Primetime Obama

President Obama held a news conference in the East Room of the White House tonight to push for health care reform. Health care reform has been a major issue in Congress this week because the President wants a bill passed in August and on his desk this fall.
Health care became a major issue in the '08 campaign mostly due to the fifty million Americans without insurance, but also because of horror stories by those who thought they had insurance until they became sick. Health care costs have risen three times faster than wages over the last decade and some employers have seen a huge hit in their bottom line. Obama's plan would seek to reduce cost by eliminating inefficiencies in the system, and incentivize care. One plan that has already proven effective in local hospitals would bundle care to include the cost of treating a disease instead of charging separately for all procedures. One Republican idea that is gaining credibility is to create a "MedPac" board of experts to oversee the industry and make recommendations for Congress to vote on. Overall, two-thirds of the cost of bill are already paid by taxpayers in the form of subsidies to insurance companies. At a time when profits and premiums are both going up, this is lunacy. While their are many proposals on the table, Obama favors limiting tax deductions for the wealthiest Americans. To earn the votes of Blue Dogs and some Republicans, Obama has promised the bill will be deficit neutral. Where were these deficit hawks when G.W. Bush decided to cut taxes twice? Where were they when he launched an illegal war? When he gave billions to pharmaceuticals for Medicare D? When he gave a trillion dollars to the lending industry? But when the money would go to help working class Americans, suddenly they are so concerned about the national debt? Give us a break!
Obama did a good job explaining where he stands without attacking the opposition. Health care reform is entitlement reform. The cost of inaction will break our nation. This money is already being spent in the most disastrous way. This plan will simply expand coverage to all Americans and spend money on test, procedures, and drugs instead of paying insurance executives who want to deny these to line their own pockets.
One thing Obama did not do was call on Congress to stay passed their scheduled August recess, or extend his deadline. Congress has been working hard on this legislation, and some fairly progressive Democrats, including Charlie Rangle, have said they need more time. This is a massive bill, and maybe the most important thing that Obama will accomplish. Perhaps getting it done right is more important than getting it done.