President Obama Tackles Health Care Debate

The healthcare system in the United States is currently costing the government $2.5 trillion, and 46 million Americans do not even have it, according to an MSNBC online article.

So how does President Obama plan on solving this problem in a way that we can all be happy? Americans are skeptical of what he can do. Democrats want a reform policy so they can choose their own healthcare. Republicans want nothing to do with it.

Obama simply wants to “improve the quality and bring down the costs” of our healthcare system, as well as “expand coverage,” according to MSNBC. He is ready to negotiate and make peace, but it might still be hard for him to make a connection with Americans. According to the Chicago Tribune, the president has already given close to 30 speeches on health-care reform, and the people “still don’t know exactly what he wants.”

However, Obama thinks that now is the time to focus on what could be one of the largest challenges he will have to face in his presidency. “It’s time to do what’s right for America’s working families, to put aside the partisanship, to come together as a nation, to pass health insurance reform now – this year,” said Obama.

On Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2009, President Obama will address the nation and Congress about the controversial topic of healthcare. Many people think that this debate will head down a bumpy path, but if Obama finds an appropriate solution to this crisis, then it might become the defining moment in his presidency. What will result from this is still up in the air, but some of America’s labor force are expecting the worst.

Dr. James Rosenberg, a gastroenterologist, is worried about what could happen if it becomes mandatory for all patients’ files to be registered into a “national electronic health record database under federal auspices,” according to the Chicago Tribune. He is concerned about patients’ rights to privacy and the possibility of the files being hacked into.

Even though President Obama’s popularity and poll numbers have dropped significantly since his election and he has received criticism for America’s Affordable Health Choices Act, the White House and his reputation may be redeemed when he hits his stride – talking on Americans’ televisions all across the nation on Wednesday night.