President Obama's Weekly Address (1/9/10)

President Obama responds to unemployment numbers, lists immediate protections/benefits anticipated under health reform

In this week’s address, the President reacted to jobs numbers that saw the country's unemployment rate remain at 10% with a loss of 85,000 jobs in December (Bureau of Labor Statistics). Citing mixed reports over the past couple of months, the President said,

"We learned that, in November, our economy saw it's first month of job gains in nearly two years. But, last month we lost more than we gained. Now, we know that no single month makes a trend, and job losses for the final quarter of 2009 were one-tenth of what they were in the first quarter. But, until we see a trend of good, sustainable job creation, we will be relentless in our efforts to put America back to work."

The President also focused on health care protections that will immediately kick in upon being signed into law in 2010. Claiming dozens of immediate protections and benefits, President Obama highlighted the following list:

(Quoting President Obama)

• Uninsured Americans with pre-existing illness or condition will finally be able to purchase coverage they can afford
• Children with pre-existing conditions will no longer be refused coverage
• [Y]oung adults will be able to stay on their parents policy until they’re 26 or 27 years old
• Small business owners who can’t afford to cover their employees will be immediately offered tax credits to purchase coverage
• Early retirees who receive coverage from their employers will see their coverage protected and their premiums go down
• Seniors who fall into the coverage gap known as the “donut-hole” will receive discounts of up to 50% on their prescriptions as we begin to close that gap all together
• [E]very patient’s choice of doctor will be protected along with access to emergency care
• Insurance plans will be required to offer free preventive care to their customers so that we can start catching preventable illnesses and diseases on the front-end.
• [Insurance companies will] no longer be allowed to impose restrictive annual limits on the amount of coverage you receive or lifetime limits on the amount of benefits you receive.
• [Insurance companies will] be prohibited from dropping your coverage when you get sick and need it most
• [T]here will be a new independent appeals process for anyone who feels they were unfairly denied a claim by their insurance company