Obama Frames The Health Care Choice
The Treatment's Jonathan Cohn praises presidential straight talk in last night's presser:
Late in tonight's press conference, President Obama got a question that just begged for an easy, evasive answer ... whether he was prepared to promise Americans that, under his reform plan, 'the government will never deny any services, that that's going to be decided by the doctor and the patient, and the government will not deny any coverage.' The easy, evasive answer would have been to agree...
...But Obama didn't give those answers. Instead, he answered truthfully. 'Can I guarantee that there are going to be no changes in the health-care delivery system? No. The whole point of this is to try to encourage changes that work for the American people and make them healthier. And the government already is making some of these decisions. More importantly, insurance companies right now are making those decisions. And part of what we want to do is to make sure that those decisions are being made by doctors and medical experts based on evidence, based on what works. Because that's not how it's working right now.' ... Obama wanted to speak to America like adults tonight--and make the case for the reforms he (quite rightly) believes are necessary.
Change.org's Tim Foley highlights how the President framed the choice before us: "I thought the most striking moment, and the one I haven’t heard before, was Obama’s explanation that there were really two plans under consideration ... There’s the plan Congress is currently working on to reform health care, expand coverage, make meaningful improvements to primary care, health IT, prevention and wellness, and insurance market reform. And there’s this plan: 'If somebody told you that there is a plan out there that is guaranteed to double your health-care costs over the next 10 years, that’s guaranteed to result in more Americans losing their health care, and that is by far the biggest contributor to our federal deficit, I think most people would be opposed to that. That’s what we have right now.'"
...I am confident that both the House and the Senate bills will contain what we've been calling MedPAC on steroids, the idea that you continually present new ideas to change incentives, change the delivery system, understanding that because this is such a complex system we're not always going to get it exactly right the first time, and that there have to be a series of modifications over the course of a series of years, and we have to take that out of politics and make sure that an independent board of medical experts and health economists are providing packages that are continually improving the system...
Now, the second idea ... was the elimination of the tax exclusion [on employer-provided health insurance]. And I've been very clear on my position that I think to add additional costs to families right now when they're already seeing their premiums doubled is not the kind of health reform that I'd like to see, but I believe that there may be ways of getting at the same principle. For example, you could conceivably set up an index of some sort that makes sure .... that the exclusion only accommodates a certain amount of health care inflation -- as opposed to 8 percent or 9 percent, or what have you -- without burdening current plans...
You're also seeing, I think, some interesting discussions in the Senate Finance Committee about a variation that goes after the insurance companies, as opposed to directly taxing the benefits ... although it's a blunter instrument, it's more measurable than some of the delivery system changes -- although I actually think the delivery system changes are more long-lasting.
TPMDC notes Obama told Hiatt he has his eye on Social Security next: "President Obama suggested today that, when health care reform is behind him, he may set his sights on Social Security 'I think we're in a position to be able to, either at the end of this year or early next year, start laying out a broader picture about how we are going to handle entitlements in a serious way,' Obama said. 'It may start with Social Security because that's, frankly, the easier one.'"
Media Matters finds "TV news networks have repeatedly given considerably more attention to perceived setbacks to progressive health care reform efforts than to events that signal progress for those efforts."
Firedoglake's Scarecrow rips inaction from Sens. Baucus and Grassley: "How did it come to pass that the country has left 1/6 of the US economy in the hands of these two people? When did we elect them as Co-Presidents?"
Facing South names "Obstacle of the Week:" Blue Dog Rep. Mike Ross: "To address the very real problem of lack of health care in rural areas (there are only three in Ross' town of Prescott) Ross and other Blue Dogs are pressing for 'rural health equity,' which would dramatically increase federal reimbursements for Medicare and Medicaid in rural areas. A laudable proposal -- but also an expensive one, seemingly at odds with Ross' supposed hard-line fiscal conservatism and concerns about containing health costs."
CQ reports Blue Dogs are cultivating campaign cash from health care special interests: "Democrats in the Blue Dog Coalition might have drawn the ire of party liberals for putting the brakes on the fast-moving health care overhaul, but their political action committee has been raking in contributions from business interests with an eye on reshaping President Obama’s signature initiative. The Blue Dog Political Action Committee has collected $1.1 million for the 2010 election cycle, more than any other leadership political action committee on Capitol Hill, according to CQ MoneyLine. The total includes about $300,000 from health care interests, including $158,000 from doctors and other provider groups; $87,000 from makers of drugs and medical devices; and $50,000 from health insurance interests."
The Hill report Blue Dogs still resistant after deal on cost-cutting commission: "The seven Blue Dogs who have been holding up consideration of the bill in the Energy and Commerce Committee have said they support the idea of a commission as a way to rein in healthcare costs. But that concession has not won over the Blue Dogs and Waxman’s negotiations with the group are ongoing."
W. Post notes business community divided over health care reform, "reducing the force of an opposition push."
Frank Pushes Back on Fed Power and Wall Street Pay, Pushes Off CFPA Fight
W. Post reports bill to create financial protection agency delayed under pressure from banks: "House Democrats vowed Wednesday to redouble their efforts to create a new Consumer Financial Protection Agency and to battle banking lobbyists and other critics who have been chipping away at support for the measure ... Frank had initially planned for his committee to endorse a bill creating the new agency by the end of July, but this week he postponed the vote until lawmakers return from recess in September ... Frank said he plans to hold a 'national debate' over the merits of the new agency ... 'Frankly, if I were the bankers, I would not invite a debate ... But that's what they want, and I think that's what we will have.'"
Plan to empower Fed to regulate financial markets stalls in Congress. Bloomberg: "The Obama administration’s plan to expand the Federal Reserve’s powers to oversee financial firms is failing to win supporters in Congress as some lawmakers back a proposal to give the responsibility to several regulators. 'It’s going to be shared authority,' House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank,
W. Post catches up on Wall Steet pay going through the roof again: "Wall Street's biggest banks are setting aside billions of dollars more to pay their executives and other employees just months after these firms were rescued with a taxpayer bailout, renewing questions about compensation practices in the aftermath of the financial crisis ... 'It strengthens our commitment to getting legislation passed'" Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.)..."
FDIC chief wants fund to protect taxpayers from further bailouts: "Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Sheila Bair urged U.S. lawmakers to impose fees on the nation’s largest financial firms to keep the government from having to prop up companies deemed too large to fail. Congress should create an industry-supported Financial Company Resolution Fund to provide working capital and cover unanticipated losses when the government steps in to unwind a failed firm, Bair said in prepared testimony obtained by Bloomberg News. She is scheduled to deliver the testimony today in Washington before the Senate Banking Committee."
USDA: Climate Bill Good For Farmers
Greenwire: The Agriculture Department released its analysis of the House-passed climate bill today showing the cap-and-trade legislation having modest short-term costs for agriculture and long-term net benefits for the sector."
ClimateWire profiles the N. Dakota Dem senators standing in the way: "...gaining the support of either one is turning out to be a challenging quest for Democrats searching for the magical 60 votes in the U.S. Senate to stop a filibuster. Meanwhile, advocates for capping greenhouse gases are swinging back at the two North Dakotans in blogs and newspaper editorials."
