President Obama answered questions about his health care plan at an open forum outside Cleveland today.
From the gym at Shaker Heights High School, the president told an audience of about 2,000 that he wants to get his health care reform package through Congress by the end of this year.
“If there isn’t a deadline in Washington, nothing happens,” he said.
At least one questioner seemed a little skeptical. Parker Smith, who will start his freshman year at Shaker this fall, asked how the president responds to critics who allege the plan is “too much, too fast.” Obama said he wants to implement the changes gradually.
“Most of these changes would be phased on over several years … in an intelligent, deliberate way,” Obama said, adding there are changes – such as improving drug coverage for seniors – that can be changed faster.
The president focused much of his message on younger voters, asking high school and college students to get involved by writing to their congressmen and paying attention to health care issues. The largest group of uninsured in the United States is in their 20s.
Obama said one change he hopes to make is extending coverage to recent college graduates. Current plans usually drop children from their parents’ plans after they graduate. The president said he hopes to create a plan that will keep children covered during the transition from college to a job.
-Wesley Lowery
