Posted by Phillipa on March 23, 2010, at 12:28:08 [reposted on March 24, 2010, at 19:30:52 | original URL]
Seems Obama passed the health care reform but not mentioned now 13 Attorney Generals From 13 States have filed suit the bill is unconstitutional. Gad politics is so hard to understand. Well for those who don't have insurance latest today. Phillipa
From Medscape Medical News
President Obama Signs Historic Healthcare Reform Bill
Robert LowesPresident Barack Obama today signed historic healthcare reform legislation that Republican opponents had hoped would be his Waterloo.
The signing ceremony comes 2 days after the House passed a Senate reform measure in a 219 to 212 vote in the face of Republican warnings that Democrats were engineering a wasteful government takeover of medicine. Last year, Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) said that if his party could prevent passage of healthcare reform, President Obama would experience his Waterloo, the battle in 1815 that marked the end of Napoleon's political and military career.
The legislation inked by President Obama today in the East Room of the White House will require most Americans to obtain health insurance, but provide premium subsidies to needy individuals and families. They and small businesses will be able to purchase private coverage through state-based insurance marketplaces called exchanges. The bill increases Medicaid enrollment by almost 50% and imposes pro-patient regulations on private insurers that, among other things, will prohibit them from denying someone coverage based on preexisting conditions, or dropping coverage once sickness strikes.
Before he signed his name, the president said that the bill's passage demonstrates that the nation can still accomplish big things rather than succumbing to doubt, mistrust, and fear. "We are not a nation that scales back its aspirations," said President Obama. "We're a nation that does what is hard, what is necessary, what is right. Here in this country, we shape our own destiny.
"And we have just enshrined, as soon as I sign this bill, the core principle that everybody should have some basic security when it comes to their healthcare."
While President Obama and fellow Democrats were celebrating a hard-fought victory today, the legislative war continues. Later today, the Senate is scheduled to take up a budget reconciliation bill that amends the approved reform legislation to incorporate tweaks from the president and House Democrats. Senate Democrats hope to surmount parliamentary pushback from Republicans and hold a simple-majority vote by the weekend. Meanwhile, lawmakers in 39 state legislatures have introduced or plan to introduce bills that would block the new federal requirement for individuals to carry insurance, according to the conservative American Legislative Exchange Council.
[CLOSE WINDOW]Authors and DisclosuresJournalistRobert LowesFreelance writer, St. Louis, Missouri
Disclosure: Robert L. Lowes has disclosed no relevant financial relationships.
poster:Phillipa
thread:940728
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/poli/20090821/msgs/940728.html