The OBAMA Healthcare Plan

“At this moment, we are being called upon to fulfill our duty to the citizens of this nation
and to future generations... I don’t know how passing health care will play politically, but
I do know that it’s the right thing to do. It’s right for our families. It’s right for our
businesses. It’s right for the United States of America.”
PRESIDENT OBAMA

Americans across this country agree that our health care system is broken:

Unaccountable insurance companies ration care, soaring premiums cripple the budgets of our businesses and families, and vital care remains out of reach for far too many.

The time for change has come.
President Obama’s final proposal incorporates the best ideas from both parties to put
Americans in control of our own health care.

HERE’ S WHAT THE PRESIDENT’S PLAN FOR HEALTH REFORM WILL DO:

PROTECT AMERICANS FROM INSURANCE COMPANY ABUSES
• You will never be denied coverage because of pre-existing conditions
• You will never be hit with arbitrary premium hikes
• You will never see your coverage revoked just when you get sick or injured
• You will never face unlimited out-of-pocket expenses for your care
GUARANTEE AFFORDABLE CHOICES
• If you like your current doctor and you like your current plan, you keep them
• Uninsured individuals and small business owners will become part of a powerful negotiating
pool, just like members of Congress and other federal employees, lowering prices and
increasing choice
• Struggling middle-class families will receive a tax credit to make coverage even more
affordable – the largest middle class tax cut for health care in history
REDUCE THE COST OF CARE FOR OUR FAMILIES, BUSINESSES
AND THE GOVERNMENT
• We’ll save billions of dollars every year by reducing waste and abuse in our current system
• We’ll save and create millions of jobs, raise wages and strengthen the economy
• We’ll cut the deficit by nearly $1 trillion over two decades

WHAT WILL HEALTH REFORM MEAN FOR YOU?

“I HAVE INSURANCE THROUGH MY WORK.”
Keep your doctor and plan if you like it, but your plan will be strengthened and you'll be protected from insurance company abuses.
• According to the independent
and non-partisan
Congressional Budget Office,
people who get coverage
through their employer today
will likely see lower premiums.
• If you like the health plan you
have, you will be able to keep
it.
• The President’s proposal will
strengthen the coverage you
get at work by reining in the
worst insurance company
abuses.
• Nothing about the President’s
proposal will interfere with
the choice of doctors you
have today, or cause you to
change the coverage you
have at work today.

“I OWN A SMALL BUSINESS.”
You won't be required to
provide health insurance to
your employees, but if you
choose to, new tax credits
will make covering your
employees more affordable.
You will also have access to a
new insurance exchange to
find the best deal, and the
entire process will be simpler.
• The President’s proposal
provides tens of billions of
dollars in new tax credits to
small businesses to make it
easier for them to provide
coverage if they choose to do
so.
• You will be protected from
sudden, arbitrary rate hikes
because a worker gets sick;
under the President’s
proposal, insurance
companies will no longer be
permitted to base the cost of
coverage on health status.
• The President’s proposal
gives small business owners
the leverage that big
businesses enjoy by allowing
them to buy coverage
through the exchange.

“I HAVE MEDICARE.”
Health reform protects
Medicare. The President’s
proposal makes Medicare
more financially secure and
seniors who hit the
prescription drug "donut
hole" will be protected from
high costs for their medicines.
• Your guaranteed Medicare
benefits will not be cut, and the
Medicare Trust Fund will be
extended for more than 9 years.
• In addition, you will have
benefits you don’t have
today: Preventive services like
cancer screenings at no cost,
and a substantial reduction in
prescription drug prices if
you fall into that gap in
coverage known as the
“donut hole.” Over time the
proposal closes this coverage
gap completely.
• Health insurance reform will
not affect the choice of
doctors you have today and it
won’t affect your relationship
with your doctor. The
President’s plan aims to
increase the number of
primary care providers, giving
you greater access to doctors
than you have today.

“I DO NOT HAVE
INSURANCE.”
You will have access to new
insurance choices in the
same insurance marketplace
where all members of
Congress will buy their
insurance, receive tax credits
to help you afford coverage
if needed, and enjoy
protections from insurance
company abuses.
• For the first time in history,
there will be limits on how
much anyone will have to pay
to receive health care
coverage.
• If you need it, you will receive
a tax credit to help pay for
your coverage – part of the
largest middle class tax cut
for health care in history.
• Insurance companies will no
longer be allowed to simply
tell you “no.” They will be
required to offer coverage
regardless of your health
status or because of
pre-existing conditions, and
they cannot jack up rates or
drop you from your coverage
when you get sick.

“I BUY MY OWN
INSURANCE.”
There will be new protections
from insurance company
abuses, and tax credits will
make coverage more
affordable. You will have
access to new insurance
choices in the same insurance
marketplace where all
members of Congress will buy
their insurance.
• You will likely pay
less—perhaps much
less—than you do currently.
• In addition, many Americans
buying coverage in the
individual market will qualify
for tax credits that reduce
their premiums by an average
of nearly 60 percent – and
they will get better coverage
than what they have today.
• Health insurance reform will
limit what you have to pay
out of pocket, a protection
that does not exist today.
And for the first time, no one
will be required to pay more
than a set percentage of their
income on health care
coverage.

“So how much higher do premiums have to rise until we do something about it? How
many more Americans have to lose their health insurance? How many more businesses
have to drop coverage? How many more years can the federal budget handle the crushing
costs of Medicare and Medicaid? When is the right time for health insurance reform?”
PRESIDENT OBAMA

THE COST OF INACTION
IF WE DO NOT PASS HEALTH INSURANCE REFORM:
Up to 17 million more people will be uninsured by 2019 than today.

The average family's health care costs will nearly double by 2020, from $13,000 to $24,000
— meaning they'll be paying a quarter of their income toward health care costs.

Insurers can continue the massive and arbitrary premium rate increases we've heard about
recently — such as Anthem Blue Cross raising rates for customers in California by nearly
40%, and rates in Illinois going up by as much as 60%.
As many as 275,000 people could die prematurely over the next 10 years because they
don't have health insurance.

Health care costs will take up a staggering amount of our national budget. In 1960, it was 5
percent of gross domestic product (GDP), last year it was 17 percent. Costs will reach 21
percent of our economy by 2020 if we fail to act.

Rapidly rising costs will make it harder for employers — particularly small businesses — to
provide quality health insurance to employees, leading many to drop coverage or shift to
plans that cover less.

Even those who have insurance today will be less secure, and more likely to lose coverage if
they switch jobs or lose their job due to rising costs on the individual market or being
denied coverage due to a pre-existing condition.

1. http://www.urban.org/UploadedPDF/411965_failure_to_enact.pdf

2. Commonwealth Fund, via NYT: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/28/weekinreview/28abelson.html

3. Families USA, via NYT: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/28/weekinreview/28abelson.html

4. http://www.commonwealthfund.org/Content/Blog/The-Costs-of-Failure.aspx

5. http://www.commonwealthfund.org/Content/Blog/The-Costs-of-Failure.aspx

6. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/07/opinion/07sun1.html?pagewanted=all

It's time to show the insurance lobbyists that no smear campaign can match
the power of millions of regular citizens who are ready for change and
committed to the truth.

Congress must understand that if they pass reform, their constituents will
know the truth about what we've finally achieved.

UNDER THE PRESIDENT'S PLAN FOR REFORM:

• If you have health insurance through your employer and you like your plan, you can keep it
• If you're a small business owner, you'll receive new tax credits that make it easier for you to
provide coverage for employees if you choose to do so
• If you have Medicare, the President's plan guarantees that your benefits will not be cut, and
the Medicare Trust Fund will be extended for more than 9 years
• If you're uninsured, you could receive a tax credit to help pay for coverage if needed — part
of the largest middle class tax cut for health care in history
• Even if you currently have health insurance, there will be new protections from insurance
company abuses, and tax credits will make coverage more affordable

THE PRESIDENT'S PLAN GUARANTEES THAT:
• You will never be denied coverage because of pre-existing conditions
• You will never again be hit with arbitrary health insurance premium hikes

IF WE DO NOT PASS REFORM:
• Up to 17 million more people will be uninsured by 2019
• Insurers can continue their massive and arbitrary premium rate increases — such as Anthem
Blue Cross raising rates for customers in California by nearly 40%, and rates in Illinois going
up by as much as 60%
• As many as 275,000 people could die prematurely over the next 10 years because they don't
have health insurance
• The average family's health care costs will nearly double by 2020, from $13,000 to $24,000