11:33 A.M. EDT
THE PRESIDENT: Everybody, have a seat.
MS. BAKER: Hello. My name is Janice Baker. I have the privilege to say that
I'm the first person in the state of Delaware to enroll for health insurance
through the new marketplace. (Applause.) Like many consumers out there, it
took me a number of frustrating attempts before I could apply for and select
my plan. I kept trying because I needed access to the new health care
options.
I had applied to three private insurance companies only to be rejected due
to preexisting health conditions. I am too young for Medicare, but I'm too
old not to have some health issues. I was able to find a policy I am
thrilled with, saving $150 a month, and much lower deductibles than my
previous policy that I held through my small business.
I'm here today to encourage other people like me who needs access to
quality, affordable insurance, and to tell them to have patience with such a
new system. Without this ability to get this insurance, I know that a single
hospital stay could have bankrupted me and my business.
Thank you all. And I am now honored to introduce the President of the United
States. (Applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: Great job.
MS. BAKER: Thank you. Thank you.
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. (Applause.) Thank you, everybody. Well, thank you,
Janice. And thanks to everybody here for coming on this beautiful day.
Welcome to the White House.
About three weeks ago, as the federal government shut down, the Affordable
Care Acts health insurance marketplaces opened for business across the
country. Well, weve now gotten the government back open for the American
people, and today I want to talk about how were going to get the
marketplaces running at full steam, as well. And Im joined today by folks
who have either benefited from the Affordable Care Act already, or who are
helping their fellow citizens learn about what this law means for them and
how they can get covered.
Of course, youve probably heard that HealthCare.gov - the new website
where people can apply for health insurance, and browse and buy affordable
plans in most states - hasn't worked as smoothly as it was supposed to
work. And the number of people who have visited the site has been
overwhelming, which has aggravated some of these underlying problems.
Despite all that, thousands of people are signing up and saving money as we
speak. Many Americans with a preexisting condition, like Janice, are
discovering that they can finally get health insurance like everybody else.
So today, I want to speak to every American whos looking to get affordable
health insurance. I want you to know whats available to you and why it may
be a good deal for you. And for those whove had some problems with the
website, I want to tell you what were doing to make it work better and how
you can sign up to get covered in other ways.
But before I do that, let me remind everybody that the Affordable Care Act
is not just a website. It's much more. For the vast majority of Americans --
for 85 percent of Americans who already have health insurance through your
employer or Medicare or Medicaid - you dont need to sign up for coverage
through a website at all. You've already got coverage. What the Affordable
Care Act does for you is to provide you with new benefits and protections
that have been in place for some time. You may not know it, but you're
already benefiting from these provisions in the law.
For example, because of the Affordable Care Act, young people like Jasmine
Jennings, and Jessica Ugalde, and Ezra Salop, all of whom are here today,
theyve been able to stay on their parents plans until theyre 26. Millions
of other young people are currently benefiting from that part of the law.
(Applause.) Another part of the Affordable Care Act is providing seniors
with deeper discounts on their prescription medicine. Billions of dollars
have been saved by seniors already. Thats part of the law. Its already in
place. Its happening right now.
Already, because of the Affordable Care Act, preventive care like mammograms
and birth control are free through your employers. Thats part of this law.
(Applause.) So there are a wide range of consumer protections and benefits
that you already have if youve got health insurance. You may not have
noticed them, but youve got them, and theyre not going anywhere. And
theyre not dependent on a website.
Heres another thing that the Affordable Care Act does. In states where
governors and legislatures have wisely allowed it, the Affordable Care Act
provides the opportunity for many Americans to get covered under Medicaid
for the first time. So in Oregon, for example, thats helped cut the number
of uninsured people by 10 percent just in the last three weeks. Think about
that. Thats 56,000 more Americans who now have health care. (Applause.)
That doesnt depend on a website.
Now, if youre one of the 15 percent of Americans who dont have health
insurance -- either because you cant afford it or because your employer
doesnt offer it, or because youre a small businessperson and you have to
go out on the individual market and buy it on your own and its just too
expensive -- October 1st was an important date. Thats when we opened the
new marketplaces where people without health insurance, or who cant afford
health insurance, or who arent part of a group plan, can finally start
getting affordable coverage.
And the idea is simple. By enrolling in what were calling these
marketplaces, you become part of a big group plan -- as if you were working
for a big employer -- a statewide group plan that spreads risk between sick
people and healthy people, between young and old, and then bargains on your
behalf for the best deal on health care. What weve done is essentially
create a competition where there wasnt competition before. We created these
big group plans, and now insurers are really interested in getting your
business. And so insurers have created new health care plans with more
choices to be made available through these marketplaces.
And as a result of this choice and this competition, prices have come down.
When you add the new tax credits that many people are eligible for through
the law, then the prices come down even further. So one study shows that
through new options created by the Affordable Care Act, nearly 6 in 10
uninsured Americans will find that they can get covered for less than $100 a
month. Think about that. (Applause.)
Through the marketplaces, you can get health insurance for what may be the
equivalent of your cell phone bill or your cable bill, and thats a good
deal.
So the fact is the product of the Affordable Care Act for people without
health insurance is quality health insurance thats affordable. And that
product is working. Its really good. And it turns out theres a massive
demand for it. So far, the national website, HealthCare.gov, has been
visited nearly 20 million times. Twenty million times. (Applause.) And
theres great demand at the state level as well, because there are a bunch
of states that are running their own marketplaces.
We know that nearly one-third of the people applying in Connecticut and
Maryland, for example, are under 35 years old. They understand that they can
get a good deal at low costs, have the security of health care, and this is
not just for old folks like me -- that everybody needs good quality health
insurance. And all told, more than half a million consumers across the
country have successfully submitted applications through federal and state
marketplaces. And many of those applications arent just for individuals,
its for their entire families. So even more people are already looking to
potentially take advantage of the high quality, affordable insurance that is
provided through the Affordable Care Act.
So let me just recap here. The product is good. The health insurance thats
being provided is good. Its high quality and its affordable. People can
save money, significant money, by getting insurance thats being provided
through these marketplaces. And we know that the demand is there. People are
rushing to see whats available. And those who have already had a chance to
enroll are thrilled with the result. Every day, people who were stuck with
sky-high premiums because of preexisting conditions are getting affordable
insurance for the first time, or finding, like Janice did, that theyre
saving a lot of money. Every day, women are finally buying coverage that
doesnt charge them higher premiums than men for the same care. (Applause.)
Every day, people are discovering that new health insurance plans have to
cover maternity care, mental health care, free preventive care.
So you just heard Janices story -- she owns her own small business. She
recently became the first woman to enroll in coverage through Delawares
exchange. And its true, it took her a few tries, but it was worth it after
being turned down for insurance three times due to minor preexisting
conditions. So now shell be covered, shell save 150 bucks a month, and she
wont have to worry that one illness or accident will cost her her business
that shes worked so hard to build.
And Janice is not alone. I recently received a letter from a woman named
Jessica Sanford in Washington State. And heres what she wrote: I am a
single mom, no child support, self-employed, and I havent had insurance for
15 years because its too expensive. My son has ADHD and requires regular
doctor visits and his meds alone cost $250 per month. I have had an ongoing
tendinitis problem due to my line of work that I havent had treated. Now,
finally, we get to have coverage because of the ACA for $169 per month. I
was crying the other day when I signed up. So much stress lifted.
Now, that is not untypical for a lot of folks like Jessica who have been
struggling without health insurance. Thats what the Affordable Care Act is
all about. The point is, the essence of the law -- the health insurance
thats available to people -- is working just fine. In some cases, actually,
its exceeding expectations -- the prices are lower than we expected, the
choice is greater than we expected.
But the problem has been that the website thats supposed to make it easy to
apply for and purchase the insurance is not working the way it should for
everybody. And theres no sugarcoating it. The website has been too slow,
people have been getting stuck during the application process. And I think
its fair to say that nobody is more frustrated by that than I am --
precisely because the product is good, I want the cash registers to work. I
want the checkout lines to be smooth. So I want people to be able to get
this great product. And theres no excuse for the problems, and these
problems are getting fixed.
But while were working out the kinks in the system, I want everybody to
understand the nature of the problem. First of all, even with all the
problems at HealthCare.gov, the website is still working for a lot of people
-- just not as quick or efficient or consistent as we want. And although
many of these folks have found that they had to wait longer than they
wanted, once they complete the process theyre very happy with the deal
thats available to them, just like Janices.
Second, I want everybody to remember that were only three weeks into a
six-month open enrollment period, when you can buy these new plans.
(Applause.) Keep in mind the insurance doesnt start until January 1st;
thats the earliest that the insurance can kick in. No one who decides to
purchase a plan has to pay their first premium until December 15th. And
unlike the day after Thanksgiving sales for the latest Playstation or
flat-screen TVs, the insurance plans dont run out. Theyre not going to
sell out. Theyll be available through the marketplace -- (applause) --
throughout the open enrollment period. The prices that insurers have set
will not change. So everybody who wants insurance through the marketplace
will get insurance, period. (Applause.) Everybody who wants insurance
through the marketplace will get insurance.
Third, we are doing everything we can possibly do to get the websites
working better, faster, sooner. Weve got people working overtime, 24/7, to
boost capacity and address the problems. Experts from some of Americas top
private-sector tech companies who, by the way, have seen things like this
happen before, they want it to work. They're reaching out. They're offering
to send help. Weve had some of the best IT talent in the entire country
join the team. And were well into a tech surge to fix the problem. And we
are confident that we will get all the problems fixed.
Number four -- while the website will ultimately be the easiest way to buy
insurance through the marketplace, it isnt the only way. And I want to
emphasize this. Even as we redouble our efforts to get the site working as
well as its supposed to, were also redoubling our efforts to make sure you
can still buy the same quality, affordable insurance plans available on the
marketplace the old-fashioned way -- offline, either over the phone or in
person.
And, by the way, there are a lot of people who want to take advantage of
this who are more comfortable working on the phone anyway or in person. So
let me go through the specifics as to how you can do that if youre having
problems with the website or you just prefer dealing with a person.
Yesterday, we updated the websites home page to offer more information
about the other avenues to enroll in affordable health care until the online
option works for everybody. So youll find information about how to talk to
a specialist who can help you apply over the phone or to receive a
downloadable application you can fill out yourself and mail in.
Weve also added more staff to the call centers where you can apply for
insurance over the phone. Those are already -- they've been working. But a
lot of people have decided first to go to the website. But keep in mind,
these call centers are already up and running. And you can get your
questions answered by real people, 24 hours a day, in 150 different
languages. The phone number for these call centers is 1-800-318-2596. I want
to repeat that -- 1-800-318-2596. Wait times have averaged less than one
minute so far on the call centers, although I admit that the wait times
probably might go up a little bit now that I've read the number out loud on
national television. (Laughter.)
But the point is the call centers are available. You can talk to somebody
directly and they can walk you through the application process. And I
guarantee you, if one thing is worth the wait, its the safety and security
of health care that you can afford, or the amount of money that you can save
by buying health insurance through the marketplaces. (Applause.)
Once you get on the phone with a trained representative, it usually takes
about 25 minutes for an individual to apply for coverage, about 45 minutes
for a family. Once you apply for coverage, you will be contacted by email or
postal mail about your coverage status.
But you don't have to just go through the phone. You can also apply in
person with the help of local navigators - these are people specially
trained to help you sign up for health care, and they exist all across the
country, or you can go to community health centers and hospitals. Just visit
LocalHelp.HealthCare.gov to find out where in your area you can get help and
apply for insurance in person.
And finally, if youve already tried to apply through the website and youve
been stuck somewhere along the way, do not worry. In the coming weeks, we
will contact you directly, personally, with a concrete recommendation for
how you can complete your application, shop for coverage, pick a plan that
meets your needs, and get covered once and for all.
So heres the bottom line. The product, the health insurance is good. The
prices are good. It is a good deal. People dont just want it; theyre
showing up to buy it. Nobody is madder than me about the fact that the
website isnt working as well as it should, which means its going to get
fixed. (Laughter and applause.)
And in the meantime, you can bypass the website and apply by phone or in
person. So dont let problems with the website deter you from signing up, or
signing your family up, or showing your friends how to sign up, because it
is worth it. It will save you money. If you don't have health insurance, if
youve got a preexisting condition, it will save you money and it will give
you the security that your family needs.
In fact, even with the website issues, weve actually made the overall
process of buying insurance through the marketplace a lot smoother and
easier than the old way of buying insurance on your own. Part of the
challenge here is that a lot of people may not remember what its like to
buy insurance the traditional way.
The way weve set it up, there are no more absurdly long application forms.
Theres no medical history questionnaire that goes on for pages and pages.
Theres no more getting denied because youve had a preexisting condition.
Instead of contacting a bunch of different insurers one at a time, which is
what Janice and a lot of people who are shopping on the individual market
for health insurance had to do, theres one single place you can go shop and
compare plans that have to compete for your business. Theres one single
phone number you can call for help. And once the kinks in the website have
been ironed out, it will be an even smoother and even easier. But in the
meantime, we will help you sign up -- because consumers want to buy this
product and insurance companies want to sell it to you.
Now, let me close by addressing some of the politics that have swirled
around the Affordable Care Act. I recognize that the Republican Party has
made blocking the Affordable Care Act its signature policy idea. Sometimes
it seems to be the one thing that unifies the party these days. (Laughter.)
In fact, they were willing to shut down the government and potentially harm
the global economy to try to get it repealed. And Im sure that given the
problems with the website so far, theyre going to be looking to go after it
even harder. And let's admit it -- with the website not working as well as
it needs to work, that makes a lot of supporters nervous because they know
how it's been subject to so much attack, the Affordable Care Act generally.
But I just want to remind everybody, we did not wage this long and
contentious battle just around a website. Thats not what this was about.
(Applause.) We waged this battle to make sure that millions of Americans in
the wealthiest nation on Earth finally have the same chance to get the same
security of affordable quality health care as anybody else. Thats what this
is about. (Applause.) And the Affordable Care Act has done that.
People can now get good insurance. People with preexisting conditions can
now afford insurance. And if the launch of this website proves anything,
its that people across the country dont just need that security, they want
that security. They want it. (Applause.) And in the meantime -- Ive said
many times -- Im willing to work with anyone on any idea to make this law
perform even better. But its time for folks to stop rooting for its
failure, because hardworking, middle-class families are rooting for its
success. (Applause.) And if the product is good, they're willing to be
patient.
I got a letter last week from a self-employed man named John Mier in
Leetsdale, Pennsylvania. He used the new marketplace to get himself and his
wife covered and save a lot of money. And heres what he said, because it
pretty much sums up my message today: Yes, the website really stank for the
first week. (Laughter.) But instead of paying $1,600 per month for a group
insurance plan, we have a plan that will only cost us $692 a month - a
savings of $900 per month. (Applause.) John said that while he saw -- when
he saw what theyd be paying, he turned to his wife and told her, We might
just pull through. We can afford this. And John eventually predicted that
the website will work like a champ.
So John, he was frustrated by the website, but he's feeling a little less
frustrated once he found out that he was saving 900 bucks a month on his
health insurance. (Applause.) And John is right, the website is going to get
fixed and the law works. That's why we fought so hard to pass this law -- to
save folks like John money; to give people who don't have health insurance
the chance to get it for the first time; to lift from the American people
the crushing burden of unaffordable health care; to free families from the
pervasive fear that one illness -- (on-stage participant becomes ill) --
there you go, you are ok. I'm right here. I got you. (Laughter.) No, no --
you're okay. This happens when I talk too long. (Laughter.) You'll be okay.
Here, why don't you go. (Applause.)
Good catch, by the way, whoever was here. (Laughter.)
But that's always our goal, to free families from the pervasive fear that
one illness or one injury might cost you everything that you dedicated a
lifetime to build. Our goal has always been to declare that in this country
the security of health care is not a privilege for a fortunate few. It's a
right for all to enjoy. (Applause.) That's what the Affordable Care Act is
all about. That's its promise. And I intend to deliver on that promise.
Thank you very much, everybody. God bless you. (Applause.)
END
12:00 P.M. EDT
Thé Mulindwas Communication Group
"With Yoweri Museveni and Dr. Kiiza Besigye Uganda is in anarchy"
Kuungana Mulindwa Mawasiliano Kikundi
"Pamoja na Yoweri Museveni na Dk. Kiiza Besigye Uganda ni katika machafuko"
_______________________________________________
Ugandanet mailing list
[email protected]
http://kym.net/mailman/listinfo/ugandanet
UGANDANET is generously hosted by INFOCOM http://www.infocom.co.ug/
All Archives can be found at http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/
The above comments and data are owned by whoever posted them (including
attachments if any). The List's Host is not responsible for them in any way.
---------------------------------------
