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Skriven 2007-01-20 23:31:16 av Whitehouse Press (1:3634/12.0)
Ärende: Press Release (070120) for Sat, 2007 Jan 20
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President's Radio Address
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For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
January 20, 2007

President's Radio Address


ÿÿÿÿÿ Audio ÿÿÿÿÿ In Focus: Health Care ÿÿÿÿÿ

THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. For many Americans, the new year began with a
resolution to live a better and healthier life. Whatever goals you have set
for yourself this year, one goal we can all share is reforming our Nation's
health care system.

Americans are fortunate to have the best health care system in the world.
The government has an important role to play in our system. We have an
obligation to provide care for the most vulnerable members of our society
-- the elderly, the disabled, and poor children and their parents. We are
meeting this responsibility through Medicare, Medicaid, and the State
Children's Health Insurance Program. We must strengthen these vital
programs so that they are around when future generations need them.

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For all other Americans, private health insurance is the best way to meet
their needs. But rising health care costs are making insurance too
expensive for millions of our citizens. Health care costs are growing more
than two times faster than wages, and this is making it harder for working
families to buy insurance on their own. Rising costs are also making it
harder for small businesses to offer health coverage to their employees.
Our challenge is clear: We must address these rising costs, so that more
Americans can afford basic health insurance. And we need to do it without
creating a new Federal entitlement program or raising taxes.

Our Nation is making progress toward this goal. We created Health Savings
Accounts, which empower patients and can reduce the cost of coverage. We
are working to pass Association Health Plans, so that small businesses can
insure their workers at the favorable discounts that big businesses get. We
must pass medical liability reform, so we can stop the junk lawsuits that
drive costs through the roof and good doctors out of practice. We've taken
important steps to increase transparency in health care pricing, and give
patients more information about the quality of their doctors and hospitals.

One of the most promising ways to make private health insurance more
affordable is by reforming the Federal tax code. Today, the tax code
unfairly penalizes people who do not get health insurance through their
job. It unwisely encourages workers to choose overly expensive, gold-plated
plans. The result is that insurance premiums rise, and many Americans
cannot afford the coverage they need.

We need to fix these problems, and one way to do so is to treat health
insurance more like home ownership. The current tax code encourages home
ownership by allowing you to deduct the interest on your mortgage from your
taxes. We can reform the tax code, so that it provides a similar incentive
for you to buy health insurance. So in my State of the Union Address next
Tuesday, I will propose a tax reform designed to help make basic private
health insurance more affordable -- whether you get it through your job or
on your own.

As we reform the Federal tax code, we will also support the innovative
measures that states are taking to address the problem of the uninsured.
Governors across the Nation have put forward plans to make basic private
health insurance more accessible for their citizens. When I go before
Congress next week, I will announce a new effort -- led by Health and Human
Services Secretary Michael Leavitt -- to help governors reduce the number
of people in their states without private health insurance.

All of these changes are based on a clear principle: Health insurance
should be available, it should be affordable, and it should put you and
your doctor in charge of your medical decisions. I look forward to working
with Congress to pass the initiatives that I lay out next week, so we can
help millions more Americans enjoy better care, new choices, and healthier
lives.

Thank you for listening.





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