CDHP Health Care Reform Update 1/29/10: President Obama Renews Commitment to Health Reform

In his State of the Union Speech on Wednesday, President Obama expressed strong support for Congress to forge ahead on health reform. Efforts have been at a standstill since the election last week of Massachusetts Republican Scott Brown to the Senate seat formerly held by the late Senator Edward Kennedy. The result delivered a serious blow to Democrats in Congress, who lost their thin, 60-member majority in the Senate. While his speech was focused primarily on the economy and generating new jobs, President Obama was abundantly clear that he had not abandoned his campaign promise to reform our nation's health care system and tasked both parties and both chambers with finding a way to do so.

In the past several days, lawmakers have been weighing their options under this current climate. The most commonly discussed options include: the House taking up the Senate bill; the House taking up the Senate bill in addition to another bill that would address some of the concerns of House progressives; considering a pared down version of health reform through the budget reconciliation process; or doing nothing. President Obama's speech on Wednesday seemed to eliminate the last option, at least from the White House's standpoint. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has suggested that her caucus would support the Senate bill with some changes, though no final plans have been announced.

Contact your lawmakers today to thank them for the oral health provisions in both the House and Senate health reform bills and ask them to stay the course on health reform. To find out who your elected officials are and how to reach them, call the U.S. Capitol switchboard: (202) 224-3121 or go to the web sites of the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate.