Obama calls for bipartisan solution on health care reform

WASHINGTON — US President Barack Obama on Saturday called on Republicans and Democrats to find a bipartisan approach to health care reform to allow the proposal to move forward.In his weekly radio address, Obama said he was inviting leaders of both parties to take part in a bipartisan health care meeting next week and expressed the hope they would participate "in a spirit of good faith."I don't want to see this meeting turn into political theater, with each side simply reciting talking points and trying to score political points," the president said."Instead, I ask members of both parties to seek common ground in an effort to solve a problem that's been with us for generations."Obama's plan to provide health cover to millions of uninsured Americans stalled in Congress early this year, after Democrats lost the Massachusetts Senate seat previously held by the late senator Edward Kennedy.The Republican victory also meant the Democrats lost their 60-vote filibuster-proof majority, which they need to pass most legislation in the upper chamber.All Senate Republicans have been steadfast in their opposition to the health reform plan.Pushing for bipartisanship as a way out of the impasse, Obama said he had supported some Republican ideas on reform from the very beginning.He reminded listeners that some Republicans had wanted to allow Americans to purchase insurance from a company in another state and to give small businesses the power to pool together and offer health care at lower prices."I think both of these are good ideas - so long as we pursue them in a way that protects benefits, protects patients, and protects the American people," the president argued."I hope Democrats and Republicans can come together next week around these and other ideas." Copyright © 2010 AFP. All rights reserved. More »

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