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Obama Speaks on Affordable Care Act; Republican Rep. Phil Roe Gives Response.

Aired July 18, 2013 - 11:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

MICHAELA PEREIRA, CNN ANCHOR: She received a refund check from here insurance policy last summer for $267 after they didn't meet the health care policy of spending, at least 80 percent of her premium dollars on health care.

The president is joined there -- you can see the people in the background -- by families who have benefited from the health care law. Let's listen in as the president is about to speak on his Affordable Care Act.

(APPLAUSE)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Thank you very much.

(APPLAUSE)

OBAMA: Thank you so much, everybody.

(APPLAUSE)

OBAMA: Well, I want to thank Morgan for that introduction.

And I want to thank all of you for being here.

There are a couple of people that I want to make sure that especially acknowledge. First of all, the leader of the Democrats in the House of Representatives, and somebody who worked harder than just about anybody to get the Affordable Care Act into law, Nancy Pelosi.

(APPLAUSE)

OBAMA: We have some outstanding members of Congress here, some mayors and elected officials who are here. I want to give a special shut-out -- I'm not going to introduce all of them because it would take too much time and I might miss somebody. But there's one person who is standing in front -- sitting in front, who I want to acknowledge just because he has served for decades, and for decades fought to make sure that everybody had affordable, accessible coverage. And we're so proud of him, John Dingell.

(APPLAUSE)

OBAMA: Congressman Dingell.

(APPLAUSE) OBAMA: So I want to welcome everybody to the White House.

Every day, across the country, and certainly, here in the White House, there are people who are working, as we speak, to implement the Affordable Care Act and to deliver the security of quality affordable health care to more Americans. The good news is, starting October 1st, new online marketplaces will allow consumers to go online and compare private health care insurance plans just like you'd compare over the Internet the best deal on flat screen TVs or cars or any other product that is important to your lives. And you're going to see competition in ways that we haven't seen before. Insurance companies will compete for your business. And in states that are working hard to make sure that this law delivers for their people, what we're seeing is that consumers are getting a hint of how much money they're potentially going to save because of this law. In states like California, Oregon, Washington, new competition, new choices, market forces are pushing costs down. Just yesterday, state officials in New York announced that average premiums for consumers who buy insurance in their new marketplace will be at least 50 percent lower next year than they are today.

(APPLAUSE)

OBAMA: Think about that. 50 percent lower.

(APPLAUSE)

OBAMA: So for people like Morgan, who are self-employed, who have to buy on the individual market, they're suddenly going to see opportunities not just for the rebates we discussed, but also for even greater savings in their monthly premiums. So if you already buy insurance on the individual market, meaning that you don't get insurance through a big group plan, through your employer, it could mean thousands of dollars a year that can go towards paying a mortgage. Or putting a kid through college or saving for retirement. And what this means is that hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers who don't have insurance will finally be able to afford it. Because these exchanges, this big pool, is going to reduce the cost. And you may qualify for health care tax credits. Middle class families will potentially qualify for these credits that will bring the costs down even more. So this is just an example of how the Affordable Care Act is doing what it's doing what it's designed to do. Deliver more choices, better benefits, a check on rising costs, and higher quality health care. That's what it was designed to do. And we're already seeing those effects take place.

Now, I mention all of this, because yesterday, despite all the evidence that the law is working the way it was supposed to for middle class Americans, Republicans in the House of Representatives voted for nearly the 40th time to dismantle it. We've got a lot of problems in this country, and there's a lot of work that Congress needs to do -- get a farm bill passed, get immigration reform done, make sure we've got a budget in place that invests in our children and in our future. And, yet, instead, we're refighting these old battles.

(LAUGHTER) Sometimes, I just try to figure out why. Maybe they think it's good politics. But part of our job here is not to always think about politics. Part of our job here is to sometimes think about getting work done on behalf of the American people, on behalf of the middle class and those who are striving to get into the middle class. And --

(APPLAUSE)

OBAMA: And so, the progress that we're seeing in California and in Washington and Oregon and now New York, that's progress that we want to make sure we're seeing all across the country. Because there are still millions of people out there who not only want to get health insurance, but many who have health insurance, who deserve a better deal and deserve the kinds of savings that the Affordable Care Act will offer.

Now, if you're one of the 85 percent of Americans who already have health insurance, could be through your employer, or through Medicare or Medicaid. You already have an array of new benefits in place. You don't have to wait until October 1st. You're already getting benefits because you don't know it's because of the Affordable Care Act. You're getting more protections. You're getting more value for each dollar you spend on your health care. And that last point, the issue of getting better value for your buck, is what I want to focus on today.

For years, too many middle class families saw their health care costs go up and up, without much explanation as to why or how their money was being spent. Today, because of the Affordable Care Act, insurance companies have to spend at least 80 percent of every dollar that you pay in premiums on your health care. Not on overhead. Not on profits. But on you. Now, many insurance companies are already exceeding that target. And they're bringing down premiums and providing better value to their customers. But those that aren't, now actually have to reimburse you. They're not spending your premium dollars on your health care, at least 80 percent of it, they've got to give you some money back.

Last year, millions of Americans opened letters from their insurance companies, but instead of the usual dread that comes from getting the bill, they were pleasantly surprised with a check. In 2012, 13 million rebates went out in all 50 states. Another 8.5 rebates are being sent out this summer, averaging around 100 bucks each. And for families like Morgan's that, you know, are working hard, every dollar counts. It makes a difference. As she said during her introduction, she'd been buying insurance on the individual market in Maryland for years after she got a rebate for the first time. And I'm quoting Morgan now, she said, "It felt like someone was actually being held accountable for the dollars I was spending on health care." That's one of the core principles of the Affordable Care Act, holding insurance companies and providers accountable so that we all get a better deal.

Dan Hart, who is here from Chicago, had read these rebates were happening but he didn't think anything of it until he got a check in the mail for 136 bucks. Dan's a father of two. As any parent will tell you, those kids, they suck up a lot of money.

(LAUGHTER)

So -- am I right?

(LAUGHTER)

Absolutely.

So he used his rebate to pay some bills.

Rick Shoe well and Claudia Diamond own a stationary store in Arlington, Virginia. They knew about the provision in the Affordable Care Act, but Rick said, "I figured I'd never see the money." So it was a complete surprise to him when they got a rebate for $320. Put that money right back into their small business.

And this is happening all across the country. And it's happening because of the Affordable Care Act. It hasn't been reported on a lot. I bet if you took a poll, most folks wouldn't know, when that check comes in, that this was because of Obama-care that they got this extra money in their pockets. But that's what's happening.

Now, even if you don't get a rebate, even if you didn't get a rebate, there's a good chance that these reforms are helping you as well, because one easy way to meet the goal of spending 80 percent of every dollar on care is to charge less for your care. Now, we've got more work to do to get rising health care costs under control. And some of the gains that we've made, some of the progress we've made in slowing the rise of health care costs isn't always passed on to workers. Sometimes, companies may keep it and they are charging their employees a higher co-pay or higher deductible or in some way shifting some costs on to some workers.

But generally speaking, what we've seen is that health care costs have slowed drastically in a lot of areas since we passed the Affordable Care Act. We've got a lot more work to do. But health care inflation's not skyrocketing the way it was. And because of this new rule, because of the fact that is improves the value of the coverage that you purchase, last year alone, Americans saved $3.4 billion in lower premiums. That's $3.4 billion on top of these rebates. So that's just one way this law's helping middle class families. But it represents everything the Affordable Care Act means for folks who already have insurance -- better benefits, stronger protections, more bang for your buck, the basic notion that you ought to bet what you pay for.

Now I recognize there's still a lot of folks in this town at least still rooting for this law to fail. Some of them seem to think this law's about me. It's not. I already have really good health care.

(LAUGHTER)

It's about the dad in Maryland who, for the first time ever, saw his family's premiums go down instead of up. It's about the grandma in Oregon whose free mammogram caught her breast cancer before it had a chance to spread. It's about the mom in Arizona who can afford heart surgery for her little girl now that the lifetime cap on her coverage has been lifted. It's about the folks here today who got a little bit of relief.

And I'm curious, what do opponents of this law think the folks here today should do with the money they were reimbursed? Should they send it back to the insurance companies? Do they think that was a bad idea to make sure that insurance companies are being held accountable? I know that's not what these folks think. So the upshot is the American people deserve a fair shot. They expect businesses to play by a fair set of rules. And that's why this fight is so important.

Our broken health care system threatened the hopes and the dreams of families and businesses across the country who feared that one illness or one accident could cost them everything they'd spent a lifetime building. And step-by-step, we're fixing that system. It's hard. You know, this is a big country and the health care industry is massive. And there's tons of providers. And so as we implement, there are going to be glitches. There are going to be certain states that, for political reasons, are resisting implementation. And we're just steadily working through all that stuff. The same was true when Medicare was started. The same was true when Social Security got started. There were folks who, for political reasons, resisted implementation. But once it got set up, people started saying it was a pretty good deal, it gives me a little more security. It's part of that basic bargain that if you work hard, if you're doing the right thing, that you can get ahead in this country. And that you can provide some basic protections for your family. And health care is at the heart of it. It's part of it. Affordable health care is not some privilege just for the few. It's a basic right that everybody should be able to enjoy. So, we're going to keep fighting to secure that right, to make sure that every American gets the care that they need, when they need it, at a price they can afford. That's the America we believe in. That's what families deserve. That's what we're going to keep on working to deliver. We're going to keep on working to make sure many people around this country, who are already paying premiums, are getting cheaper prices, that the money's being actually spent on their health care, that you're not having to worry about the fine print, that if you don't have health insurance, you finally are in a position to get some, at an affordable price, to give you and your family the kind of security you deserve. That's something everybody should support. That's not something that should be subject to politics.

If the folks who have been trying to make political hay out of this thing, if they had some better ideas, I've always told them I'm happy to hear it. But I haven't heard any so far. What I've heard is just the same old song and dance. We're just going to blow through that stuff and just keep on doing the right thing for the American people.

So thank you very much.

(APPLAUSE)

OBAMA: Thank you.

(APPLAUSE)

PEREIRA: All right. That's President Obama in the East Room of the White House. Obviously, health care is a matter that affects and gets the attention of a lot of Americans. Making the argument that the Affordable Care Act is indeed beneficial, and sharing some of the successes in his estimation.

We, of course, want to get the Republican response to the president's speech on the Affordable Care Act. We will get that after the break with Representative Phil Roe. He'll join us after the break. We'll be back to speak with him.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PEREIRA: Well, moments ago, you heard the president speaking in support of the Affordable Health Care Act.

I want to bring in Congressman Phil Roe, a Republican from Tennessee, co chair of the GOP's Doctor's Conference.

Tanks so much for joining us today, and welcome, Representative Roe.

I want to ask, are you a physician. I would like to hear your response to what the president just said.

REP. PHIL ROE, (R), TENNESSEE: Well, I got to hear most of it. It was a good speech. The problem is the president left a lot of things out of his speech, like the 21 new taxes. The premise that we need to have higher quality, lower-cost health care is one that we all share in this Congress. The question is, how do you do it? Do you do it with a 2700-page very prescriptive bill with 22,000 pages of rules and regulations?

And, look, you can't write a 2700-page bill and not have some good things in it. There are things in the Affordable Care Act I agree with. But we need health care reform that is patient centered and market driven. That's the only way you're going to hold the costs down.

In our state of Tennessee, the individual rates are scheduled to go up by a huge amount for small businesses, and that's where the real problem was in the -- of the uninsured in this country.

PEREIRA: I heard you say that patient centric -- patient centric. Give us an idea of what the solution in your estimation is, the common ground that you think can be found.

ROE: I think the common ground right there is when the patient comes in to my office to see me, which they did for over 30 years in Tennessee where I practiced medicine, and that patient and myself made the health care decisions, not the insurance company, and not some bureaucrat in Washington, D.C., but the patient and the doctor. And you can set it up that absolutely empower the patient to do that. One is ownership of their own policy, where the policy is not owned by the company you work for. Health savings accounts where you decide and direct where the dollars go. I had breakfast with Dr. Ben Carson. Again, brilliant man, who shares many of the same ideas, putting the patient and the doctor back in control of the health care system.

PEREIRA: We want to bring in our chief political analyst, Gloria Borger, joining us to talk about this as well.

You had a chance to hear the president. What is your reaction to what the president said in defense of his Affordable Care Act?

GLORIA BORGER, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST; In listening to the Congressman and the president, I think it is the same-old, same-old arguments we have heard about health care reform over the years. It is a question of big government. What Republicans are saying is, look, I don't want the insurance companies and I don't want the federal government, whom by the way we don't trust to do much of anything, in charge of our health care. And what the president is saying is, look, if we all band together and we have these insurance pools and we have mandates, then health care costs are going to go down and your premiums are going to go down. The president spoke about rebates, for example, that certain people are getting.

What the president didn't talk about, Michaela, is the fact that this is so complicated that he has had to delay mandates for businesses to ensure their employees another year because it is very complex and they haven't been able to get their arms around it and do it. So he has given them another year to do it.

What Republicans are saying, if you have delayed it for businesses for another year, delay it for individuals, so they don't have to go and get insurance as part of these pools. Why are you doing it for business and you're not doing it for the average American?

PEREIRA: Let's bring in Representative Roe.

And there will be voices that will say, look, the way it stands now, I am not happy with the way my medical is. How do we fix it? I need help now. I can't wait for this argument to continue over and over again.

ROE: The problem was, Michaela, most people who had health insurance coverage in the United States liked their coverage. The president, remember, said, if you like your coverage, you can keep it.

By the way, he did say about three years ago that he would go over this bill line by line with anybody who wanted to. And I asked him to do that, and never heard. And I heard him say at the end of the speech that he was waiting for ideas.

This afternoon, if we can work it out, we have one more little glitch to have a Republican alternative completely ready to go. So he didn't mention -- let me give you an example. I am the chairman of the Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor and Pensions, and I held a field hearing in Concord, North Carolina, not long ago, and for the self-insured, what he didn't say is, here is a company over there, Mr. Horn, he had a textile manufacturing company. And Mr. Horn provides 80 percent of the coverage, all preventive services, and basically all of those he provides, so what does he get out of this bill? He gets a $63 per person fee that he has to pay to help indemnify insurance companies. Many self-insured businesses -- my home city of Johnson City, Tennessee, it will cost them $177,000, another hidden tax that no one talks about.

BORGER: Michaela, let me just say, with all due respect to the Congressman, I don't think that health care reform is going to be repealed. The president would veto that. This is a political argument that people are having now as we head into the mid-term elections. Health care reform is there. It may be fiddled with in one way or another. It may be delayed for a while in one way or another. It has been passed by the United States Congress, signed by the president, and he is not going to preside over an undoing of it right now. There have been, what, 40 votes in the House to try and do that. And I think the Congressman and others there are making political points about what they don't like about this, and that's likely to continue through the next election.

PEREIRA: All right. We'll have to leave it there.

We want to say a big thank you to Congressman Phil Roe.

Thank you for your time, sir.

Gloria Borger, we appreciate you joining us as well, lending your voice to the conversation.

With that, we'll take a short break and be back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PEREIRA: House Speaker John Boehner spoke moments ago about the president's health care law, saying he needs to be fair with the public and not just insurance companies and corporations. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JOHN BOEHNER, (R-OH), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: That's why the House this week passed two bills extending those protections, some basic fairness to all Americans. And the president said he would veto the bills. And frankly most Democrats voted against them. And I have to tell you, I was disappointed. How can a president say he is looking out for average Americans when he threatens to veto measures of basic fairness? I think it is appalling.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PEREIRA: House Speaker John Boehner speaking there in regards to President Obama's health care law.

That's it for us. Thanks for so much for watching.

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