THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
_______________________________________________________________________________________
EMBARGOED UNTIL DELIVERY
March 19, 2010
Remarks of President Barack Obama on Health Insurance Reform – As Prepared for Delivery
George Mason University
Friday, March 19, 2010
Hello, George Mason!
It is great to be back here with a group of real Patriots. I first visited this university three years ago. At the time, my campaign for the presidency was just a few weeks old. We didn’t have much money or staff. Our poll numbers were pretty low. A lot of people still couldn’t pronounce my name, and most pundits didn’t think it was worth trying.
But what we had even then was a group of students here at George Mason who believed that if we worked hard enough, and fought long enough, and organized enough supporters, we could finally bring change to that city across the river. We believed back then that we could make Washington work – not for the lobbyists, not for the special interests, not for politicians, but for the American people.
And that’s exactly what this health care vote is all about.
A few miles from here, Congress is in the final stages of a fateful debate about the future of health insurance in America. It is a debate that has raged not just for the past year, but for much of the past century. It’s a debate that is not only about the cost of our health care but the character of our country – about whether we can still meet the challenges of our time; about whether we’re still a nation that gives its citizens a chance to reach their dreams.
At the heart of this debate is the question of whether we will continue to accept a health care system that works better for the insurance companies than it does for the American people. Because if this vote fails, the insurance industry will continue to run wild in America. They will continue to deny people coverage. They will continue to deny people care. They will continue to jack up premiums 40% or 50% or 60% as they have in the last few weeks without any accountability whatsoever. They know this. That’s why their lobbyists are stalking the halls of Congress as we speak. That’s why they’re pouring millions of dollars into negative ads. That’s why they’re doing everything they can to kill this bill.
So the only question left is this:
Are we going to let the special interests win again? Or are we going to make this vote a victory for the American people?
George Mason, the time for reform is now.
After a year of debate, every proposal has been put on the table. Every argument has been made. And we have incorporated the best ideas from Democrats and Republicans into a final proposal that builds on the system of private insurance that we currently have. The insurance industry and its supporters in Congress have tried to portray this as radical change. But what we’re talking about here is common-sense reform.
If you like your doctor, you’ll be able to keep your doctor. If you like your plan, you’ll be able to keep your plan. Because I don’t believe we should give the government or the insurance companies more control over health care in America. I believe it’s time to give you – the American people – more control over your health insurance.
The proposal that Congress is about to vote on will do that in three ways:
First, we will finally end the worst practices of insurance companies. Starting this year, thousands of uninsured Americans with pre-existing conditions will be able to purchase health insurance – some for the first time in their lives. This year, insurance companies will be banned forever from denying coverage to children with pre-existing conditions. This year, they will be banned from dropping your coverage when you get sick. Those practices will end.
If this reform becomes law, all new insurance plans will be required to offer free preventive care to their customers – starting this year. Starting this year, if you buy a new plan, there will be no more lifetime or restrictive annual limits on the amount of care you receive from your insurance companies. And here’s what reform will mean for so many of the students who are here today: starting this year, if you don’t have insurance, all new plans will allow you to stay on your parents’ insurance policy until you’re 26 years old. Because as you start your lives and your careers, the last thing you should worry about is whether you’ll go broke just because you get sick.
The second thing that would change about the current system is this: for the first time, small business owners and people who are being priced out of the insurance market will have the same kind of choice of private health insurance that Members of Congress get for themselves. For the first time, small business owners and middle-class families will be able to purchase affordable health insurance in a competitive marketplace. And if you still can’t afford the insurance in this new marketplace, we will offer you tax credits to do so – tax credits that add up to the largest middle class tax cut for health care in history.
Now, it’s true that all of this will cost money – about $100 billion per year. But most of the cost comes from money that America’s already spending in the health care system – it’s just not all going to health care. Instead, too much money is going toward waste, or fraud, or unwarranted subsidies for insurance companies. With this plan, we’re going to make sure the dollars we spend go toward making insurance more affordable. We’re going to eliminate wasteful taxpayer subsidies that currently go to insurance companies. And we will set a new fee on insurance companies that stand to gain as millions of Americans are able to buy insurance. Here’s the point: our proposal is paid for.
Finally, my proposal would bring down the cost of health care for families, businesses, and the federal government. Americans buying comparable coverage to what they have today in the individual market would see premiums fall by 14 to 20 percent. For Americans who get their insurance through the workplace, costs could be as much as $3,000 a person less than they would be if we do nothing. Altogether, our cost-cutting measures would reduce most people’s premiums and bring down our deficit by more than $1 trillion over the next two decades. And those aren’t my numbers; they are the savings determined by the Congressional Budget Office, the nonpartisan, independent referee of Congress.
So this is our proposal. This is what the United States Congress is about to vote on this weekend. And of course, all that Washington can talk about is the politics of the vote. What does it mean for November? What does it mean for our poll numbers? What does it mean for the Democrats or the Republicans?
I’ll confess – I don’t know how this plays politically. Nobody really does. But what I do know what it will mean for America’s future. I don’t know what impact reform will have on our poll numbers. But I know the impact it will have on the millions of Americans who need our help.
I know what reform will mean for people like Leslie Banks, a single mom from Pennsylvania who’s trying to put her daughter through college. Her insurance company just sent her a letter saying they plan to double her premiums this year – double her premiums. Leslie Banks needs us to pass this bill.
I know what reform will mean for people like Laura Klitzka. Laura thought she had beaten her breast cancer but later discovered it spread to her bones. She and her husband had insurance but their medical bills still landed them in debt, and now she spends her time worrying about that debt when all she wants to do is spend time with her two children. Laura Klitzka needs us to pass this bill.
And I know what reform will mean for people like Natoma Canfield. When her insurance company raised her rates, Natoma was forced to give up her coverage, even though she was scared as anything that a sudden illness would lead to financial ruin. And now she’s lying in a hospital bed, faced with just such an illness, praying that she can somehow afford to get well. Natoma Canfield knows that the time for reform is now.
George Mason, the time for reform is now.
In just a few days, a century-long struggle will culminate in an historic vote. And when we have faced such decisions in our past, this nation has chosen time and again to extend its promise to more of its people.
When the naysayers argued that Social Security would lead to socialism, the men and women of Congress stood fast, and created a program that has lifted millions of poverty.
When the cynics warned that Medicare would lead to a government takeover of our entire health care system, and it didn’t have much support in the polls, Democrats and Republicans refused to back down, and made sure that all of us could enter our golden years with some basic peace of mind.
Generations ago, those who came before made the decision that our seniors and our poor should not be forced to go without health care just because they couldn’t afford it. Today, it falls to this generation to decide whether we will make the same promise to middle-class families, and small businesses, and young Americans like yourselves who are just starting out.
I know this has been a difficult journey. I know this will be a tough vote. I know that Washington has treated this debate like a sport. But I also remember a quote I saw on a plaque in the White House the other day. It’s hanging in the same room where I demanded answers from the insurance executives, and received only excuses. It’s a quote from Teddy Roosevelt, who first called for health care reform all those years ago. It says, “Aggressive fighting for the right is the noblest sport the world affords.”
George Mason, I don’t know how passing health care will play politically. But I know it’s right. Teddy Roosevelt knew it was right. Harry Truman knew it was right. Our dear friend Ted Kennedy – he knew more than anyone that this is right.
And if you believe it’s right too, I need you to help us finish the fight that they started. I need you to stand with me. Just like I did when I came here three years ago at the beginning of our campaign, I need you to knock on doors, and talk to your neighbors, and pick up the phone, and make your voices heard so that they can hear you on the other side of the river. I still believe we can do what’s right. I still believe we can do what’s hard. The need is great. The opportunity is here. And the time for reform is now. Thank you.
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