Spokane Democrats:
Today we saw HUGE proof in the power of the people. Our national leadership was able to pass a bill affirming health care as a right and not a privilege and all of you helped make it happen.
Thank you for the innumerable phone calls made, emails sent and difficult conversations with friends and neighbors. The work is far from over, but we have proven that we are the party who makes it happen.
Thank you for ALL you do.
Amy Biviano,
Chair, Spokane County Democrats
Letter from President Obama
For the first time in our nation's history, Congress has passed comprehensive health care reform. America waited a hundred years and fought for decades to reach this moment. Tonight, thanks to you, we are finally here.
Consider the staggering scope of what you have just accomplished:
Because of you, every American will finally be guaranteed high quality, affordable health care coverage.
Every American will be covered under the toughest patient protections in history. Arbitrary premium hikes, insurance cancellations, and discrimination against pre-existing conditions will now be gone forever.
And we'll finally start reducing the cost of care -- creating millions of jobs, preventing families and businesses from plunging into bankruptcy, and removing over a trillion dollars of debt from the backs of our children.
But the victory that matters most tonight goes beyond the laws and far past the numbers.
It is the peace of mind enjoyed by every American, no longer one injury or illness away from catastrophe.
It is the workers and entrepreneurs who are now freed to pursue their slice of the American dream without fear of losing coverage or facing a crippling bill.
And it is the immeasurable joy of families in every part of this great nation, living happier, healthier lives together because they can finally receive the vital care they need.
This is what change looks like.
My gratitude tonight is profound. I am thankful for those in past generations whose heroic efforts brought this great goal within reach for our times. I am thankful for the members of Congress whose months of effort and brave votes made it possible to take this final step. But most of all, I am thankful for you.
This day is not the end of this journey. Much hard work remains, and we have a solemn responsibility to do it right. But we can face that work together with the confidence of those who have moved mountains.
Our journey began three years ago, driven by a shared belief that fundamental change is indeed still possible. We have worked hard together every day since to deliver on that belief.
We have shared moments of tremendous hope, and we've faced setbacks and doubt. We have all been forced to ask if our politics had simply become too polarized and too short-sighted to meet the pressing challenges of our time. This struggle became a test of whether the American people could still rally together when the cause was right -- and actually create the change we believe in.
Tonight, thanks to your mighty efforts, the answer is indisputable: Yes we can.
Thank you,
President Barack Obama
Immediate Impacts of Health Care Reform:
· Insurance companies will be required to permit young people to stay on family policies until age 26.
· Insurance companies will be required to cover preventive services with little or no cost sharing on the part of Washington state patients.
· Insurance companies will no longer be allowed to rescind existing health insurance policies when a person gets sick.
· Insurance companies will no longer be able to impose lifetime limits on benefits and unreasonable annual limits will be prohibited.
· Insurance companies will be required to report on their costs and on where premium dollars are being spent.
· Insurance companies will be required to provide immediate access to insurance for any child with a pre-existing condition (strengthens existing state law).
· Anyone with a pre-existing condition will be given access to affordable, quality health care (strengthens existing state law).
· Washington seniors who fall the Medicare Part D “doughnut hole” will see immediate relief. The health care reform immediately cuts the “doughnut hole” in half and seniors will get a $250 rebate who enter the donut hole in 2010. Further, the bill works to close this “doughnut hole” by 2020.
· Washington small business owners will qualify for the first phase of a tax credit program to make providing health insurance coverage more affordable. The credit is up to 35 percent of the employer’s contribution to provide health insurance for employees. There is also up to a 25 percent credit for small nonprofit organizations.
· Washington health insurance consumers will have access to streamlined and navigable assistance to help appeal services that have been denied or not covered adequately by insurance companies.
· Washington residents between ages 55-64 will benefit from a new reinsurance program that will allow insurance companies to provide increased access to affordable coverage for this pre-Medicare population. A population whose health insurance costs are typically high.
· Washington workers will benefit from a new National Commission to provide information and recommendations for improving and expanding the health care workforce.
· Washington taxpayers will benefit from enhanced screening procedures for health care providers to eliminate fraud and waste in the health care system.
COST:
· We know that if we do not address health care costs soon, family and individual budgets as well as budgets at the state, local and federal level will collapse under the weight of rising health care costs.
· Without reform, insurance premiums are projected to consume over 40% of a median Washington residents income by 2016.
· Health care reform will provide families with the security, stability, and peace of mind that comes with health care they can count on.
· Our health insurance reform plan will provide health insurance to millions of Americans—and end the hidden tax that is passed onto the insured to pay for emergency care for the uninsured who are unable to pay, which is estimated at over one thousand dollars a year for a family of four.
· The Congressional Budget Office states that the health care reform package will reduce federal deficits by $143 billion over the next ten years.
· In addition, it will also bend the cost curve over the long-term, as it will continue to reduce federal deficits in the decade following 2019 by $1.2 trillion.
· The health care reform package will also extend Medicare's solvency by at least nine years and reduce the rate of its growth by 1.4 percent.
