Merkley: Obama Lays Out Clear Vision on Health Care Reform

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

WASHINGTON, DC – Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley issued the following statement on President Obama’s national address on health care before a Joint Session of Congress:

“President Obama took a critical step tonight in putting this conversation back where it belongs: on solutions to one of our biggest national challenges.  Instead of hysteria and political attacks, we need to discuss how we fix the health care system.   He laid out a clear vision for how we can make that happen.

 

“People can disagree on the solutions, but the President did a good job tonight of reminding people of the stakes if we do nothing.  I want to reiterate his message that those who are saying ‘no’ without offering any solutions of their own are advocating:  double-digit premium increases for businesses and workers, more rationing by insurance company bureaucrats, more denials based on pre-existing conditions, huge deficits and higher taxes in the future, and less certainty in already uncertain economic times.

 

“As the President said tonight, ‘Now is the season for action.’  It is time to fix our broken system, keep insurance companies honest, give consumers more choice, and hold down costs.  We must reform health care so that no families are ever again bankrupted and torn apart simply because they have the misfortune of getting sick or injured.”

Audio of Senator Merkley’s remarks is available online at:

http://merkley.senate.gov/imo/media/audio/Merkley_-_Reaction_to_Obama_Address.mp3