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President Pushes Health Care in Ohio
Aired March 15, 2010 - 13:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Tony, appreciate, kind sir, my friend.
Hello, everybody. I'm T.J. Holmes sitting in today for Ali Velshi. We have a lot of news happening over the next two hours.
Something we are keeping our eye on right now, it's happening live in Ohio. The president is going to speak. This could be his last, his final push for health care. There you see. This is a live event happening right now. The president is being introduced. When he steps up to that podium, we're going to certainly take you and let you hear what he has to say.
But let me tell you what we've got on the rundown here, and a lot of it has to do, of course, with health care today.
We're going to hear from the president in just a moment. He is sounding like and looking like a candidate these days. The salesman- in-chief, if you will, making -- again, you heard it so many times, it sounds like everything is the last pitch and the last push. This really could be it. He's launching a huge week for health-care reform right now. He's pushing for reform. Democrats pushing for a climactic vote, and the Republicans actually aren't (ph) pushing back right now.
Now Americans, also, something we're going to be talking about today, as we keep the box down now, the live picture of the president, Americans have been gunned down in Mexico. Have you heard this yet? And it's no random crime. They were targeted. They were chased, actually, and killed. We will be getting into that story, of course.
But as you see at the bottom of your screen, we told you, big moment for the president on health care. He's kicking off his final push, Strongsville, Ohio, making a speech, talking about health care. Let's listen in to the president.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I'm filling out my brackets now.
Yes, that kid Turner looks pretty good. You guys are doing all right. It is wonderful to be here.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We love you!
OBAMA: I love you back. I do. Couple of people I just want to make sure I give special mention to. First of all, you already saw him, Governor Ted Strickland in the house. Ted is fighting every day to bring jobs and economic development to Ohio. So is your terrific United States senator, Sherrod Brown. Sherrod Brown. Your own congressman, who is tireless on behalf of working people, Dennis Kucinich. Did you hear that, Dennis? Say that again?
A couple other members of Congress are here. U.S. Representative Betty Sutton. U.S. Representative Marcia Fudge. U.S. Representative Tim Ryan. U.S. Representative Charlie Wilson. I want to thank Mayor Tom Perciak here of Strongsville, please. Mr. Mayor.
That's a good bunch of folks we've got here in Ohio, working hard. Which is why I'm glad to be back. And let's face it, it's nice to be out of Washington once in a while.
I want to thank Connie. I want to thank Connie who introduced me. I want to thank her and her family for being here on behalf of her sister, Natoma. I don't know if everybody understood that Natoma's in the hospital right now. So Tony was filling in.
It's not -- it's not easy to share such a personal story when your sister, who you love so much, is sick. And so I appreciate Connie being willing to do so here today. And I want everybody to understand that Connie and her sister are the reason that I'm here today.
See, Connie felt it was important that her sister's story be told. But I want to just repeat what happened here.
Last month I got a letter from Connie's sister, Natoma. She's self-employed. She's trying to make ends meet. And for years she's done the responsible thing, just like most of you have. She bought insurance. She didn't have a big employer who provided her insurance, so she bought her health insurance through the individual market.
And it was important for her to have insurance, because 16 years ago she was diagnosed with a treatable form of cancer. And even though she had been cancer-free for more than a decade, the insurance companies kept on jacking up her rates, year after year. So she increased her out-of-pocket expenses. She raised her deductible. She did everything she could to maintain her health insurance, that would be there just in case she got sick.
Because she figured, "I didn't want to be" -- she didn't want to be in a position where, if she did get sick, somebody else would have to pick up the tab, that she has to go to the emergency room, that -- that the costs would be shifted onto folks through their higher insurance premiums or hospitals charging higher rates.
So she tried to do the right thing. And she upped her deductible last year to the minimum, the highest possible deductible. But despite that, Natoma's insurance company raised her premiums by more than 25 percent. And over the past year, she paid more than $6,000 in monthly premiums. She paid more than $4,000 in out-of-pocket medical costs, for co-pays and medical care and prescriptions. So all together, this woman paid $10,000, one year, but because she never hit her deductible. Her insurance company only spent $900 on her care. All right? So the insurance company is making -- getting $10,000, paying out $900.
Now, what comes in the mail at the end of last year? It's a letter telling Natoma that her premiums would go up again by more than 40 percent. So here's what happens. She just couldn't afford it. She didn't have the money. She realized that, if she paid those health-insurance premiums, that had been jacked up by 40 percent, she couldn't make her mortgage.
And despite her desire to keep her coverage, despite her fears that she would get sick and lose the home that her parents built, she finally surrendered. She finally gave up her health insurance. She stopped paying it. She couldn't make ends meet.
So January was her last month of being insured. Like so many responsible Americans, folks who work hard every day, who try to do the right thing, she was forced to hang her fortunes on chance. Just to take a chance. That's all she could do. She hoped against hope that she would stay healthy. She feared terribly that she might not stay healthy.
That was the letter that I read to the insurance companies, including the person responsible for raising her rates.
Now, I understand Natoma was pretty surprised when she found out that I had read it to these CEOs. But I thought it was important for them to understand the human dimensions of this problem. Her rates have been hiked more than 40 percent.
This is less than two weeks ago. Unfortunately, Natoma's worst fears were realized. And just last week she was working on a nearby farm, walking outside, apparently chasing after a cow, when she collapsed. And she was rushed to the hospital. She was very sick. She needed two blood transfusions. Doctors performed a battery of tests, and on Saturday, Natoma was diagnosed with leukemia.
Now, the reason Natoma's not here today is that she's lying in a hospital bed, suddenly faced with this emergency, suddenly faced with the fight of her life. She expects to face more than a month of aggressive chemotherapy. She's racked with worry, not only about her illness, but about the costs of the tests and the treatment that she's surely going to need to beat it.
So you want to know why I'm here, Ohio? I'm here because of Natoma. I'm here because of the countless others who have been forced to face the most terrifying challenges in their lives with the added burden of medical bills they can't pay. I don't think that's right. Neither do you.
That's why we need health insurance right now. Health-insurance reform right now.
I'm here -- I'm here because of my own mother's story. She died of cancer. And in the last six months of her life, she was on the phone in her hospital room, arguing with insurance companies instead of focusing on getting well and spending time with her family. I'm here because of the millions who are denied coverage because of preexisting conditions, or dropped from coverage when they get sick.
I'm here because of the small businesses who are forced to choose between health care and hiring. I'm here because of the seniors unable to afford the prescriptions that they need. I'm here because of the folks seeing their premiums go up 20 and 30 and 40 and 50 and 60 percent in a year.
Ohio, I am here, because that is not the America I believe in. That's not the America that you believe in.
So -- so when you hear people say start over, I want you to think about Natoma. When you hear people saying that this isn't the right time, you think about what she's going through. When you hear people talk about, "Well, what does this mean for the Democrats? What does this mean for the Republican? I don't know how the polls are doing." When you hear people more worried about the politics of it than what's right and what's wrong, I want you to think about Natoma and the millions of people all across this country who are looking for some help and looking for some relief. That's why we need health-insurance reform right now.
You know -- you know, part of what makes this issue difficult is, most of us do have health insurance. We still do. And so -- and so we kind of -- you know, we feel like, "Well, I don't know, it's kind of working for me. I'm not worrying too much."
But what we have to understand is, that what's happening to Natoma, there but for the grace of God go any one of us. Anybody here, if you lost your job right now, and after the COBRA ran out -- it looks like we've got somebody who might have fainted down there. So if we've got a medic. No, no, hold on. I'm talking about there's somebody who might have fainted right down here. So if we can get a medic just back here. They're probably OK. Just give her or him some space.
So -- so let's just think about -- think about if you lost your job right now. How many people here might have had a preexisting condition that would mean it would be very hard to get health insurance on the individual market? Think about if you wanted to change jobs. Think about if you wanted to start your own business, but you suddenly had to give up your health insurance on your job. Think about what happens if a child of yours, heaven forbid, got diagnosed with something that made it hard for them to insure. For so many people, it may not be a problem right now, but it's going to be a problem later, at any point.
And even if you've got good health insurance, what's happening to your premiums, what's happening to your co-payments, what's happening to your deductibles? They're all going up. That's money straight out of your pocket.
So the bottom line is this. The status quo on health care is simply unsustainable. We can't have -- we can't have a system that works better for the insurance companies than it does for the American people.
And we know what will happen if we fail to act. We know that our government will be plunged deeper into debt. We know that millions more people will lose their coverage. We know that rising costs will saddle millions more families with unaffordable expenses. And a lot of small businesses are just going to drop their coverage altogether. That's already what's been happening.
A study came out just yesterday. This is a nonpartisan study. It's found that, without reform, premiums could more than double for individuals and families over the next decade. Family policies could go to an average of $25,000 or more. Can you afford that?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No!
OBAMA: Do you think your employer can afford that?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No!
OBAMA: Your employer can't sustain that. So what's going to happen is, they're basically -- more and more of them are just going to say, "You know what? You're on your own on this."
We have debated this issue now for more than a year. Every proposal's been put on the table. Every argument has been made. I know a lot of people view this as a partisan issue. But look, the fact is, both parties have a lot of areas where we agree. It's just politics are getting in the way of actually getting it done.
Somebody asked, what's our plan? Let me -- let me describe exactly what we're doing, because we've ended up with a proposal that incorporates the best ideas from Democrats and Republicans, even though Republicans don't give us any credit. That's all right.
You know, if you think about the debate around health-care reform, there are some who -- who wanted to scrap the system of private insurance and replace it with government-run care. And look, that works in a number of places. But I did not see that being practical to get help right away for people who really need it.
And on the other end of the spectrum -- and this is what a lot of the Republicans are saying right now -- there are those who simply believe that the answer is to unleash the insurance industry, to deregulate them further, provide them less oversight and fewer rules. This is called -- this is called the fox guarding the henhouse approach to health-insurance reform.
So what it would do is it would give insurance companies more leeway to raise premiums, more leeway to deny care. It would segment the market further. It would be good if you were rich and healthy. You'd save money. But if you're an ordinary person, if you get older, if you get a little sicker, you'd be paying more.
Now, I don't believe we should give the government or insurance companies more control over health care in America. I believe it's time to give you, the American people, more control over your own health insurance. And that's what our proposal does.
Our proposal builds on the current system, where most Americans get their health insurance from their employer. So if you like your plan, you can keep your plan. If you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor. I don't want to interfere with people's relationships between them and their doctors.
Essentially, here's what my proposal would change: three things about the current health-care system but three important things.
No. 1, it would end the worst practices of the insurance companies. All right? This is like a patient's bill of rights on steroids.
Within the first year of signing health-care reform, thousands of uninsured Americans with preexisting conditions would be able to purchase health insurance for the first time in their lives, or the first time since they got sick. This year insurance companies will be banned forever from denying coverage to children with preexisting conditions. So parents can have a little bit of security.
This year under this legislation, insurance companies will be banned from dropping your coverage when you get sick. Those practices would end.
With this reform package, all new insurance plans would be required to offer free preventive care to their customers, starting this year. So free checkups to catch preventable diseases on the front end. That's the smart thing to do.
Starting this year, if you buy a new plan, there won't be lifetime or restrictive annual limits on the amount of care you receive from your insurance companies, so you won't be surprised by the fine print that says suddenly they've stopped paying, and you now suddenly are $50,000 or $100,000 or $200,000 out of pocket. That will not happen if this becomes law this year.
I see -- I see some young people in the audience. If you're an uninsured young adult, you will be able to stay on your parents' policy until you're 26 years old under this law.
So No. 1 -- No. 1 is insurance reform.
The second thing that this plan would change about the current system is this. For the first time, uninsured individuals, small businesses, they'd have the same kind of choice of private health insurance that members of Congress get for themselves. I understand if this reform becomes law, members of Congress, they'll be getting their insurance from the same place that the uninsured get theirs. Because if it's good enough for the American people, it's good enough for the people who send us to Washington.
So basically what would happen is, we'd set up a pool of people. Millions of people across the country would all buy into these pools that give them more negotiating power. If you work for a big company, you've got a better insurance deal, because you've got more bargaining power as a whole. We want you to have all the bargaining power that the federal employees have, that big companies have, so you'll be able to buy in, or small business will be able to buy into this pool. And that will lower rates, as estimated, by up to 14 to 20 percent over what you're currently getting. That's money out of pocket.
And what my proposal says is, if you still can't afford the insurance in this new marketplace, then we're going to offer you tax credits to do so. And that will add up to the largest middle-class tax cut for health care in history. That's what we're going to do.
Now, you know, when I was talking about this at that health care summit, some of you -- you know, I sat there for about seven hours. I know you guys watched the whole thing. But some of these folks said, "Well, you know, we just -- that's a nice idea, but we just can't afford to do that."
Look, I want everybody to understand: the wealthiest among us can already buy the best insurance there is. The least well among us, the poorest among us, they get their health care through Medicaid. So it's the middle class. It's working people that are getting squeezed, and that's who we have to help. And we can afford to do it.
Now, it is true that providing these tax credits to middle-class families and small businesses, that's going to cost some money. It's going to cost about $100 billion per year. But most of this comes from the nearly $2.5 trillion a year that Americans already spend on health care. It's just right now, a lot of that money's being spent badly.
So with this plan, we're going to make sure the dollars we make -- that the dollars that we spend on health care are going to make insurance more affordable and more secure. And we're going to eliminate wasteful tax subsidies that currently go to insurance companies.
Insurance companies are making billions of dollars on subsidies from you, the taxpayer, and if we take those subsidies away, we can use them to help folks like Natoma get health insurance so she doesn't lose her house.
And yes, and yes, we will set a new fee on insurance company, because they stand to gain millions more customers who are buying insurance. There's nothing wrong with them giving something back.
But here's the bottom line. Our proposal's paid for, which, by the way, is more than can be said for our colleagues on the other side of the aisle when they passed that big prescription drug plan that costs about as much as my health-care plan, and they didn't pay for any of it, and it went straight to the deficit. And now they're up there on their high horse talking about, "Well, we don't want to expand the deficit." This plan doesn't expand the deficit, their plan expanded the deficit. That's why we pay for what we do. That's the responsible thing to do.
Now, so let me talk about the third thing which is my proposal would bring down the cost of health care for families, for businesses and for the federal government. So Americans buying comparable coverage to what they have today -- I already said this -- would see premiums fall by 14 to 20 percent. That's not my numbers. That's what the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office says.
For Americans who get their insurance through the workplace -- how many people are getting insurance through their jobs right now? Raise your hands. All right. Well, a lot of those folks, your employer, it's estimated, would see premiums fall by as much as 3,000 percent, which means they could give you a raise.
We -- we have incorporated most of the serious ideas from across the political spectrum about how to contain the rising costs of health care. We go after waste and abuse in the system, especially in Medicare. Our cost-cutting measures would reduce most people's premiums and bring down our deficit by up to $1 trillion over the next two decades. Those aren't my numbers. Those are the numbers determined by the Congressional Budget Office. They're the referee. That's what they say, not what I say.
Now, the opponents of reform, they've tried to make a lot of different arguments to stop these changes. You remember.
First they said, well, there's a government takeover of health care. Well, that wasn't true.
Then they said, well, what about death panels. Well, that turned out -- that didn't turn out to be true.
You know, the most insidious argument they're making is the idea that somehow this would hurt Medicare. I know we've got some seniors here with us today. So -- I couldn't tell, you guys look great. I wouldn't have guessed. But I want to tell you directly: this proposal adds almost a decade of solvency to Medicare. This proposal -- this proposal would close the gap in prescription drug coverage called the doughnut hole -- you know something about that -- that sticks seniors with thousands of dollars of drug costs. This proposal will over time help to reduce the cost of Medicare that you pay every month. This proposal would make preventative free so you don't have to pay out of pocket for tests to keep you healthy.
So, yes, yes, we're going after the waste, the fraud, the abuse in Medicare. We are eliminating some of the insurance subsidies that should be going to your care. That's because these dollars should be spent on care for seniors, not on the care and feeding of the insurance companies through sweetheart deals.
And every senior should know, there is no cutting of your guaranteed Medicare benefit, period. No ifs, ands or buts.
This proposal makes Medicare stronger. It makes the coverage better, and it makes the finances more secure. And anybody who says otherwise is either misinformed or they're trying to misinform you. Don't let them hoodwink you.
(LAUGHTER)
OBAMA: They're trying to hoodwink you.
(LAUGHTER)
OBAMA: Now, so, look, Ohio, that's the proposal. And I believe Congress owes the American people a final up-or-down vote.
(APPLAUSE)
OBAMA: We need an up-or-down vote. It's time to vote. You know, and now as we get closer to the vote, there's a lot of hand- wringing going on. We hear a lot of people in Washington talking about politics, talking about what this means in November. Talking about the poll numbers for Democrats and Republicans.
We need courage.
(APPLAUSE)
OBAMA: Did you hear that? Did you hear what somebody just said there? That's what we need. That's why I came here today. We need courage.
(APPLAUSE)
OBAMA: We need courage. You know, in the end, this debate is about far more than politics. It comes down to what kind of country do we want to be. It's about the millions of lives that would be touched, and in some cases saved by making health insurance more secure and more affordable. It's about a woman who is lying in a hospital bed, who just wants to be able to pay for the care she needs.
And the truth is, what's at stake in this debate, it's not just our ability to solve this problem, it's about our ability to solve any problem. I was talking to Dennis Kucinich on the way over here. I said, you know what? It's been such a long time since we made government on the side of ordinary working folks. Where we did something for them --
(APPLAUSE)
OBAMA: -- that -- that relieved some of their struggles. That made folks who work hard every day, are doing the right thing and who are looking out for their families and contributing to the communities, that gave them just a little bit of a better chance to live out their American dreams. The American people want to know if it's still possible for Washington to look out for their interests, for their futures. So, what they're looking for is some courage. They're waiting for us to act. They're waiting for us to lead. They don't want us putting our finger out to the wind. They don't want us reading polls. They want us to look and see what is the best thing for America, and then do what's right.
And as long as I hold this office, I intend to provide that leadership, and I know these members of Congress are going to provide that leadership. I don't know about the politics, but I know what's the right thing to do.
And so I'm calling on Congress to pass these reforms, and I'm going to sign them into law! I want some courage! I want us to do the right thing, Ohio! And with your help, we're going to make it happen. God bless you. And God bless the United States of America.
(APPLAUSE)
HOLMES: Well, you hear the president of the United States, his signature issue, and it appears he has found someone to help him make his final pitch for health care reform. Her name is Natoma Canfield. She was supposed to be there to introduce the president today in Strongsville, Ohio, right outside of Cleveland.
But the president told her story today, and part of the story is she couldn't be there today because she's back in the hospital being treated for leukemia. A woman who is helping him sell his health care reform now because of a letter she sent to him explaining that her premiums kept going up, kept going up to the point she could not afford them anymore.
She is a cancer survivor. But then, as soon as she couldn't afford it anymore, she lost her health care insurance. Sure enough, she had another medical problem, ended up back in the hospital. So instead, her sister had to be there to introduce the president today. And the president, again, making a point, telling people to remember her, remember her story, and remember the name, Natoma Canfield, as they're thinking about health care reform.
The president went through many of the proposals that are in the health care legislation. Many of the same things you have been hearing quite some time. So, not much new there. But he's found another way, and taking one more opportunity to pitch it, to sell it to the American people on what could be a critical -- you've heard this plenty of time -- about a critical day, a critical vote, a critical week. Folks, this could be it, this week. The House expecting to take a vote up, many by the end of this week. The president has postponed an overseas trip so he could be here to make this push.
There he is. We continue to watch him shaking hands as he goes through. This was in Strongsville, Ohio, about 20 miles or so -- a suburb southeast -- southwest of Cleveland, Ohio. But the president, again, making one final push there in Ohio.
We are going to be talking to, we're going to get a GOP response, talking to a physician. And yes, a member of Congress about the president's proposal and his speech and this last push. His name is Congressman Tom Price is going to be with us right after the break.
And also, we have our own Brianna Keilar and our own Mark Preston keeping an eye on what's happening up on Capitol Hill. We'll talk to them all right after the break. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Welcome back. We just heard from the president of the United States there again -- Strongsville, Ohio, launching a week that could see the final week towards health care reform. The president there. I see all those cameras up in the air trying to get a shot of the president there.
But he was there making a pitch. His last pitch. This really could be it, folks. You heard us say that a lot. But this could be it. He has a plan to get through Congress. Maybe by the end of the week. And he could get some legislation heading to his desk very soon.
Now, he talked about his plan there. But here it is. We'll show it to you and tell you about it. Again, this plan from the Democrats and president aims to cover 31 million uninsured Americans. Would also bar insurers from denying coverage for pre-existing conditions and allow government to regulate rate increases.
Also, it would require almost everyone to buy insurance or they would be required to pay a fine. However, it would provide some subsidies for lower-income households to pay for insurance. Also, it would not require employers to offer coverage, but charge fees to those who do not. Also, expanding coverage to be paid for by a tax on high-value policies and also higher Medicare taxes on wages and investment income.
We heard from the president there in Ohio. Let's turn to Capitol Hill now. And speak to a Republican, get a Republican's response to what we just heard from the president. Georgia Congressman and physician, Dr. Tom Price. Sir, thank you for being with us. I will start, before we get into any --
REP. TOM PRICE (R), GEORGIA: Great to be with you.
HOLMES: Well, thank you, sir. Before we get into any policy, let's just talk about the heartstrings the president was tugging on with the American people. How do you go about combating that message of Natoma Canfield, the woman he talked about who sent him the letter whose premiums kept going up? She couldn't afford it anymore, ended up back in the hospital?
He's telling people to remember that woman, her story, her name. When you hear all this back-and-forth in Washington about health care, how do you just combat that message from the president when a lot of people think, they just hear from the Republicans, no?
PRICE: Well, what we heard was another campaign speech from the president. The way that I combat that discussion about Natoma is the experience that I draw from, upon being a physician for over 20 years, treating thousands of patients like Natoma and others, who know in their heart of hearts that when the federal government gets their hands on what they're trying to get their hands on in health care, that we will in fact destroy the quality of health care in this nation.
And that's what concerns me and so many of the practicing physicians across this land so much. And that is that once the government inserts itself into this process, into that physician/patient relationship or into telling us what kind of insurance we must have, we destroy something that's unique and highest quality in the world in health care. That's what I know the American physicians are worried about. And I know that's what the American patients are worried about as well.
HOLMES: Patients, people, yes. But you have the president of the United States telling the story about a woman who couldn't even introduce him today because she ended up back in the hospital and insurance she can't pay for. That just, sir, is a story that's going to pull at -- we all feel for this woman -
PRICE: You're right.
HOLMES: But at the same time, again, how do you battle that? I hear the response you just gave. But sir, if I hear that woman's story and hear a Republican stand up and just -- to a lot of people, they just hear you say no. How are you going to just on the airwaves, how are you going to combat -- the president wants to do something to help this woman. Sounds like the Republicans don't want to.
PRICE: T.J., I hope what I explained is that in the thousands of patients, the tens of thousands of patients that I personally have cared for, they understand and we understand that what the president is proposing will destroy the ability of those physicians to care for Natoma, to care for the patients across this land.
The solution isn't to put the government in charge or insurance companies in charge, but put the patients in charge. Though the president says that, that's not what his plans does.
And you can define it going -- you defined it pretty well on the intro to this segment. You talked about the increase in taxes, about the increase in intrusion of the federal government, you talked about the mandates, the individual mandates.
In order to do those things, you've got to have the government telling people what to do. And when that happens, what that means is you and I and every single American will not have the kind of health coverage we want. We'll have the kind of health coverage that the government dictates to us. I think that strikes a chord all across this land.
HOLMES: Well, also, sir, the president did speak of -- you know, had the big meeting up there, that was on national television, it was live. The president bringing in a lot of Republicans, both sides. He did say there were Republican ideas that he liked, including some proposals to combat fraud with the undercover investigations, increased Medicaid payments to doctors. The malpractice lawsuits, the -- also expanding the use of health care savings accounts.
Now, he sounds like he's trying to bring in Republican ideas. Is that enough? Do we really need to get rid of everything and start over? It sounds like we're finding common ground. Are you there with the president at least?
PRICE: I think in the headlines, we are. But the fact of the matter is, when he talks about lawsuit abuse reform, he doesn't do more than studies. And in fact, we know what works. You've got to decrease the lawsuit abuse in this nation. There are positive programs we propose that would work.
In terms of preexisting illnesses and injuries, the president solves that by dictating to patients what kind of coverage they must have and not letting individuals to choose the kind of health coverage that they want for themselves and their families. We solve that in a way that allows individuals to choose. In terms of portability, being able to keep your insurance when you lose your job, or you change your job. We say that individuals ought to be able to keep the insurance that they have. The president says that they ought to have access to the coverage that the government dictates.
So, it's this big question about who's going to decide. Who's going to be making these health care decisions. Is it going to be patients and families and doctors, or is it going to be the federal government? We believe it ought to be patients and families and doctors.
HOLMES: Let me hit on a couple of things the president says. You know, it scares the dickens out of a lot of seniors when they hear that anything would be cut from Medicare, but he did say, and I'm quoting here, "that every senior should know there's no cutting of your guaranteed Medicare benefits, period."
Do you agree with the president on that point?
PRICE: Well, that's the top line. The bottom line is, he's going to slash $350 billion from Medicare. I don't know how you take $350 billion out of the Medicare program without rationing care --
HOLMES: He says he's cutting waste, right? Just cutting out some of that waste.
PRICE: -- the payments. That's right. But you could decrease the payments to every single physician in this land and not get the $350 billion. So, the only way to do that, if you look at the real numbers, is to ration care. That's why we believe that that ought not be on the table at all.
We believe there's a positive way to reform Medicare, again, that allows the senior citizens to be able to select the insurance that they want, not the one that the government dictates to them. They're wonderful, positive solutions, if we would work together and solve these challenges.
The president's top line, the phrases that he used are oftentimes the right ones. When you get down into the details, though, it means the government's going to control what's happening in health care. We don't believe that's what the American people want.
HOLMES: You talked about what was on the table and you talked about working together. That's the next thing I wanted to read you from the president today. He's saying every proposal has been put on the table, every argument made. Both parties found plenty of areas we agree on, but politics gets in the way.
Now, I take it, would you agree with that? Has everything for the most part been put on the table, talked about, and the only thing left now is just to get the politics out of the way?
PRICE: We've had a lot of discussion, there's no doubt about it. The American people know this plan better than they knew it six months ago. Which is why by 2-1 or 3-1, they oppose the plan that the president has talked about.
The president talks about having an up-or-down vote on the plan. We welcome an up-or-down vote on the plan. The problem is, the House isn't even going to allow the members of house of representatives to vote on the plan. They go through some contorted back-room gimmick in order to make it so that they can get this bill over to the Senate.
What the president says oftentimes sounds wonderful. But when you get down to the details, the fact of the matter is, he's not following the policies that he has proposed in the first place.
HOLMES: Well, Representative Price, I'll let you go on this. We heard the president kind of getting riled up at the end talking about, we need courage now. In your opinion, who's being --
PRICE: There's that campaign speech.
HOLMES: Well, no, you tell me. Who's being courageous, in your opinion, and who's being cowardly?
PRICE: I think the ones who are courageous who stand up and represent their constituents instead of their leadership. If the American people have representatives in the House of Representatives and the United States Senate who represent their constituents, represents the people, and not their leadership, we'll be in great shape.
HOLMES: Well, Representative Price, we appreciate you taking time. Our home boy, I guess you could say, representative from Georgia. We'll see you when you get back down here to Georgia.
PRICE: Thank you, T.J.
HOLMES: At some point, we'll talk to you again soon.
We want to turn to Brianna Keilar and our Mark Preston who are standing by, who of course are covering this story. Well, the legislation of it. And also the politics of it. Those things seem to always go hand in hand.
Guys, hello to both of you. Ladies first, as always. Brianna, hello. I guess update folks to why you're standing where you're standing and what's going on behind some of those doors.
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, for Democrats, T.J., this is do or die. This is health care reform or bust. And this is where the home stretch really begins today. The House Budget committee. Let's take you inside the hearing room, where this committee is going to be reviewing and having a vote on a health care bill.
This is going to be in an essential step for pushing health care reform through Congress -- Democrats hope to be successful at this -- pushing it through Congress in a process called reconciliation, that's pretty controversial. T.J., you know, normally this committee wouldn't even factor into passing a bill at this point. It's kind of different than maybe what we expected months ago.
The House has passed a health care reform bill, the Senate has passed a health care reform bill. What we would expect normally is they would hash out their differences, come up with a final bill, and both the House and Senate would vote on it.
Well, they can't do that. Democrats can't do this as they go along without any Republican support because they lost that important 60th vote in the Senate with that Massachusetts Senate race in January. So, that's where this committee comes in. Democratic leaders in the House are planning on passing that Senate bill that they really don't like, and then turning around really quickly, and passing a bill of changes to make up for all of the things they don't like.
Now, reconciliation comes into it, because then moving it through Congress in that process, when the House sends it over to the Senate, they will only need 51 votes instead of 60 votes, T.J. That's why we're here following the Senate Budget committee, which should get under way with its process in about an hour.
HOLMES: Mark, did you get all that? you know, sometimes you just don't want to see the sausage made, you know? just put it on the plate and let's eat it. But you don't want to see it. That's what some of the American people are getting a taste of now.
You saw the president there, and he started out talking about Natoma Canfield. Is this the approach he now wants to go with? You can sell the X's and O's and try to explain it all day long. Quite frankly, it's complex. Most of us don't even get it, quite frankly.
But people get a woman who was charged so much that she couldn't afford insurance anymore, then she got sick again. Is that the way he needs to go now? Maybe the way he should have been going all along?
MARK PRESTON, CNN POLITICAL EDITOR: You know, T.J., that's what absolutely could sell health care reform if the Democrats are successful in passing it. Put a human face on it. People understand when their neighbors, their family gets sick. And we saw President Obama do that today.
But this does come down to numbers. It comes down to numbers on Capitol Hill, as Brianna so eloquently is really dissecting a very complex way, House Democrats are thinking of getting this bill through.
But this comes down to politics. I thought it very interesting, T.J., when President Obama said, "I don't know about politics, I know about courage." I can assure you this, the White House does know about politics. This very much has to do with the midterm elections, T.J. No question about that. Republicans need 40 seats to take back the House. They think that if Democrats pass health care reform, they are within striking distance of taking back the House of Representatives in November.
HOLMES: Well, Brianna, on that point, everybody is adding these days, and everybody is talking about this magic number of 216 they need to get to over in the House. What's the confidence level? We saw some folks on the Sunday talk shows saying the Democrats don't think they have that number just yet. How confident are they that they will get it by the end of this week?
KEILAR: Yes, and who the -- the person we heard that from, where he said we don't have the votes yet, very important --
HOLMES: Clyburn.
KEILAR: -- Jim Clyburn, from South Carolina, the whip. He is the one who is in charge of whipping the votes, figuring out where everybody stands. So right now, we're hearing a lot of confidence from the White House, but I think at this point you don't know exactly where the votes are. Although you're hearing from some Democratic leaders, they're optimistic, they'll get it.
But make no mistake, T.J., this is going to be a cliffhanger. It's going to be a very interesting vote if it happens Friday or Saturday, as we have heard from leaders that it could.
HOLMES: All right. Brianna Keilar, Mark Preston, appreciate you both. We'll be checking in again with both of you. Thank you so much.
We're going to turn to another spat going on, not between Republicans and Democrats, but between the U.S. and Israel. Being called the worst in 35 years. The heart of the controversy is as old as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict itself. We're going to break this down for you. Don't go anywhere.
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HOLMES: Checking some of your headlines today.
You just saw here a moment ago, live, the president speaking out one more time in a bid to rally support for health care reform. The president speaking in Ohio this hour as Congress gears up to vote on his overhaul this week. The pressing question: does the president have the votes on Capitol Hill? Top advisers are saying, absolutely. Some top Democrats, however, saying don't have the votes just yet.
The Israeli ambassador to the U.S. says relations with Washington are at a historic low. This dire assessment is a result of Israel announcing plans to build new settlements in disputed East Jerusalem during a visit by Vice President Biden. Secretary of State Clinton called the move insulting to the U.S. and demanded the building plan be shelved.
Also, actor Peter Graves has died. Graves was best known for his starring role in television's "Mission Impossible," won a Golden Globe in 1971 for his role in that show. He was also nominated for an Emmy. Graves died of an apparent heart attack yesterday at the age of 83.
A possible new and deadly strategy in Mexico's drug war. Two Americans attacked, shot dead by a suspected drug gang in Juarez. We're covering this for you. Stay here.
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HOLMES: A suspected drug gang attacked and killed three people linked to the U.S. consulate in Juarez, Mexico. Two victims, Americans.
CNN's senior Latin American affairs editor joins us with the latest on this brazen attack. Rafael Romo, good to have you with us. We were just discussing a second ago, can you ever remember anything like this happening?
RAFAEL ROMO, CNN SENIOR LATIN AMERICAN AFFAIRS EDITOR: First time I see consulate employees in Mexico being attacked. But the question is, whether they were attacked because they were Americans or if they were who were consulate employees. And right now, we just don't know.
I just spoke on the phone with the mayor of Juarez, who told me they believe a gang known as the Aztecs tied to the Juarez drug cartel may be responsible for the shootings. The motive is still a mystery. The consular employee was not involved in any counter-narcotics work, and her husband worked on the American side of the border as a detention officer.
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(voice- over): The shooting happened right across the street from city hall in Ciudad Juarez. According to Mexican authorities, two Americans, Lesley Enriquez, who was an employee at the American consulate in Juarez and her 34-year-old husband, Arthur Redelf (ph), a detention officer with the El Paso Sheriff's Department, were shot and killed after a short car chase through the streets of the Mexican border city across from El Paso, Texas. Police found the couple's 3- month-old daughter in the back seat. She was not injured. JOSE REYES FERRIZ, JUAREZ MAYOR, JUAREZ, MEXICO (via telephone): A foot patrol police officer who was stationed a couple of miles east of where the incident took place, he saw the two cars, one chasing the other and shooting at that car.
ROMO: On a separate incident, 37-year-old Jorge Salcedo, the husband of a U.S. consulate's Mexican employee was also killed Saturday afternoon. Two children ages 4 and 7 were injured in that shooting and transported to the hospital according to local authorities.
FERRIZ: The second killing was a state police officer, investigative police officer married to a Mexican working at the U.S. consulate and they were both at a children's party earlier that morning.
ROMO: The U.S. State Department has authorized the departure of Americans working in U.S. consulates in six cities along the U.S.- Mexico border April 12th while they investigate the incidents and assess the threat of violence.
The White House issued a statement saying President Obama is deeply saddened and outraged by the news of the attacks and murders. The statement also says, "We will continue to work with Mexican President Felipe Calderon and his government to break up the power of the drug trafficking organizations that operate in Mexico and far too often target and kill the innocent."
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ROMO: And reacting to the news, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the shootings underscore the need to work closely with the government of Mexican president Felipe Calderon to cripple the influence of trafficking organizations at work in Mexico under a cooperation agreement known as the Merida Initiative. The United States provides Mexico with $450 million a year to help its neighbor in its fight against drug cartels, but that money is not really doing a whole lot.
HOLMES: Obviously. It's so fascinating. Still waiting for a motive. Like you say, it could be a coincidence, they work for the consulate, and you know what? Sometimes they shoot you -- like you were saying, the wrong look.
ROMO: Investigations still pending.
HOLMES: Wow. Rafael Romo, thank you so much. We'll look forward to more of your report. Thanks so much.
We're not done with this topic just yet. We're going to talk about what impact the attack on Americans i in Juarez will have on US- Mexican relations. Will the U.S. become more involved in the drug war across the border? Experts on Mexico after the break.
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