Better care, prescription drugs: Obama outlines HCR details
Public option, malpractice reform components of President’s
pitch to Congress.
Seeking to regain momentum lost during the contentious August recess,
President Barack Obama tonight used a carrot-and-stick approach in an
effort to move Republicans and conservative Democrats his way on the
health care reform (HCR) legislation now being considered in Congress.
The President also called for plugging the gap in coverage of Medicare
Part D and cited improved care as an important element in paying for the
changes he said are needed in American health care.
Congress had returned to Washington this week following face-to-face
encounters with thousands of constituents during the long August recess.
Many observers thought that the Obama White House lost control of the
debate during this time, and tonight the President sought to reframe the
discussion using the oratorical skills that have served him well on big
stages—like addressing Congress from the floor of the U.S. House
of Representatives.
Obama stuck to his guns on the controversial public option but closed
by offering the GOP something the party has long sought: reform of the
medical practice laws. In an interesting move, he instructed the
Secretary of Health and Human Services to move forward on this today and
cited templates from the George W. Bush administration as examples of
constructive action.
Citing savings that can be attained with improved care such as lower
infection rates and more cooperation among health professionals, the
President pointed to best practices developed at Utah’s
Intermountain Healthcare and Pennsylvania’s Geisinger Health
System. While minimizing the impact a public option would have on
American health care, he noted that reforms instituted in the Medicare
system could have a positive effect on the system in general.
Savings could be used to pay for the HCR initiative, Obama said. He
sought to reassure America’s seniors that Medicare will be there
for them and for future generations. He then added this carrot for those
relying on Medicare for their benefits: “We could use some of the
savings to fill the gap in coverage that forces too many seniors to pay
thousands of dollars a year out of their own pockets for prescription
drugs.”
In other HCR developments today, the Senate Finance Committee
announced mark-up of legislation beginning later this month. If a bill
is reported out, that would be the fifth and final committee working on
HCR, and the debate would then move to the floor of each chamber.
Related resources on www.pharmacist.com
L. Michael Posey, BPharm (mposey)
Posted September 9, 2009, 10:00 pm EDT
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