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Obama's health care reforms gather new momentum
Published October 7, 2009 - BizTimes Daily
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President Barack Obama's push for health care reforms is gaining renewed public support, according to new polls, and also is attracting the support of some prominent Republicans, including former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson.
The latest New York Times/CBS News poll found that nearly two-thirds of Americans support the creation of a public option to compete with private insurance plans.
The latest Associated Press-GfK poll has found that opposition to Obama's health care reforms dropped dramatically in just a matter of weeks. The public is split 40-40 on supporting or opposing the health care legislation, the poll found. An even split is welcome news for Democrats and a sharp improvement from September, when 49 percent of Americans said they opposed the congressional proposals and just 34 percent supported them.
The White House released a joint statement of support from Thompson, a Republican who served as President George W. Bush's secretary of health and human services, and Richard Gephardt, a former Democratic Congressional leader.
"The bill that the Senate Finance Committee will vote out for consideration by the full Senate this week is another important step toward achieving the goal of health care reform this year. It moves us down the path of providing affordable high-quality health care for all and expanding coverage for millions," said the joint statement by Thompson and Gephardt. "Failure to reach an agreement on health reform this year is not an acceptable option. Inaction will only increase the burden of rapidly rising health care costs and care denied for millions of American families. Inaction will increase the crushing burden of rising health costs on American businesses that are struggling to create jobs and lead America's economic recovery. It is time for action."
Meanwhile, former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, a Republican physician from Tennessee, said in a Time magazine interview that were he still serving in Congress he would vote for the health care bill.
The White House also released a statement by Arnold Schwarzenegger, California's Republican governor, urging the passage of national health care reforms, and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a former Republican who is running for re-election as an independent, also voiced his support of reforms.
Obama met with 150 doctors from around the country at the White House on Monday.
The Senate Finance Committee, the last of five panels in Congress to move on health care legislation, aims to vote within days on a health care reform bill.
