Obama - Health Care

Obama attacks healthcare insurers Aljazeera — The US president has launched an attack on insurance companies who he accuses of limiting people's access to medical care, during a town hall session on health reform. Barack Obama said on Tuesday that Americans are often "held hostage" by insurance companies that deny or drop clients' coverage or charge excessive fees. click to read complete article

Obama defends ability of government on health care Associated Press — President Barack Obama says Americans wary of a government-run health care plan should look no further than Medicare. Critics of Obama's overhaul effort say creation of a public plan to compete with private insurance adds up to a government takeover. Obama told a New Hampshire town hall Tuesday that he received one letter from a woman who said "keep your hands off my Medicare." click to read complete article

High Fees Common in Medical Care, Survey Finds New York Times — A patient in Illinois was charged $12,712 for cataract surgery. Medicare pays $675 for the same procedure. In California, a patient was charged $20,120 for a knee operation that Medicare pays $584 for. And a New Jersey patient was charged $72,000 for a spinal fusion procedure that Medicare covers for $1,629. The charges are among a long list of high fees cited in a survey released online Tuesday by America’s Health Insurance Plans, which represents 1,300 health insurance companies. The group said it had used Medicare payments for comparison because Medicare was so familiar and payments are, on average, about 80 percent of what private insurers pay. click to read complete article