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Today’s Wall Street Journal includes a story claiming that states will suffer through a deep fiscal crisis because of the Affordable Care Act. Unfortunately, the story relies on flawed studies and omits important information about some of the key benefits in the new law for states and their residents. Here are the facts:
Insuring More Americans Will Help Save Money for States: Under the new law, 32 million more Americans will have health insurance, thereby saving money normally spent on caring for the uninsured. And savings for states under the new law could be substantial. The Urban Institute has estimated that:
“…state and local governments would save approximately $70-80 billion over the 2014-2019 period by shifting this spending into federally matched Medicaid, clearly exceeding the new cost to states of the Medicaid expansion…”
And after detailing other potential savings, the same report concludes:
“In sum, states as a whole can probably achieve savings that significantly exceed their increased costs for low-income Medicaid adults.”
By insuring more Americans, the Affordable Care Act will substantially decrease the amount states spend to care for the uninsured, which in 2008 cost states $17.2 billion. Overall, boosted federal Medicaid support to states will decrease the share of how much they spend to cover their Medicaid enrollees’ health care expenses by 4.5 percent.
Administrative Costs Will Be Supported by the Federal Government: Today’s story wrongly claims that the new law “sticks states with a significant amount of the administrative costs” associated with their Medicaid programs. In fact, the Obama Administration recently proposed that the federal government cover 90 percent of the cost of updating state Medicaid systems to ensure these systems are as efficient as possible.
Even in These Tough Economic Times, States Continue to Make Improvements to their Medicaid Programs: A recent Kaiser Family Foundation survey found that nearly all states are proactively improving their Medicaid programs to provide better care and make these programs more efficient. These improvements, combined with substantial resources from the federal government, for example, through the newly launched Innovation Center, will help ensure states do not have to cut spending in other crucial areas to support their Medicaid programs.
Today’s Story Relies on Flawed Studies: The article cites deeply flawed analyses on the impact of the Medicaid expansion on Mississippi, Indiana, and Nebraska. As the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities notes:
“These studies, however, conducted by the consulting firm Milliman, Inc., have serious flaws. They produce overstated estimates of the costs of the Medicaid expansion because they rely on a number of problematic assumptions…”
One of the assumptions these studies make is that 100 percent of those who are currently eligible for Medicaid, as well as 100 percent of those newly eligible will enroll in the program. Neither the Congressional Budget Office, nor the Chief Actuary of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, made this assumption when they projected the Affordable Care Act’s impact on Medicaid enrollment because there is no evidence to support it. Medicare, which offers coverage to all Americans over the age of 65 does not have 100 percent enrollment. The studies also tended to overestimate per-capita Medicaid beneficiary costs, as well as the number of people who would opt out of private health insurance for Medicaid. You can read the full report by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities here.
Under the new law, millions of Americans who have been uninsured will have coverage, the worst insurance company abuses will be banned and states will save money they would have spent caring for the uninsured. That’s a good deal for millions of Americans and state budgets.Stephanie Cutter is Assistant to the President for Special Projects
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This afternoon in the East Room of the White House, the President presented the Medal of Honor for conspicuous gallantry to Staff Sergeant Salvatore Giunta, U.S. Army -- the first living servicemember from the Iraq or Afghanistan wars to receive it. "Now, I’m going to go off-script here for a second and just say I really like this guy," said the President to laughter and applause. "I think anybody -- we all just get a sense of people and who they are, and when you meet Sal and you meet his family, you are just absolutely convinced that this is what America is all about."
President Barack Obama presents the Medal of Honor to Staff Sergeant Salvatore Giunta in the East Room of the White House, November 16, 2010. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)
As the President always does, he recounted the story of the events that earned this honor, and as always it needs no editorial embellishment:
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Ed. Note: This week the Obama Administration celebrating America’s entrepreneurs and small businesses as part of National Entrepreneurship Week. Join Commerce Secretary Gary Locke this Friday at 1 p.m. for a live chat on entrepreneurship and innovation on WhiteHouse.gov/live.
Innovation always has and always will be America’s global competitive advantage. Our ability to create products and services that help people around the world live healthier, wealthier and more productive lives was a big reason why the 20th century was the American century.
Innovation is how we built the strongest middle class the world had ever seen. And it’s a big part of how we’re going to rebuild the American middle class here in the 21st-century.
It begins with a commitment to research and development. The president’s proposed 2011 budget, while freezing domestic discretionary spending overall, includes a six percent increase for R&D, with special attention given to emerging sectors like 21st century infrastructure and manufacturing, clean energy and biotechnology.
But R&D is only the first step in the innovation process. The next step is to find an entrepreneur to take that kernel of an idea or invention and turn it into a new product or a new business.
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Pete Souza and the White House Photo Office published a new set of behind the scene photos from the month of October to the White House Flickr feed. Check out photos of the President’s visit to the Daily Show, the Obama family dog Bo peeking into the Oval Office, the President and the First Lady handing out Halloween treats at the White House, and about 50 more photos you don’t want to miss.
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November 15, 2010
05:52 PM EDTDid you know that there are eight official White House Twitter accounts? Each White House account provides a different view into the Obama administration: Chief Official White House Photographer Pete Souza takes you behind the scenes in pictures, Press Secretary Robert Gibbs answers your Twitter questions
Here’s a look at all of our Twitter accounts, along with a few favorite tweets:
@whitehouse - The White House (1,882,850 followers)
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Ed. Note: This week the Obama Administration celebrating America’s entrepreneurs and small businesses as part of National Entrepreneurship Week.
I’m thrilled that we’re taking time this week – as a nation – to support and celebrate America’s entrepreneurial spirit. Entrepreneurs and small business owners continue to drive innovation, strengthen our competitive edge, and create good jobs here at home.
These entrepreneurs need access to capital in order to start and grow their small businesses. When a small business loan gets approved, they get the lines of credit to buy space and equipment and to hire more workers. It’s an exciting moment.
Because of the Recovery Act, the SBA was able to work with its lending partners to provide nearly 70,000 SBA loans to entrepreneurs and small business owners to help them do just that. And now, under the new Small Business Jobs Act, the SBA has already approved 7,000 more SBA loans in just two months.
Noel and Glen Mouritzen are a good example. They attended the event where the President signed the Jobs Act. They’re using their new Jobs Act loan to set up a repair shop for helicopter fuel systems near an airport in Virginia. As a result, they’re planning to hire four or five new workers.
In addition, by strengthening a network of growth capital firms – called Small Business Investment Companies – we’ve reached a 50-year record high of nearly $1.6 billion in overall financing to high-growth small firms in Fiscal Year 2010.
And it’s not just SBA that is playing an active role in the success stories of America’s entrepreneurs. Other federal agencies have unique lending programs, too.
- The Export-Import Bank, like the SBA, has loans that can help small businesses who are looking to export their goods and services.
- The USDA offers loans to farmers and rural businesses.
- The Department of Transportation helps small businesses who need working capital to finance a contract they’ve won from that agency.
All of us throughout the Administration know that it’s more important than ever to help entrepreneurs and small business owners get the capital they need to grow and create jobs.
If you want to find out more about SBA loans – as well as other help we can provide through opportunities in federal contracting and one-on-one counseling for small businesses – I’d encourage you to visit www.sba.gov.
And our commitment throughout the Administration is this. We will continue to help America’s entrepreneurs find the tools they need to do what they do best: build their businesses, create jobs, and strengthen our economy.
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November 15, 2010
04:00 PM EDTGood news! We’ve updated the HealthCare.gov Insurance Finder to include more private insurance plans and health insurance companies.
The Insurance Finder allows you to compare different plans, showing important information that has never before been made public, such as the percentage of people who applied for coverage and were denied.
You may remember that on October 1, we had added price estimates for private insurance policies for individuals and families, allowing consumers to easily compare health insurance plans – putting consumers, not their insurance companies, in charge and taking much of the guesswork and confusion out of buying insurance.
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November 15, 2010
03:17 PM EDTStories are popping up all over the country of small business start-ups that were made possible by the Recovery Act – stories of companies like The Penny Ice Creamery
Vice President Joe Biden liked their video so much, that he called Kendra and Zach last week to thank them for sharing their story and to congratulate them on the success of their business. Watch the video of the Vice President’s call with Zach and Kendra and see the excerpts from the Penny Ice Creamery’s ‘Thank You’ video:
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Over 57,000 of you have spoken, and the winner of the 2010 SAVE Award is Trudy Givens of Portage, Wisconsin.
Trudy is a 19-year veteran of the US Bureau of Prisons, working now as a Business Administrator in the Federal Correctional Institution in Oxford, Wisconsin. Over the course of her career, Trudy noticed that copies from the Federal Register -- the federal government’s official daily publication for rules, proposed rules, and notices of Federal agencies and organizations, as well as executive orders and other presidential documents-- were delivered to her workplace several times per week, but employees rarely referenced the documents. The Federal Register was made available online years ago, and most members of the interested public reference that online version now. Trudy thought that in keeping with the President’s spirit of cutting out waste and going green, the government should end the printing and mailing of thousands of Federal Registers to employees.
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Today, Medicare’s Open Enrollment period begins and across the country, Americans have been reading about the benefits of the new law for seniors and the importance of delivering the benefits of reform to the American people.
Under the Affordable Care Act, beginning next year, seniors will be able to receive preventive services like mammograms and colonoscopies for free. The prescription drug coverage gap known as the donut hole will decrease until it is eliminated in 2020. This year, eligible seniors who hit the donut hole received a $250 rebate check. Thus far, over 1.8 million Medicare beneficiaries have received checks. Next year, they will receive a 50 percent discount on the brand name prescription drugs they purchase when they hit the donut hole. And all seniors will benefit from the provisions of the law that extend the life of the Medicare Trust Fund for an additional 12 years. Writing about Open Enrollment, the Daily Press in Virginia notes:
The Affordable Care Act, the health-care reform bill that passed in the spring, affects Medicare beneficiaries in a couple of ways: it mandates a free annual wellness visit and for most it eliminates co-pays for certain recommended preventive services, such as cancer screenings; it also includes a 50 percent discount on brand-name drugs when beneficiaries enter the "donut hole," or gap in prescription coverage…
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Ed. Note: This live event has concluded.
This week, President Obama will award recipients of the National Medal of Science and the National Medal of Technology and Innovation -- the highest honors bestowed by the United States government on scientists, engineers, and inventors -- at a White House ceremony.
On Tuesday, three medal recipients – including the inventor of the digital camera, a pioneer in organic photochemistry and electrochemistry and a leader in climate change research -- will be answering your questions in a live video chat on WhiteHouse.gov and Facebook.
Join us for a talk with Steven Sasson, Marye Anne Fox and Warren Washington on Tuesday, November 16th at 1:00 p.m. EST.
Here's how you can participate:
- Ask your questions in advance on Facebook
- Join the discussion live through the White House Facebook application
- Watch the chat through WhiteHouse.gov/live
Learn more about the award recipients participating in the live chat and about the National Medal of Science and National Medal of Technology and Innovation below:
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The President explains his push for exporting American goods in Asia, and urges Congress to address earmarks as a signal of fiscal reform.
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A quick look at the week of November 8, 2010.
Quote: “We recall acts of uncommon bravery and selflessness. But we also remember that honoring those who’ve served is about more than the words we say on Veterans Day or Memorial Day. It’s about how we treat our Veterans every single day of the year.” – The President on veterans Day at Yongsan Army Garrison in Seoul, South Korea with base personnel, families and Korean vets: http://wh.gov/3Jj
Serve: Learn more about how you can support our Veterans, military families and active duty service members: http://bit.ly/94urqKYour West Wing Week: “OCUNUS, Outside the Continental United States”: http://wh.gov/3Sp
Asia in Photos: Two slideshows from the President’s trip: India: http://wh.gov/3ef and Indonesia: http://wh.gov/3z5
President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama greet children while touring Humayun's tomb in New Delhi, November 7, 2010. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)
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While the President joined around 1,400 base personnel and families and several hundred Korean vets in Seoul, the Vice President spent Veterans Day at Arlington National Cemetery and took part in a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknowns. Watch a quick video from his time there.
Vice President Joe Biden talks to blue star mothers at the Veterans' Day breakfast in the East Room of the White House, November 11, 2010. (Official White House Photo by David Lienemann)
Vice President Joe Biden leans over Chief of Staff of the Airforce General Schwartz at the Veterans Day breakfast in the East Room of the White House, November 11, 2010. (Official White House Photo by David Lienemann)
Vice President Joe Biden shakes hands after speaking at the Veterans Day ceremonies at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia, November 11, 2010. (Official White House Photo by David Lienemann)
Attendees of the Veterans Day ceremonies at Arlington National Cemetery sing God Bless America, in Arlington, Virginia, November 11, 2010. (Official White House Photo by David Lienemann)
Vice President Joe Biden talks to a family member in section 60 at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia, November 11, 2010. (Official White House Photo by David Lienemann)
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President Barack Obama answers questions during a press conference at the G20 Summit at Coex Center in Seoul, South Korea, November 12, 2010. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)
While the focus of the President's press conference in Seoul was the G-20 Summit, he was also asked about the ongoing question of the tax cuts set to expire soon. Austan Goolsbee, Chair of the Council of Economic Advisers, laid out the numbers in his first White House White Board video back in September, and today the President made clear he is still concerned about the same issues that were raised then:
With respect to the Bush tax cuts, what I’ve said is that I’m going to meet with both the Republican and Democratic leaders late next week and we’re going to sit down and discuss how we move forward. My number-one priority is making sure that we make the middle-class tax cuts permanent, that we give certainty to the 98 percent of Americans who are affected by those tax breaks. I don’t want to see their income taxes spike up -- not only because they need relief after having gone through a horrendous recession, but also because it would be bad for the economy.
I continue to believe that extending permanently the upper-income tax cuts would be a mistake and that we can’t afford it. And my hope is, is that somewhere in between there we can find some sort of solution. But I’m not going to negotiate here in Seoul. My job is to negotiate back in Washington with Republican and Democratic leaders.
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President Obama at the G-20 Summit
President Barack Obama meets with world leaders at the G-20 Summit in Seoul, South Korea.
1 of 14For those wondering the amount of work that goes into a G-20 Summit, perusing the fact sheets below will give some idea of how much gets packed into these short events when leaders around the world come together.
- G-20: Fact Sheet on a New Global Framework to Fund Innovative SME Finance Models
- G-20: Fact Sheet on Sustainable External Imbalances and Orderly Global Adjustment
- G-20: Fact Sheet on IMF Reform
- G-20: Fact Sheet on U.S. Financial Reform and the G-20 Leaders' Agenda
- G-20: Fact Sheet on a Shared Commitment to Fighting Corruption
- G-20: Fact Sheet on Energy Issues
- G-20: Fact Sheet on the U.S. Global Development Policy and the G-20 Development Framework
The President went over some of the higlights in his opening remarks at a press conference in Seoul:
So here in Seoul, the question was whether our nations could work together to keep the global economy growing. I know the commentary tends to focus on the inevitable areas of disagreement, but the fact is the 20 major economies gathered here are in broad agreement on the way forward -- an agreement that is based on a framework that was put forward by the United States. And for the first time, we spelled out the actions that are required -- in four key areas -- to achieve the sustained and balanced growth that we need.
First, we agreed to keep focusing on growth. At home, the United States has been doing our part by making historic investments in infrastructure and education, research and clean energy. And as a consequence, our economy is growing again -– even as we must do more to ensure that that growth is sustained and translates into jobs for our people.
Here at Seoul, we agreed that growth must be balanced. Countries with large deficits must work to reduce them, as we are doing in the United States, where we’re on track to cut our deficit in half by 2013, and where I’m prepared to make tough decisions to achieve that goal. Likewise, countries with large surpluses must shift away from unhealthy dependence on exports and take steps to boost domestic demand. As I’ve said, going forward, no nation should assume that their path to prosperity is paved simply with exports to the United States.
Second, we agreed that exchange rates must reflect economic realities. Just as the major advanced economies need to keep working to preserve stability among reserve currencies, emerging economies need to allow for currencies that are market-driven. This is something that I raised yesterday with President Hu of China, and we will continue to closely watch the appreciation of China’s currency. All of us need to avoid actions that perpetuate imbalances and give countries an undue advantage over one another.
Third, we took further steps to implement financial regulatory reform. At home, we are implementing the toughest financial reform since the Great Depression, and we are expecting the same sense of urgency, rather than complacency, among our G20 partners. Here in Seoul we agreed to new standards -- similar to those that we’ve passed in the United States -- to make sure that banks have the capital they need to withstand shocks and not take excessive risks that could lead to another crisis. And we agreed on an approach to ensure that taxpayers are not asked to pay for future bank failures.
Fourth, we agreed to focus on development as a key driver of economic growth. The work we did here today builds on a new development policy that I announced in September and recognizes that the most effective means of lifting people out of poverty is to create sustainable economic growth -– growth that will create the markets of the future. We also agreed on an action plan to combat corruption, which in some countries is the single greatest barrier to economic progress.
Finally, we reaffirmed the need to avoid protectionism that stifles growth and instead pursue trade and investment through open markets. That’s why, for example, we will continue to work towards a U.S.-Korea free trade agreement in the coming weeks -- not just any agreement, but the best agreement to create jobs both in America and Korea.
And that's why I spoke very frankly to my G20 partners today about the prospects of the Doha Round. For just as emerging economies have gained a greater voice at international financial institutions -- in part because of the work we've done here at the G20 -- so, too, must they embrace their responsibilities to open markets to the trade and investment that creates jobs in all our countries.
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Welcome to the West Wing Week, your guide to everything that's happening at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. On a special edition for the trip to Asia this week, walk step by step with the President as he meets with students, citizens, business leaders, and government officials in India, travels to Indonesia to extend a hand of friendship to the Indonesian people, attends the G-20 in Seoul, South Korea, and much more…
To find out more about the President’s Trip to Asia, including photos, videos, and information about the objectives of the trip, click here.
November 7th, 2010
November 10th, 2010
November 11th, 2010
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Ed. Note: Visit http://www.Serve.gov/vets.asp to learn more about how you can support our Veterans, military families and active duty service members.
The President was joined at Yongsan Army Garrison in Seoul, South Korea by an estimated 1,400 base personnel and families and several hundred Korean vets. It was a unique and meaningful way to spend Veterans Day, as the President made clear:
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November 11, 2010
10:43 AM EDT
Seventy-two service members from 24 countries were sworn in as new U.S. Citizens during the 7th Annual All-Military Veterans Day ceremony aboard the USS Midway Museum in San Diego, California on November 10, 2010.
Today is Veterans Day, a day reserved to express our solemn and immeasurable appreciation for the men and women who have served in the U.S. Armed Forces. We recognize the sacrifices that service members make each and every day for our great nation, sacrifices that are to be forever honored. That in America volunteers enlist in service of our country is a unique source of pride. The principles of freedom, justice, and equality form the foundation of our nation. Immigrants not yet citizens have joined our military and served with distinction alongside citizens in defense of these principles.
Yesterday I was proud to address 75 members of the military who are becoming naturalized citizens on the deck of the USS Midway in San Diego, California. Many of these service members have risked their lives across the globe before becoming citizens here at home. As President Obama stated upon addressing 24 new citizens at a Rose Garden military naturalization ceremony last April, “We celebrate the true meaning of patriotism – the love of a country that’s so strong that these men and women were willing to risk their lives to defend our country even before they could call it their own.” Their brave acts, and those of more than 20,000 active duty service members who have become citizens since 2009, demonstrate an extraordinary commitment to America. We are enriched by their decision to serve our nation and to join us as United States citizens.
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Lately it seems like everyone has jumped on the social networking bandwagon, or at least have claimed to do so. One can find buttons for Twitter, Facebook, Flickr and others on the front pages of most Federal agencies, including VA. However, social networking sites are more than just a fad to join in order to boost an organization’s hipness. At VA, we’ve found the internet to be one of the most powerful tools in our mission to reach out to our nation’s Veterans across the country.
While many people equate social media with a younger generation of users, as it turns out, Vietnam and Vietnam-era Veterans represent VA’s fastest growing population of online users. Both VA’s website and our social media pages have allowed VA to reach out to Veterans who have traditionally been geographically isolated, as well as those who live far away from large cities or major military installations. The majority of our Veterans live in rural communities and small towns across this great nation -- to include places like Native American tribal lands and Pacific Islands like American Samoa and Guam. In the past, these Vets would have had to make the trek into a VA facility to get information, submit paperwork, or receive care. That is changing. They can now access our online resources to fill out applications, download information and even access care. VA now provides both telemedicine to monitor medical conditions and online mental health counseling via chat rooms. In the past year, we’ve added over 180 Veteran-centric videos to VA’s YouTube channel, which have now been viewed over 250,000 times.
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