Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Health Care Reform Road Trip; Negotiations on Health Reform; Health Care and Pre-existing Conditions; How Many Uninsured Are There?; College Grads Head Home; New Jersey Mayors/Officials Arrested; Coffee Lover's New Daily Grind
Aired July 23, 2009 - 12:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Mayors and rabbis arrested in a federal corruption and money laundering investigation. The case unfolding right now in New Jersey. A news conference expected later this hour at the U.S. attorney's office in Newark. Among those authorities linked to the corruption investigation, Hoboken Mayor Peter Cammarano, Secaucus Mayor Dennis Elwell. Several rabbis were arrested in connection with the money-laundering part of the probe.
Reporter Steve Kornacki of "The New York Observer" spoke to CNN earlier about the players.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEVE KORNACKI, "NEW YORK OBSERVER": They're not all, but they're mostly from -- it looks like Hudson County, you know, which is that sort of gritty urban county right across from New York City. You know Hoboken, Jersey City, that area...
COLLINS: Yes.
KORNACKI: ... notorious for political corruption. There's an old joke from Brendan Byrne, who used to be the governor of New Jersey. He would say that he wanted to be buried when he died in Hudson County because then he could stay active in politics, supposedly. So dead (ph) there.
COLLINS: Wow.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: Pretty amazing, huh?
In all, about 30 people have been arrested. They'll begin federal court appearances later this afternoon.
President Obama takes his push for health care reform on the road today after his primetime pitch last night. The president is headed to Ohio. He is trying to ease public concerns and fend off political criticism of his health care overall.
White House Correspondent Suzanne Malveaux joining us live now.
Suzanne, good to see you again.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Tony.
HARRIS: What was the main emphasis in the president's press conference last night?
MALVEAUX: The main emphasis really was talking directly to the American people, saying this is going to impact your lives, this is why this is important, taking it outside of Washington. So, he talked about real examples.
You know, there's a red pill, a blue pill. The red pill is more expensive than the blue one, and yet, you still take that one, showing inefficiencies in the system. Making the case that the uninsured need to be insured, saying we've got these guys, they think they are invincible, they're not in the system, they get hit by a bus, everybody ends up paying for it.
It's the language, real language, real examples. He is trying to reach out to the American people to say this is the reason why I'm doing this, this is the reason why you've got to push members of Congress to support this.
There was another thing, Tony, and that was he also was trying to give a sense of urgency to this so that people would actually act and push members of Congress to act.
I want you to take a listen to what he said.
HARRIS: Sure.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: If we do not reform health care, your premiums and out-of-pocket costs will continue to skyrocket. If we don't act, 14,000 Americans will continue to lose their health insurance every single day.
These the consequences of inaction. These are the stakes of the debate that we're having right now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: Quickly -- we will get back to Suzanne in just a moment -- but right now, Max Baucus, who chairs the Finance Committee, the Senate Finance Committee, is talking about health care reform.
(JOINED IN PROGRESS)
SEN. MAX BAUCUS (D), CHAIRMAN, SENATE FINANCE COMMITTEE: ... what their real concerns are and so forth, which just makes it much more likely -- first of all, easier for me to know what we have for the proposal.
But I made it clear to the group, too, that any proposal that the group of six comes up with will be just that, just a proposal. It will not be a -- I'll go back to the Senate Democrats, just as I'm sure Senator Grassley goes to the Republicans, and get their views, the Senate Democrat views, what do they think about this. And then probably go back to the six and say, OK, there may or may not be some refinements that have to be made.
So, this is just part of the process. And I can't negotiate on a proposal with all members of the Finance Committee all together in the same room. There's just too many people.
I can get a core group and quickly (INAUDIBLE), then go back to all Senate Democrats, which we've just done. It is very, very helpful. I mean, all across the spectrum. I mean, you get people in real (ph) states, senators from urban states, and just don't forget me, don't forget this and that. And it's very, very helpful, I think.
DANA BASH, CNN SENIOR CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It sounds like you're pretty far away, though, from the point where, given what you just said, the point where you can actually take something to mark up.
BAUCUS: I've always said -- I've always said nothing's changed. We're ready when we're ready. And I'm doing my very best to move that along as quickly as I possibly can. And I'm very optimistic we'll get there and we'll get there fairly soon. I cannot give you...
BASH: You can't define "soon"?
BAUCUS: Not in the way you'd like.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We have to go, folks. Thank you very much, guys. Thank you.
BAUCUS: And the most important meeting to is his lunch with my son.
HARRIS: OK. Dana Bash, our senior congressional correspondent, working it.
Let's bring in our White House correspondent, Suzanne Malveaux.
And obviously, Suzanne, boy, things are happening.
You know, we were wondering if the president's comments last night at the news conference might sort of jumpstart the negotiations. Max Baucus there is the chair of the Senate Finance Committee, and the work continues there. He is describing a lot of work. He had a lot of steps in the process still to come.
In the meantime, the president is in Cleveland today, and he is going to continue the drumbeat; isn't he?
MALVEAUX: Yes. And Tony, not to disparage the process that's taking place on the Hill, but the president, really, he wants to show a different picture. He's going to be at this Cleveland Clinic. He's going to be with people. He's going to be talking about, in this town hall meeting, real problems that people have with their health care system, and talking about their illnesses. He's also going to be highlighting this clinic, saying, here's what I want to do here. I want to use this model, this model where you have physicians talking to each other in the same room, diagnosing together a patient's issues and problems so they don't overlap when it comes to over-prescribing medical procedures or medications, that kind of thing.
He wants to show that picture and highlight that particular clinic to say, this is what I'm talking about, the health care reform, this impacts everyday Americans. This is not about the politics of Republicans, Democrats, Democrats split, and all the amendments and the process that goes, but this is about real people and their lives and what this means to them.
HARRIS: Very good. Suzanne Malveaux at the White House for us.
Suzanne, appreciate it. Thank you.
So, clearly, health care reform dominating the debate and discussion on Capitol Hill. We will talk to our Brianna Keilar in just a moment about the comments from Senator Max Baucus just moments ago.
But earlier today, we heard earlier from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. She said she's very optimistic that health care reform will happen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), HOUSE SPEAKER: I'm very confident. I'm more confident than ever. When we work out some of the differences that we have, it will be very apparent to everyone else that the momentum is there. When the bill is ready, we'll go to the floor and we will win.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: Ok. Let's get the latest on the legislation and negotiations.
Our congressional correspondent Brianna Keilar live on Capitol Hill.
And Brianna, boy, you tell me where you want to start. We just had comments from Senator Max Baucus, essentially talking about the work that's being done by this bipartisan group of six. Out of those negotiations will come some kind of proposal, and then there's a whole set of steps that will follow.
But I'm curious as to where health care stands in light of the comments from the speaker of the House.
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said today that there are a few issues that still need to be resolved, that she's confident they can be resolved within the next 48 hours. That was pretty interesting, Tony. So what issues are we talking about? Well, you know, we've been going back and forth about this. The issues she's dealing with are coming from some of her very own Democrats, those fiscally conservative Democrats who are concerned that the proposal in the House doesn't squeeze enough savings out of the health care system before it moves on to say, hey, taxpayers, we need some money from you to pay for this. And also because they want to really revamp the system so that incentives are changed and doctors are rewarded for the quality of care they're providing, not how much care, not how many expensive procedures they are really providing.
So, what we heard Speaker Pelosi say is that they are on schedule to go forward. So, what does that mean? Does that mean they are on schedule to have a vote before for the August recess, when Congress goes away from Washington for a month? Well, she wouldn't say, Tony.
She just said -- she wouldn't really be pinned down on that, although we did hear earlier off camera from the number three Democrat in the House, James Clyburn, and he is the whip, he is the vote counter. He said that Democrats should be prepared to postpone their recess, or maybe even cancel it if they are having issues getting towards a vote before going away.
HARRIS: OK. And Brianna, if the progress is slowed in the House, it's even moving more slowly in the Senate. Again, we just heard from the chair of the Senate Finance Committee, Max Baucus, suggesting there's a whole -- there are a lot of steps that have to happen here before we can get something that we can begin to even mark up.
It looks like a vote before September is unlikely, doesn't it?
KEILAR: It is looking that way, especially in the Senate, Tony. And when you listen to Max Baucus talking there, you heard Dana Bash questioning him. I had to chuckle to myself, because Baucus said he's optimistic we will get there fairly soon, and when she pressed him on what fairly soon is, he said he wasn't going to define it in the way that she wanted him to.
But we've also heard from Senator Dick Durbin. He is the number two Democrat in the Senate, and he is the vote counter in the Senate. So, you listen carefully to what he has said, and it all revolves around the Senate Finance Committee, which Max Baucus is the chairman of. They're coming up with a bipartisan agreement which looks like the best chance to get some -- really to get enough votes in the Senate to move this through Congress.
HARRIS: Right.
KEILAR: And listen to Dick Durbin, a short time ago, talk about all the steps that you need to go through between, one, the Senate Finance Committee coming up with its plan, which it hasn't done yet, and moving towards a full vote on the Senate floor.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SEN. DICK DURBIN (D), ILLINOIS: If the bill is approved by the Finance Committee, it goes into a markup and then is given to the majority leader to blend with the health bill, and then bring to the floor, count the days. And either we're going to go into overtime, which is always a possibility, or have to face the prospect of doing it after August.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: So, Durbin there hinting that it very likely may not happen before the August recess -- Tony.
HARRIS: Wow, a lot of developments.
Brianna Keilar following it all for us on Capitol Hill with the help of Dana Bash and a host of others.
Brianna, appreciate it. Thank you.
What would you be willing to give up to pay for health care reform? It is a question we posed on our NEWSROOM blog, and this has been terrific. Thank you so much.
You flooded the blog with responses, 800, 900. I don't know where we are.
The question also came up during debate on the House floor.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. SAM FARR (D), CALIFORNIA: I'm just wondering which one of you members is going to give up your Navy doctors downstairs to take care of you?
Which one of you are going to give up your federal health care plan that insures all the members of your family?
Which one of you are going to give up Medicare for all of your constituents?
Which one of you are going to give up the veterans' care and the veterans clinic that are in your district?
Which one of you who love the military that's doing such a great job of defending our country in Iraq and Afghanistan is going to take away the military TRICARE program?
Yes, government's involved in health care. It sure is. That's what our country is surviving and living on.
Let's make this work and stop attacking each other.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: Wow.
Here's how some of you responded to our blog question.
Cynthia says, "I don't know what more I can give up before I will become homeless."
Steve writes, "If I were to give up cigarettes, I could save $1,500 per year. If the nation could give up cigarettes, we could reform health care."
And this response from Charles: "I am willing to give up the palace-like hospitals with their expensive artwork and fancy designs."
Just go to our blog and, boy, weigh in.
One of the key issues in the health care debate, how to care for people with pre-existing conditions. We are going to hear from a patient and a representative of the insurance industry.
That's next in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Finding health insurance can be tough enough. If you're already sick, it can seem almost impossible.
Senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is here, along with a guest, to talk about the problem of pre-existing conditions.
And Elizabeth, introduce us to Peggy.
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Oh, great.
Well, this is Peggy Duncan.
Welcome to our show, Peggy.
PEGGY DUNCAN, HAS A PRE-EXISTING CONDITION: Thank you.
COHEN: And Peggy lives here in Atlanta.
And you had breast cancer in the '90s.
DUNCAN: Yes, in '92.
COHEN: In '92. And you had insurance, but then you left your company and you went searching for insurance on your own.
DUNCAN: Yes.
COHEN: What happened when you went on that search?
DUNCAN: Well, initially, I had the COBRA. And, of course, that ran out. And when I started looking, I had no idea that because I had had breast cancer, that I would have a problem.
And at some point you apply and you check all the no(s) down the whole list -- no, I don't have blood pressure; no, I'm not overweight; no, no, no. But the one thing that I had to say yes to was the cancer, and I was always denied.
COHEN: Even though you were treated for cancer and you no longer had breast cancer.
DUNCAN: Yes. Yes. And at that point, the last time I applied for regular insurance, it had been 15 years since I had had breast cancer.
COHEN: So, 15 years after having breast cancer, insurance companies told you, no, we won't even -- just said no right out.
DUNCAN: Right.
COHEN: And you tried several different companies.
DUNCAN: Yes.
HARRIS: How many did you try?
DUNCAN: Probably at least three. And at some point you keep getting the same answer, so you just give up.
And finally, I found one insurance company that would insure me, but the preventive -- which is what I want, because I take care of myself. I eat right. I exercise. I want preventive, and they -- it was laughable what they would cover.
I mean, I may as well just pay out of pocket, because the hospital that I go to gives me a self-pay discount, so definitely always ask for a self-pay discount. Don't be too embarrassed.
HARRIS: Well, wait a minute. Are you insured now?
DUNCAN: I have insurance, but it's hospital insurance. It only covers me if I go to the hospital, and I have a $5,000 deductible.
COHEN: And you had expressed to me that you were concerned, would this insurance come through for you? Because you've never had to use it.
And Tony, I will tell you, I've spoken to experts on this, and they said if you have a pre-existing condition, and no one will insure you, and you find one company that will, in their experience, that company usually doesn't pan out, usually isn't very good. It usually ends up being a bit of a fly-by-night situation.
HARRIS: OK.
And how are you doing now? Just give us, you know, overall, how are you doing?
DUNCAN: Oh, I'm fine, because I'm self-employed, so I don't have any stress with dealing with employees. And I'm healthy. I exercise. I eat right.
And so I'm fine. I just want some insurance. HARRIS: Yes.
COHEN: But if you want to go to the doctor, if you want to get a mammogram, if you want to get any of that, that comes out of your pocket.
DUNCAN: I pay for it myself. But fortunately, I go to Crawford Long, Emory, and they have a self-pay discount.
COHEN: So they give you a discount.
DUNCAN: Yes.
COHEN: OK. They give you a discount.
HARRIS: OK.
Peggy, we appreciate it. Thank you.
Just stay close to me. There'll be some good information for you here.
We want to talk with a representative from the health insurance industry about pre-existing conditions.
Joining us now is Karen Ignagni. She is president and CEO of America's Health Insurance Plans. The organization represents providers of health care insurance.
Karen, thanks for your time. We appreciate it.
KAREN IGNAGNI, PRESIDENT & CEO, AMERICA'S HEALTH INSURANCE PLANS: Thanks, Tony.
HARRIS: Well, let's get started here.
As you know, the House and Senate certainly working on bills here that, in both cases, call for a government-run health insurance option. It is not something that your organization is in favor of. You've got a statement to that effect on your Web site.
Tell us why you see this as a roadblock.
IGNAGNI: Well, I'm glad you started there.
HARRIS: Yes.
IGNAGNI: And I think the most important thing to focus on right now, given what the president said last night, and where the Congress is, is trying to put the pieces together, both parties together, to craft something that can be passed and sustained.
The issue of government-run program has been the one issue that has consumed most of the discussion over the last three to four months. And, in fact, I think it's crowding out and obscuring the consensus that exists around the reforms that would solve the problem that has been appropriately and correctly identified by your guest just a second ago.
And I want -- I'm pleased to tell you that on behalf of our community, six months ago our members committed to a comprehensive overhaul of how the insurance market works. We've been working with members of Congress on both sides of the political aisle. These proposals are embedded in every piece of legislation. So, I think this offers real hope for people.
So, that's the first thing.
There is some major consensus around the issue of getting everybody into the system -- insurance market reform, making sure that we provide subsidies to working families, improve the safety net. And that discussion and that consensus has been totally obscured by the question and the issue of whether we should have a government-run program or not. And I think that's unfortunate, because members of Congress can agree on that platform.
COHEN: Karen, we wanted Peggy, the guest who we just had on, to be on air with you so that she could ask you a question, but your people told CNN that you didn't want to be on air with someone who had a pre-existing condition.
IGNAGNI: I'm happy to talk to Peggy.
COHEN: Oh, terrific.
OK. Let's bring Peggy back in then. Terrific.
Peggy, why don't you ask me the question that you asked me earlier. Karen works for the insurance industry.
Go ahead.
DUNCAN: I wanted to ask -- because of what I do for a living, from a personal productivity standpoint, would you be willing to look at your organization from the ground up and eliminate all inefficiencies from the ground up, individually, and then use all of that savings to provide real health care for people like me and other people?
IGNAGNI: Elizabeth, I'm very glad that Peggy's asking that question. And let me give you both a direct answer.
In addition to the insurance market reforms that we have laid down on the table and have been incorporated into every piece of legislation, our members have also committed to a massive overhaul of the administrative procedures that would essentially, to make it very simple and to get to Peggy's question, would essentially allow doctors and hospitals to spend more time with patients. So, not dealing with 10 different forms, 10 different procedures, 10 different codes. Not only does that add inefficiency to the system, it doesn't allow the focus to be where it should.
We recognize that. We've come together on that. And we have offered one of the most robust and extensive proposals that's ever been made for administrative simplification.
So, Peggy is right. She's two for two. She's right that we need to get to the insurance market reforms and get everybody into the system, and there's bipartisan consensus around that, we believe. And she's also right that we have to have administrative simplification. We can do that.
And I'm sorry, my ear piece has just fallen out.
COHEN: OK.
IGNAGNI: I'm putting it right back.
COHEN: Oh, there we go. Terrific. Good job.
Karen, you said this week, "A government-run plan is a roadblock to reform." That's a quote from you. And so what I'm wondering here is, if a government-run plan actually comes to pass, your companies will make less money. That's what a lot of people say, that you stand to lose a lot of money.
Is that one of the reasons why you're not so crazy about a government-run plan?
IGNAGNI: Well, actually, there are several issues here.
First, we've just issued a study based on real California data, not estimated data, but real data which show that most of the hospitals in California will be going bankrupt under the proposals that have been made for government-run programs. Physicians in this country, across the country, have made the same argument and the same point. Those are first two points.
The second point is that there will, in very short order, be no other system left. It will be an entirely government-run system, because the way the system works today, the program that the so-called government-run program would be modeled against is a Medicare program. It now pays roughly 85 cents on the dollar, and what happens for hospitals and physicians, the excess costs are shifted on to private payers. So, every employer, every union, every state and local government providing coverage is paying an extra $1,500 per family per month.
We have those costs. We can't get rid of those costs. So, when a government program gets created around a Medicare rate, that means that our costs are going to be that much higher, because we have the cost shifting from the previous government programs. And that's a very important issue to understand in terms of our positioning on the matter.
So, it's not a question of being concerned about having competition. It's concerned about sustaining any kind of private government commercial or health plan organization.
COHEN: But Karen, will your companies lose money if there's a public plan? Will they lose money? IGNAGNI: You can't operate against a plan that's paying basically 85 cents on the dollar or 90, if it's five percent over, when all of the excess costs are being shifted, unless government is going to do something differently with respect to those excess costs.
HARRIS: All right. Let's leave it there for now.
And Karen, agree to come back on the program...
IGNAGNI: Thank you.
HARRIS: ... as we head down the road in this debate.
It was great having you. Thanks for taking the time to join us.
IGNAGNI: Thank you very much.
HARRIS: And Peggy, good look to you. And thanks for being with us.
DUNCAN: Thank you.
HARRIS: Elizabeth, as always, thank you.
How many Americans are really uninsured? We're going to break it down.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Boy, the bulls losing their minds today so far. We're just about three hours into the trading day, and look at the Dow, up 171 points. Good news from Ford, having a hand in that rally.
And the NASDAQ -- Joe Connolly (ph), where's the NASDAQ, up 40?
Forty-two points!
We are following these smart-looking numbers throughout the day with Susan Lisovicz, right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.
Did a U.S. strike kill one of Osama bin Laden's sons? An American counterterrorism official believes so. The official says Saad bin Laden was probably killed earlier this year in a missile strike by U.S. Predator drone in Pakistan. Bin Laden's son was not considered a significant player in his father's terrorist network.
A lot of new college graduates can't seem to find a job. What should you do when your son or daughter moves back home?
Whoa. We've got some tips. Lock the doors.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: President Obama again pressing his case for health care reform. He says the time to act is right now. On last night's prime time news conference, the president spelled out what's at stake. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: If we do not control these costs, we will not be able to control our deficit. If we do not reform health care, your premiums and out-of-pocket costs will continue to skyrocket. If we don't act, 14,000 Americans will continue to lose their health insurance every single day. These are the consequences of inaction. These are the stakes of the debate that we're having right now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: How many Americans are uninsured? There's a figure we keep hearing. You know, we hear anywhere from 45 million, 46 million, but it might not be accurate. Josh has been looking in to that.
I mean, what are you finding? You hear 45 million, you hear 46 million. It's just hard to -- I mean, look, it's a similar range, but . . .
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Right. Yes. It's a similar range. But even the range might not be right on.
HARRIS: Oh.
LEVS: In fact, let's take a look at what President Obama said last night.
HARRIS: OK.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: This is not just about the 47 million Americans who don't have any health insurance at all.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEVS: He went with 47 million, which is a little bit more than what's there.
HARRIS: So -- right.
LEVS: But everyone is in the same range when they talk about this, 45 million, 46 million, 47 million.
Let's me show you where this comes from. It all begins with the census. Let's just go to this graphic because the census has a study and they are saying, right here, 45.7 million people were uninsured for the entire year of 2007. That's what pretty much everyone is basing these numbers on. Uninsured for that whole year.
But, here's what most people don't know. The census also says this, look at this one, that that number is actually likely too high. They say health insurance coverage is likely to be under reported.
So I spoke with them today. They're saying the 45.7 million is most likely too high because of the way that they collect this information, it's probably not that big. So, that feeds one side of this argument that says, hey, the number's actually a lot smaller than 45.7 million.
HARRIS: Right, right, right.
LEVS: But then you have the flip side. You have this. Take a look at this one. This is a group called Families USA. They're an advocacy group. They're pushing for more. They say, you know what, it's actually way higher. They're saying it's a mere 90 million. And this is what's happening. The census figures look at who didn't have health insurance at all for a whole year.
This group is an advocacy group, Families USA, pushing for more people to have health insurance, they tried to find out who didn't have health insurance at any given moment at any time over a two-year period. And they say that's what their study found.
HARRIS: Oh, come on. Yes, yes.
LEVS: So when you look at all of that, they say really it's a lot higher because at any given moment, more people...
HARRIS: Can you imagine if the president were using that figure?
LEVS: (INAUDIBLE). I mean that would be a massive portion of America, that amount (ph).
HARRIS: Yes, but it's still a significant portion of people who are uninsured.
LEVS: That is. Absolutely. It's so huge.
HARRIS: But there's the question. You know, yes, but, you know, there is some portion of that number of people who, you know, you hear that they could be . . .
LEVS: Right.
HARRIS: Insured right now, who are uninsured right now. What do we know about that?
LEVS: Right. Well, that is something people are looking at, right . . .
HARRIS: Right.
LEVS: Is the financial status. Maybe some of these people could have insurance.
HARRIS: Yes.
LEVS: I'll show you one more figure. I saw this at factcheck.org and then I confirmed it with the census directly. Take a look. They are saying 20 percent of the uninsured have family incomes that are $75,000 or more. So you look at a $75,000 salary for a family . . . HARRIS: You should be able to afford.
LEVS: You want to believe. But, now, the truth is, we can't say it in every case. Maybe they don't have access. Maybe they're not able to. Maybe they have these pre-existing conditions and can't get it.
HARRIS: And can't get it, right.
LEVS: So it's not like a blanket statement. But the truth is, 20 percent of that number, $75,000 or more for the family income.
HARRIS: But that's a lot of money.
LEVS: I mean that's a lot of money.
HARRIS: Yes, $75,000.
LEVS: And there are some people who have no insurance by choice. We know that. We just don't know how many.
HARRIS: Absolutely. OK, Josh, good look. Thanks, man. Appreciate it.
LEVS: Yes, you've got it.
HARRIS: Entry-level jobs, pretty hard to find. And living independently keeps getting more and more expensive. So guess where most recent college graduates are going? Yes, yes, they're moving back in with mom and dad. One could be turning up on your doorstep before you know it. Is it acceptable to say padlock the doors? CNN political finance editor Gerri Willis is here.
GERRI WILLIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No, come on now.
HARRIS: And, Gerri, look, give us some tips here to help make this transition a touch easier here.
WILLIS: Well, they call them boomerang kids, right?
HARRIS: Yes, they do.
WILLIS: Because they come back.
HARRIS: Right.
WILLIS: All right. So a recent poll by collegegrad.com shows that 80 percent, most of them, of the 2009 college grads will move back in with their parents. That's higher than last year. So whether kids are home just for an extended summer or until they find a job, who knows when that will happen, it's important to set up some guidelines right before they settle in.
You might want to think up drawing up a written agreement between you and your child. I know it sounds crazy, but, believe me, it might be a good idea. Outline a time frame of how long they're going to stay, as well as responsibilities, both financial and around the house.
Look, some parents even charge rent, while others don't even consider the idea. Whichever of these two options you choose, make sure to clarify exactly what the child is responsible for when it comes to other expenses, like groceries.
HARRIS: Yes.
WILLIS: Keep credit card and cell phone bills separate. Johnny can pay for that himself, as there are financial responsibilities your child needs to learn to take on, right, Tony?
HARRIS: Hey, look, rent, a time line, feed yourself.
WILLIS: Yep, yep, yep, yep. The world has changed. You got to pay your way.
HARRIS: Got to pay your way. I like that a lot.
You know, many of these recent grads could actually, Gerri, find themselves without health insurance during this time.
WILLIS: Right.
HARRIS: I mean, can parents continue to cover their children?
WILLIS: Well, yes, you know, if your health plan is employer based, it probably offers lower premiums, obviously, than individual health insurance. And 25 states give graduates the options to be covered under their parents' policy. But state law, it varies, so the age cutoff could be 24. It could be 25 or 26.
HARRIS: Hey, Gerri. Gerri, my apologies. I'm so sorry. Great tips. But we've got to get to Newark, New Jersey, right now. The news conference that we've been telling you about on this -- a major arrest and a corruption and money laundering probe underway right now. Let's listen in.
RALPH MARRA, JR., ACTING U.S. ATTORNEY: And, in fact, Leo Larosa (ph) will have a few remarks.
Arrested today, just give you a couple of my highlights, Daniel Van Pelt, a state assemblyman from Ocean County. Harvey Smith has to be summoned because he is out of state. He is also an assemblyman from Hudson County. His warrant is unsealed at this time.
Some of his noteworthy statements, as set forth in the complaint, include the following. At one point when the C.W. referred to a $5,000 payoff and said he was generous to Smith, Smith's response was, "according to your standards, you're generous." At another point he told the C.W. to stop talking about money. He said, "I feel like I should pat you down."
The next person I'll mention is Peter Cammarano III, mayor of Hoboken. I think he's been in office about three weeks. As set forth in the complaint, some of Mr. Cammarano's noteworthy statements include, on May 19th at the Malibu Diner, talking about the runoff election in Hoboken, he said "I could be indicted and still get 85 to 95 percent of the vote." Later in that conversation, he told the C.W., the cooperating witness, I'm sorry, the C.W., he broke the world down into three, "people with us, you guys. People who climbed on board in the runoff, they have to get in line. And people who were against us the whole way. They get ground into powder." On June 23rd, when the C.W. offered $10,000, Mr. Cammarano says, "great. And we're going to be friends for a long time."
The next person I want to mention is Dennis Elwell, the mayor of Secaucus. The next one is Anthony Suarez, mayor of Ridgefield Borough. Leona Beldini, deputy mayor of Jersey City. Lou Manzo, former assemblyman and candidate for Jersey City mayor. According to the complaints, Lou Manzo's brother, Ron, also charged today, coached the C.W., so that when the C.W. said, "I'm investing in Lou Manzo in exchange for development approvals," Manzo told him not to use the word "approvals," but rather use the word, the code word, "opportunities."
There are a host of other officials and middlemen also arrested today. It was the network of middlemen, including John Gorini (ph), Myer Colio (ph), Ron Manzo, Jack Shaw (ph) and Ed Chitam (ph) who introduced the FBI's C.W. to the public officials as a developer and businessman. I don't -- I don't donate, I invest, the C.W. would say in meetings in parking lots, at restaurant, luncheonettes, diners, offices, basement boiler rooms and bathrooms. And the politicians willingly put themselves up for sale.
Hundreds of thousands in bribes were paid in those places. The complaints show that for these defendants, corruption was a way of life. They existed in an ethics free zone. And they exploited giant loopholes in the state's campaign contribution rules. Our C.W. routinely had his proposed projects moved to the top of some official's pile because he paid off.
With so many profiting off a corrupt system, is it any wonder that few want to change the system? Once again, the victims are the average citizens and the honest business people in this state. They don't have a chance in this culture of corruption.
On the money laundering side, these complaints paint a disgraceful picture of religious leaders heading money laundering crews, acting as crime bosses. They used purported charities, entities supposedly set up to do good works, as vehicles for laundering millions of dollars in illicit funds. The rings were international in scope, connected to Diehl, New Jersey, Brooklyn, New York, Israel, and Switzerland, and they trafficked in cleaning and -- of dirty money all across the world.
We have three charts illustrating the flow of cash and checks. I was hoping to use the screen, but the screen's blocked. So, we're handing those out. Don't worry about that.
In about two years, these defendants laundered over $3 million just with our C.W. alone. I must also mention connected to the money laundering, we have one defendant, Mr. Rosenbaum, who we refer to as our kidney salesman. As set forth in the complaint, his business was to entice vulnerable people to give up a kidney for $10,000, which he in turn would turn around and sell for $160,000.
At this point, I'd like to turn the podium over to Special Agent in Charge Weysan Dunn.
Thank you very much.
WEYSAN DUNN, SPECIAL AGENT IN CHARGE: Thank you, Mr. Marra.
I would like to start by, first of all, acknowledging a number of people in my . . .
HARRIS: OK. Mayors and rabbis arrested in a federal corruption and money laundering investigation. A news conference continuing right now in New Jersey. We believe it's up at cnn.com/live. I'm pretty sure it is.
Among those city leaders linked to corruption, Hoboken mayor Peter Cammarano, Secaucus Mayor Dennis Elwell, several rabbis were arrested in connection with the money laundering part of the probe. In all, about 30 people have been arrested. They'll begin federal court appearances this afternoon. And, of course, we will continue to follow this story.
There you go. Video from not that long ago of those who have been arrested being off-loaded on that bus. And, of course, we will continue to follow developments here.
But still to come in the NEWSROOM, earlier we brought you comments by Harvard Professor Henry Louis Gates about his arrest at home in Cambridge, Massachusetts. President Obama weighed in on the issue last night. And the officer who arrested Professor Gates is talking about it today. You will hear their comments right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: President Obama says Cambridge, Massachusetts, police, in his words, acted stupidly in arresting an African-American Harvard Professor at his home. Professor Henry Louis Gates was arrested after confrontation with police who answered a burglary call at his home. The charge of obstructing justice was later dropped, but the professor is still pretty upset.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: Skip Gates is a friend. So I may be a little biased here. I don't know all the facts. What's been reported, though, is that the guy forgot his keys, jimmied his way to get into the house. There was a report called in to the police station that there might be a burglary taking place. So far, so good, right? I mean if I was trying to jigger in -- well, I guess this is my house now, so it probably wouldn't happen. But let's say my old house in Chicago. Here I'd get shot.
But so far, so good. They're reporting, the police are doing what they should. There's a call. They go investigate what happens.
My understanding is at that point Professor Gates is already in his house. The police officer comes in. I'm sure there's some exchange of words. But my understanding is, is that Professor Gates then shows his I.D. to show that this is his house. And at that point he gets arrested for disorderly conduct. Charges which are later dropped.
Now, I don't know, not having been there and not seeing all the facts, what role race played in that. But I think it's fair to say, number one, any of us would be pretty angry. Number two, that the Cambridge Police acted stupidly in arresting somebody when there was already proof that they were in their own home.
And, number three, what I think we know, separate and apart from this incident, is that there is a long history in this country of African-Americans and Latinos being stopped by law enforcement disproportionately. That's just a fact.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: Cambridge Police Sergeant James Crowley is standing his ground. He says he won't apologize. And let's just say he is a bit upset with the president's remarks last night. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SGT. JAMES CROWLEY, CAMBRIDGE POLICE: He's the president of the United States and I support the president, to a point, I guess. I think it's disappointing that he waded into what should be a local issue and something that is really that plays out here. As he, himself, said at the beginning of that press conference, he didn't know all the facts. He certainly doesn't based on those comments. I just think it was very disappointing.
The reason I asked the professor to come outside was not, as some would suggest, because I knew I couldn't arrest him in his house. I didn't know who he was. I was by myself. I was the only police officer standing there and I got a report that it was people breaking into a house. That was for my safety because, first and foremost, I have to go home at night and I have three beautiful children and a wife who depend on me. So, I had no other motive than to ensure my safety.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: OK. The mayor of Cambridge says she is looking into the incident.
On CNN tonight at 8:00, our two night of "Black in America 2" event continues with today's pioneers. This look at the most challenging issues facing African-Americans focuses on people using groundbreaking solutions to change the black experiences. Don't miss "Black in America 2" on CNN. That's tonight, 8:00 Eastern.
A beer company comes to the aid of a woman trying to start her own coffee business. We will share her story in today's "Money & Main Street."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: You know, there's a saying that goes, do something you love, then you'll never work a day in your life! In today's "Money & Main Street" segment, CNN's Stephanie Elam found a woman whose passion for coffee has given her a new kind of daily grind.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice-over): Lucy Valena is hooked on coffee.
LUCY VALENA, OWNER, VOLTAGE COFFEE: I had my first shot of espresso when I was 14 and it pretty -- was pretty amazing for me.
ELAM: With the dream of opening a coffeehouse, Valena went to Seattle to learn at the aprons of the best.
VALENA: I just saw this barista pour that rosetta (ph) and I thought, I'm not leaving this town until I learn how to do that.
ELAM: Valena returned to Boston and, last fall, launched Voltage Coffee, a mobile espresso catering company. Her corporate headquarters . . .
VALENA: This is where all the magic happens, yes.
ELAM: Valena knew her business acumen could use a jolt. So with the help of a few aids...
VALENA: I wrote my business plan with all of these, "Business Plan Writing for Dummies," all these things.
ELAM: ... Valena then took her plan to the Small Business Administration and was directed to Axion USA, a company specializing in micro loans. It had just begun a partnership with Samuel Adams to help small food and beverage businesses get funding and free advice.
JIM KOCH, FOUNDER, SAMUEL ADAMS: I love Lucy's dedication to the quality of her product. And I'm a big believer that, you know, a great product and the passion that an entrepreneur brings to that can carry a long way if you have a helping hand.
ELAM: Valena started Voltage with her $2,000 and the $4,000 loan she got through the Sam Adams Brewing the American Dream Program.
VALENA: So it covered the espresso machine, the grinders, my tables, the membership costs, licensing, and my costs for a few months with the commercial kitchen facility that I used.
ELAM: Now she's focused on a storefront. But she has to incorporate, find a space, and get a loan.
VALENA: I need to convince someone to give me 180 grand. That's a good chunk of change. ELAM: Despite the economy, Valena remains undaunted.
VALENA: I'll just going to keep working at it. I'm not letting up. I'm not letting up, Boston. I don't care.
ELAM: Stephanie Elam, CNN, Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: Very cool. All right.
A wild ride on Wall Street today. We will get you an update. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: A spanking looking rally right now. Hot on Wall Street, the big board. Look at this. The Dow up 189 points. I believe those are the highs for the session. And, Scottie, you gave me the NASDAQ number just a moment ago. NASDAQ, tech-heavy NASDAQ, up 48 points. We're following the numbers throughout the day with Susan Lisovicz right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.
It is go time. The next hour of CNN NEWSROOM starts right now with Kyra Phillips.
