-care bill, and assume you are just regurgitating left wing talking points. My position is that if I don't understand what is happening, and it Isn't in clear language I am opposed to it because the Government does nothing but screw things up. I hope I'm wrong about you and I hope that you did read the Health-care Bill, but if you did, you probably wouldn't be supporting it, or you;d still be reading it because it is extremely long, like most bills they want to pass without people reading them, just like the patriot act.

[dflprincess]

14. Health care is a "general welfare" issue

Very liberal of you though to believe we shouldn't let people die (though that is exactly what the current system does, citizens as well non-citizens).

If an undocumented worker shows up at the hospital needing treatment for T.B. or NIH1 it benefits us all to treat them. It also benefits all of us to treat a minor problem before it has a chance to become life threatening and hence, more expensive to treat. If you broke your foot while on vacation in France, you'd get the treatment you needed and the French would pay the bill.

Doctors in every other western nation seem to manage just fine with their system, I bet U.S. doctors would learn to cope (and note there are groups of MDs who support real reform).

BTW "the government does nothing but screw things up" is another right wing taling point. And, if the government would do such an awful deal running a single payer system or just a public option, why are the insurance companies so afraid to compete with it?

[Furlough]

15. "benefits us all"

I can't speak for why the insurance companies are against it, except the logical conclusion they don't want to lose business.

Per the comment regarding france, it was in response to the above comment regarding billing the foreign national's country for the services.

I am a little scared of your "benefits us all" mantra... It would benefit us all if the government went into every house and searched for illegal guns and drugs, but we don't want them doing it.

It would "benefit" us all if we could all get a free meal at the eatery of our choosing, but we aren't forcing that one.

It would benefit us all if we brought all of our troops home, and even though most of us want that, why won't Obama allow it? It's pick and choose for what "benefits us all"

And just because it benefits us all doesn't mean the government has the right to FORCE anyone to do anything they do not want to do. It's a very slippery slope, you start with doctors, then move to banks, then move to restaurants then onto teachers, cops, factory workers and then we don;t have America.

I agree that deadly communicable diseases need to be handled by the CDC and the government should facilitate the control of the said diseases because they have the most resources and ability to contain the threat more-so than individuals in small pockets of the country.

[MarjorieG]

17. Sure you're not speaking for the insurance companies?