Politics Daily: Obama's New Health Pitch: Families, Businesses Would Get Benefits This Year

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Jill Lawrence

Obama's New Health Pitch: Families, Businesses Would Get Benefits This Year

President Obama is keeping the pressure on Congress to pass sweeping health legislation with a new emphasis on the help it would give people and businesses as soon as it is signed. In his weekly video address Saturday, Obama also repeated his call for an "up or down" final vote to get it done.

"The proposal we've put forward would end the worst practices of the insurance industry, lower costs for millions of Americans, and give uninsured individuals and small businesses the same kind of choice of private health insurance that members of Congress get for themselves. And while it will take a few years to fully implement these reforms, there are numerous protections and benefits that would start to take effect this year," Obama said.

Among those protections and benefits: Small business owners would get tax credits to purchase health insurance; insurance companies could not drop your coverage when you got sick or deny coverage to children with pre-existing conditions; all new insurance plans would be required to offer free preventive care; young adults could stay on their parents' plans until they turn 26; seniors who fall into a Medicare coverage gap (called "the donut hole") would immediately get $250 to help them pay for prescriptions; people who feel they were unfairly denied a claim would have access to a new, independent appeals process.

"If we act now, all of this will happen this year," Obama said. "Let's show our citizens that it's still possible for Washington to look out for their interests and their future."

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http://www.politicsdaily.com/2010/03/06/obamas-new-health-pitch-families-businesses-would-get-benefit/