tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36426727032427413062024-03-13T08:18:11.088-07:00A Letter From The PresidentChristopherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00293084438513598251noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3642672703242741306.post-26097917389439730452009-10-22T13:26:00.000-07:002009-10-22T13:32:03.752-07:00A Letter From President Obama on HealthcareDear Friend:<br /><br /> Thank you for sharing your thoughts with me. I have heard<br />from countless Americans struggling to afford health insurance and health professionals striving to provide care. I appreciate your perspective.<br /><br /> There is broad consensus among the American people on<br />the need for affordable, high-quality health care. The rising cost of<br />health care is the most pressing financial challenge for families and<br />for our Nation, and controlling this cost is essential to bringing<br />down the Federal deficits we inherited. We must also end unfair<br />insurance practices that leave millions of Americans without<br />coverage, deny them access to coverage, and expose them to<br />extraordinary burdens. And we should ensure that small<br />businesses have access to affordable, high-quality health plans for<br />their employees so that we can make our economy - and our small<br />businesses - more competitive. Now is the time to move forward,<br />and I am working to get health insurance reform done this year.<br /><br /> Since I took office, we have done more to improve health<br />care than we have in the previous decade. In February, I signed<br />H.R. 2 to provide coverage for millions of children through the<br />Children's Health Insurance Program, and I signed the American<br />Recovery and Reinvestment Act to make key investments in<br />computerized medical records and preventive services.<br /><br /> Still, more must be done to lower costs, expand coverage,<br />and improve the quality of health care. Health insurance reform<br />must provide more security and stability to those who have health<br />insurance; make sure those who do not have insurance can find<br />affordable options; and lower the cost of health care for our<br />families, our businesses, and our government. Reform will benefit<br />seniors by protecting and strengthening Medicare, closing the<br />"donut-hole" gap in coverage for prescription drugs, and providing<br />free preventive care. To help fulfill the debt we owe to our service<br />men and women, I am committed to ensuring that we provide the<br />highest-quality health care possible to America's veterans. My<br />2010 budget requests the largest single-year increase in funding for the Department of Veterans Affairs in three decades and significantly expands health care coverage to an additional 500,000 veterans by 2013.<br /><br /> Ultimately, there are tough choices to be made, and I am<br />working to bring employers and workers, health care providers and<br />patients together to create a system that delivers high-quality<br />health care and puts the Nation on a sustainable, long-term fiscal<br />path. To learn more about my Health Insurance Reform Plan or to<br />share a personal story, please join me online at:<br />www.HealthReform.gov. For further information on health care<br />and assistance that may be available to you, you may call 1-800-<br />FED-INFO or visit: www.USA.gov.<br /><br />[edited for direct personal context]<br /><br />Sincerely,<br /><br />Barack ObamaChristopherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00293084438513598251noreply@blogger.com