On Wednesday evening, President Obama spoke to Congress urging lawmakers to work together on health care reform. In recent months Democrats and Republicans have been battling for a health care reform bill that will provide a solution to the millions of Americans that cannot afford health care insurance.
Following the address, Dr. Jane L. Delgado, President and CEO of the National Alliance for Hispanic Health, issued a statement saying, “There was a clear sense of urgency in President Obama’s address to Congress on health care reform. We need to work together to get the job done and achieve affordable health care for all. At this critical time in our history, it is essential that we do this to support America’s working families.”
According to Delgado, one in three Hispanics (34%) are uninsured. She points out that the majority of these individuals are not covered because they do not qualify for public programs since they are work in jobs that do not provide coverage but do not pay enough where they cannot afford to buy private coverage for themselves. They are the ones most likely to benefit from health reform as laid out by the President.
The National Hispanic Medical Association has also weighed in on the policy debate and what it means for the Latino community. NHMA President Dr. Elena Rios has expressed her organization’s strong support for Obama’s reform plan. “We recognize his strong commitment to affordable universal insurance with a public option. We know that Hispanics stand to gain the most because having insurance will mean, starting with this generation, Hispanics will have less disease and health care costs and will be more productive in their communities.
Obama’s 47-minute speech was interrupted by Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC) shouting “You lie” after the President said extending health care to all Americans would not mean insuring illegal immigrants. Democratic authors of the health care legislation as well as the Administration flatly deny this allegation.
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