Obama Takes On Health Care At Critical Moment For Presidency
Obamas speech at 8 p.m. Washington time follows weeks of images of voters shouting at lawmakers about health care at town-hall meetings across the U.S. It also comes as public approval for his handling of the issue dropped to 42 percent in July from 51 percent in April, according to polls by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press.
“Obama has to speak compellingly and passionately about why this must be addressed so comprehensively now,” said Ken Duberstein, a former chief of staff to President Ronald Reagan. “It is also a critical moment for his presidency, for the broader agenda.”
Lawmakers are trying to extend coverage to millions of uninsured Americans and rein in health-care costs that account for about one-sixth of the worlds biggest economy. In addition to setting up a government program to offer people an alternative to companies such as Indianapolis-based WellPoint Inc., theyre considering requiring employers to provide coverage and placing new rules on insurers.
No Republican has supported any of the plans passed by four congressional panels. The Senate Finance Committee is still seeking a compromise, and a group of three Republicans and three Democrats on the panel will meet again today for further discussions.
Baucuss Plan
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus yesterday proposed a health-care plan that would impose billions of dollars in fees on insurers and penalize Americans who fail to get coverage.
The Montana Democrat said hes pressing the health-care negotiators to reach a deal before Obamas speech. Two of the lawmakers — Senators Kent Conrad, a North Dakota Democrat, and Olympia Snowe, a Maine Republican — said that timetable was unrealistic because there were too many issues on the table.
Baucuss proposal would cost less than $900 billion over 10 years. The plan, which drew fire from the insurance industry, would finance some of that amount through annual fees of $6 billion on health insurers, $4 billion on medical-device makers, $2.3 billion on drug manufacturers and $750 million on clinical laboratories, among other taxes.
For Obama, tonight may represent one of his best chances to make the case for his top domestic priority. More than half of Americans plan to watch the speech, and 67 percent say the debate is difficult to understand, according to the Pew Research Center.
Reason for Concern?
For people who may be in favor of the overhaul yet arent following it closely, “a lot of them have looked at these town-hall meetings and said maybe there is something to be concerned about,” said Jennifer Duffy, senior editor at the Cook Political Report in Washington.
“I dont think this will be accompanied by truckloads of paper and our own legislation,” White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs told reporters yesterday.
The president will likely reiterate his backing for the government insurance plan with language that leaves him room to drop that support to win more votes. Gibbs and senior adviser David Axelrod in separate Sept. 6 interviews with ABC and NBC called the so-called public option a “valuable tool.”
Doesnt Define Debate
“It shouldnt define the whole health-care debate,” Axelrod said on NBCs “Meet the Press.”
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says she cant pass health-care legislation through her chamber without a government plan. “I believe a public option will be essential,” she said yesterday after meeting with Obama at the White House.
Pelosi faces opposition in her own caucus, and her top two lieutenants, Maryland Representative Steny Hoyer and South Carolina Representative James Clyburn, left the door open for dropping the public program.
“Lets do what we can on an incremental basis,” Clyburn said in a Bloomberg Television interview. “Lets not sacrifice good on the altar of the perfect.”