English subtitles for clip: File:2009-08-08 President Obama's Weekly Address.ogv

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The President:
On Friday, we received better
news than we expected about the

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state of our economy.

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We learned that we lost 247,000
jobs in July --

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some 200,000 fewer jobs than we lost in June,

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and far fewer than the nearly
700,000 a month we were losing

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at the beginning of the year.

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Of course, this is little
comfort to anyone who saw their

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job disappear in July, and to
the millions of Americans who

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are looking for work.

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And I will not rest until anyone
who's looking for work can find a job.

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Still, this month's jobs numbers
are a sign that we've begun to

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put the brakes on this recession
and that the worst may be behind us.

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But we must do more than rescue
our economy from this immediate

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crisis; we must rebuild it
stronger than before.

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We must lay a new foundation for
future growth and prosperity,

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and a key pillar of a new
foundation is health insurance

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reform -- reform that we are now closer to achieving than ever before.

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There are still details to be
hammered out.

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There are still differences to
be reconciled.

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But we are moving toward a broad
consensus on reform.

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Four committees in Congress have
produced legislation --

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an unprecedented level of
agreement on a difficult and

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complex challenge.

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In addition to the ongoing work
in Congress,

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providers have agreed to bring
down costs.

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Drug companies have agreed to
make prescription drugs more

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affordable for seniors.

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The AARP supports reform because
of the better care it will offer

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to seniors.

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And the American Nurses
Association and the American

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Medical Association, which
represent the millions of nurses

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and doctors who know our health
care system best,

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all support reform, as well.

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As we draw close to finalizing
-- and passing --

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real health insurance reform,
the defenders of the status quo

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and political point-scorers in
Washington are growing fiercer

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in their opposition.

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In recent days and weeks, some
have been using misleading

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information to defeat what they
know is the best chance of

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reform we have ever had.

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And that's why it's important,
especially now,

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as Senators and Representatives
head home and meet with their

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constituents, for you, the
American people,

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to have all the facts.

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So, let me explain what reform
will mean for you.

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And let me start by dispelling
the outlandish rumors that

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reform will promote euthanasia,
or cut Medicaid,

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or bring about a government
takeover of health care.

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That's simply not true.

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This isn't about putting
government in charge of your

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health insurance; it's about
putting you in charge of your

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health insurance.

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Under the reforms we seek, if
you like your doctor,

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you can keep your doctor.

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If you like your health care
plan,

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you can keep your health care
plan.

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And while reform is obviously
essential for the 46 million

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Americans who don't have health
insurance,

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it will also provide more
stability and security to the

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hundreds of millions who do.

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Right now, we have a system that
works well for the insurance

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industry, but that doesn't
always work well for you.

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What we need, and what we will
have when we pass health

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insurance reform, are consumer
protections to make sure that

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those who have insurance are
treated fairly and that

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insurance companies are held
accountable.

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We'll require insurance
companies to cover routine

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checkups and preventive care,
like mammograms and

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colonoscopies, or eye and foot exams for diabetics,

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so we can avoid chronic
illnesses that cost too many

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lives and too much money.

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We'll stop insurance companies
from denying coverage because of

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a person's medical history.

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I'll never forget watching my own mother,

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as she fought cancer in her
final days,

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worrying about whether her
insurer would claim her illness

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was a preexisting condition.

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I've met so many Americans who
worry about the same thing.

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And that's why, under these reforms,

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insurance companies will no longer be able to deny coverage

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because of a previous illness or injury.

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And insurance companies will no
longer be allowed to drop or

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water down coverage for someone
who has become seriously ill.

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Your health insurance ought to
be there for you when it counts

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-- and reform will make sure it is.

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With reform, insurance companies
will also have to limit how much

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you can be charged for
out-of-pocket expenses.

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And we will stop insurance
companies from placing arbitrary

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caps on the amount of coverage
you can receive in a given year

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or a lifetime because no one in
America should go broke because

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of an illness.

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In the end, the debate about
health insurance reform boils

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down to a choice between two
approaches.

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The first is almost guaranteed
to double health care costs over

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the next decade, leave millions more Americans without

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insurance, leave those with insurance vulnerable to

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arbitrary denials of coverage, and bankrupt state and federal governments.

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That's the status quo.

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That's the health care system we
have right now.

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So, we can either continue this
approach,

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or we can choose another one -- one that will protect people

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against unfair insurance practices; provide quality,

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affordable insurance to every American;

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and bring down rising costs that are swamping families,

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businesses, and our budgets.

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That's the health care system we
can bring about with reform.

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There are those who are focused
on the so-called politics of

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health care; who are trying to
exploit differences or concerns

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for political gain.

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And that's to be expected.

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That's Washington.

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But let's never forget that this
isn't about politics.

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This is about people's lives.

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This is about people's
businesses.

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This is about America's future.

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That's what's at stake.

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And that's why health insurance
reform is so important.

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That's why we have to get this
done --

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and why we will get this done -- by the end of this year.

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Thanks so much.