This is pretty wonky, but it’s a clear sign that, though he’s criticizing Republicans pretty starkly, Obama’s also going the extra mile to show he’s open to Republican ideas.
“[M]any in this chamber – particularly on the Republican side of the aisle – have long insisted that reforming our medical malpractice laws can help bring down the cost of health care,” Obama said.
I don’t believe malpractice reform is a silver bullet, but I have talked to enough doctors to know that defensive medicine may be contributing to unnecessary costs. So I am proposing that we move forward on a range of ideas about how to put patient safety first and let doctors focus on practicing medicine. I know that the Bush Administration considered authorizing demonstration projects in individual states to test these issues. It’s a good idea, and I am directing my Secretary of Health and Human Services to move forward on this initiative today.
That should mean health care reform gets 90 votes in the Senate and 402 votes in the House, right? No, I didn’t think so either.
