Sat, 19 Dec 2009 21:51:2
Tejinder Singh - AHN Correspondent
Washington, DC, United States (AHN) - President Barack Obama on Saturday devoted his weekly address to praise the strong patient protections in the health insurance reform bills in Congress, and called on senators to stop blocking this critical reform effort.
Obama went down the memory lane to recall the protections originally proposed in the bipartisan Patient's Bill of Rights a decade ago, adding that additional protections and rights would reduce costs for families, strengthen Medicare, and lower the deficit. President negated the critics saying that "the protections currently included in both the health insurance reform bill passed by the House and the version currently on the Senate floor would represent the toughest measures we've ever taken to hold the insurance industry accountable."
Obama said that both the House and Senate bills, "would make it against the law for insurance companies to deny you coverage on the basis of a pre-existing condition or illness.
Both would stop insurers from charging exorbitant premiums on the basis of age, health, or gender."
Both would prevent insurance companies from dropping your coverage when you get sick."
And both would put a limit on how much you have to pay out of pocket for the treatments you need in a year or lifetime."
President warned about insurance lobby groups splurging money with ads and misinformation and called the Senate to "deliver on the promise of health insurance reforms that will make our people healthier, our economy stronger, and our future more secure."
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