Health Care reform lies at the center of President Obama's domestic agenda.

In August, Congressional town hall-style meetings gave voice to public opinion strongly against proposed legislation. Americans are concerned about the quality of their care. The main objective of the reform process now has been to decrease costs, provide more choices and assure quality care over quantity. According to the BBC, "Some 46 million people in America currently do not have health insurance, and rising healthcare costs are a major contributing factor to America's spiraling budget deficit." The so-called "public option" and fears of a Canadian-style, single-payer health system remain the more contentious issues.

President Obama's address to a joint session of Congress Wednesday night outlined his health care plan and challenged the "scare tactics" of his opponents. With an aim to sell the plan to the American public, Obama pitched to the center with his bipartisan and practical yet moral-focused argument: "Under my plan," Obama declared, "individuals will be required to carry basic health insurance - just as most states require you to carry auto insurance."

Mr. Obama asserted that his plan will not provide coverage for illegal immigrants, which could become an issue for the Latino caucus as the President is delaying his promised immigration overhaul as well. "The President has gone on radio twice in recent days to assure voters that the bill wasn't ‘designed to provide health insurance to illegal immigrants' and that ‘[i]llegal immigrants would not be covered.'" (Slate) During the address to Congress, Representative Joe Wilson (R., SC) yelled back "You lie!" after Mr. Obama said it was not true that the Democrats were proposing to provide health coverage to illegal immigrants.

Despite Wednesday evening's stirring performance, the power to reform health care in the US lies with the Senate, not with President Obama. "Four of the five Congressional committees considering health care legislation have already passed bills. Each would require all Americans to have insurance and provide government subsidies for those who cannot afford it. Each would bar insurance companies from refusing coverage for pre-existing conditions; imposing lifetime caps on coverage; or dropping people when they get sick." (NY Times) The Senate Finance Committee, chaired by Max Baucus (D., Mont.) and the last congressional committee needed, has proposed an alternative plan which "includes some of the stiffest penalties Congress has proposed for Americans who don't carry health insurance coverage." (WSJ) Major stakeholders in the debate, hospitals, doctors, insurers and the pharmaceutical industry, remain involved in negotiations with Congressional committees and appear to be invested in government health care.

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Across the border, Mexican President Felipe Calderón has also promised radical improvements to education and the introduction of universal healthcare.

Related:

• In the News: Système de santé: Clinton souhaite que les É-U s'inspirent du Canada
• In the News: Les Canadiens préfèrent leur système de santé à celui des Américains
• Links: Health Canada/Santé Canada; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; Secretaría de Salud
• Network Experts: North America and Health Policy
• Past Event: (Hudson) Health Care Reform: The Long-Term Fiscal Impact
• Research from the PNA Library: Meeting the Dilemma of Health Care Access: Extend Insurance Coverage while Controlling Costs
• Research from the PNA Library: Shared Governance: Innovation in the Health Sector

(Image credit: Flickr user Paul Keleher)