Biden: Hospitals Back Health Care Reform

Hospital associations will be aiding the White House’s health reform effort by providing $155 billion in medicare and medicaid savings over the next ten years, announced Vice President Joe Biden Wednesday.

“All of these savings are based on policies the administration proposed in its budget to fund health care reform,” said Biden, adding that the announcement represented President Barack Obama’s goal to achieve deficit neutral reform.

The Vice President, who appeared with Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius for the announcement, stressed health reform’s urgency, stating that a plan needs to be in place by the end of August.

“We have tried for decades to fix a broken system. We have never, in my entire public tenure in public life, been this close,” said Biden.

The hospital associations will achieve the promised savings by reforming their delivery systems and reducing inflationary updates.

Health And Human Services Secretary Stresses Urgency Of Health Care Reform

By Mariko Lamb- Talk Radio News Service

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said that in states across the U.S., health care costs are increasing, quality of healthcare is decreasing, and there is “an urgent need for healthcare reform.”

“The time for reform is now,” said Sebelius during a conference call with reporters, “The American people have been calling for reform, and they should not have to wait any longer.”

Sebelius addressed concerns about business owners possibly “dumping” employee health benefits and mandating that their employees pursue the federally provided health care option. Sebelius stated that the bill was crafted to ensure that employers would not be able to exploit the public option.

State-by-state reports on the current status of the percentage of residents without health insurance, quality of health care, and costs of premiums are available at www.healthreform.gov.