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Obama praises latest Senate health vote
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Posted by Foon Rhee, deputy national political editor
December 21, 2009 11:32 AM
President Obama this morning hailed the latest razor-thin Senate vote moving its health care overhaul toward expected passage on Christmas Eve.
With exactly the 60 votes required, the Senate voted at 1 a.m. today to stop a threatened Republican filibuster, the latest in a series of procedural votes leading up to a final Senate vote scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday.
As Vicki Kennedy, the late senator's widow, watched from the gallery, Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa declared that "today we are closer than we've ever been to making Senator Ted Kennedy's dream of universal health insurance coverage a reality."
In brief remarks, Obama this morning said the bill would give families more health care security by guaranteeing that pre-existing conditions will be covered and limiting out-of-pocket costs. The bill, he argued, encompasses a so-called "Patient's bill of rights" that never passed Congress.
Small businesses will also benefit, the president said. And critics' arguments that the bill represents a huge increase in government spending do not "hold water," he said, citing projections from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office that the bill, while costing $871 billion over the next decade, would eventually bring down federal deficits.
(His full remarks are below.)
Republicans, however, call that CBO report a "fig leaf" for a dangerous government expansion in health care. "While they claim victory, the American people will be faced with higher taxes, increased premiums, and cuts to Medicare," Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele said in a statement. "They are ramming this government-run health care program through Congress - when Americans don't want it, and our country can't afford it."
With exactly the 60 votes required, the Senate voted at 1 a.m. today to stop a threatened Republican filibuster, the latest in a series of procedural votes leading up to a final Senate vote scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday.
As Vicki Kennedy, the late senator's widow, watched from the gallery, Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa declared that "today we are closer than we've ever been to making Senator Ted Kennedy's dream of universal health insurance coverage a reality."
In brief remarks, Obama this morning said the bill would give families more health care security by guaranteeing that pre-existing conditions will be covered and limiting out-of-pocket costs. The bill, he argued, encompasses a so-called "Patient's bill of rights" that never passed Congress.
Small businesses will also benefit, the president said. And critics' arguments that the bill represents a huge increase in government spending do not "hold water," he said, citing projections from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office that the bill, while costing $871 billion over the next decade, would eventually bring down federal deficits.
(His full remarks are below.)
Republicans, however, call that CBO report a "fig leaf" for a dangerous government expansion in health care. "While they claim victory, the American people will be faced with higher taxes, increased premiums, and cuts to Medicare," Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele said in a statement. "They are ramming this government-run health care program through Congress - when Americans don't want it, and our country can't afford it."
OBAMA'S REMARKS
The United States Senate knocked down a filibuster aimed at blocking a final vote on health care reform, and scored a big victory for the American people. By standing up to the special interests -- who've prevented reform for decades and who are furiously lobbying against it now -- the Senate has moved us closer to reform that makes a tremendous difference for families, for seniors, for businesses, and for the country as a whole.
For those who have insurance, reform will mean greater security and stability. No longer will people with preexisting conditions be excluded from coverage. No longer will people who are seriously ill be dropped from coverage. And no longer will families be allowed to go broke because they're forced to pay exorbitant out-of-pocket expenses.
Many people recall the enormous fights around the Patient's Bill of Rights that never got done. Well, you know what, the Patient's Bill of Rights is embedded in this health care bill and -- to make sure that all Americans who have insurance right now are getting a fair deal from their insurance companies.
Small businesses and those who don?t get insurance through their employer will finally be able to get insurance at a price that they can afford with tax credits to help. And Medicare will be stronger and its solvency extended by nearly a decade. Seniors will get more assistance with prescription drug costs than they're getting right now. And finally, these reforms will help the inexorable and unsustainable rise in health care costs that are overwhelming families, businesses, and the federal budget.
The Congressional Budget Office now reports that this bill will reduce our deficit by $132 billion over the first decade, and by as much as $1.3 trillion in the decade after that. So I just want to be clear, for all those who are continually carping about how this is somehow a big spending government bill, this cuts our deficit by $132 billion the first 10 years, and by over a trillion in the second. That argument that opponents are making against this bill does not hold water.
The United States Senate knocked down a filibuster aimed at blocking a final vote on health care reform, and scored a big victory for the American people. By standing up to the special interests -- who've prevented reform for decades and who are furiously lobbying against it now -- the Senate has moved us closer to reform that makes a tremendous difference for families, for seniors, for businesses, and for the country as a whole.
For those who have insurance, reform will mean greater security and stability. No longer will people with preexisting conditions be excluded from coverage. No longer will people who are seriously ill be dropped from coverage. And no longer will families be allowed to go broke because they're forced to pay exorbitant out-of-pocket expenses.
Many people recall the enormous fights around the Patient's Bill of Rights that never got done. Well, you know what, the Patient's Bill of Rights is embedded in this health care bill and -- to make sure that all Americans who have insurance right now are getting a fair deal from their insurance companies.
Small businesses and those who don?t get insurance through their employer will finally be able to get insurance at a price that they can afford with tax credits to help. And Medicare will be stronger and its solvency extended by nearly a decade. Seniors will get more assistance with prescription drug costs than they're getting right now. And finally, these reforms will help the inexorable and unsustainable rise in health care costs that are overwhelming families, businesses, and the federal budget.
The Congressional Budget Office now reports that this bill will reduce our deficit by $132 billion over the first decade, and by as much as $1.3 trillion in the decade after that. So I just want to be clear, for all those who are continually carping about how this is somehow a big spending government bill, this cuts our deficit by $132 billion the first 10 years, and by over a trillion in the second. That argument that opponents are making against this bill does not hold water.
tags healthcare, Obama
About Political Intelligence
Glen Johnson is Politics Editor at boston.com and lead blogger for "Political Intelligence." He moved to Massachusetts in the fourth grade, and has covered local, state, and national politics for over 25 years. E-mail him at johnson@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @globeglen. |
