WASHINGTON – With the stimulus package passed, President Barack Obama plans to put healthcare and the promotion of healthcare IT among his top priorities, according to White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs.
The president is expected to outline some of his healthcare reform plans Tuesday night in a speech he will give on the floor of Congress, Gibbs said. The speech will be broadcast live nationwide.
Gibbs said Obama's healthcare reform plan, designed to provide more coverage and cut costs, relies on healthcare IT to make healthcare affordable, save lives and increase the quality and outcome of care.
"Reform is important in order to cut the incredible increases in cost that we see each and every year as businesses and families and individuals struggle to keep up with the pace of health care inflation," Gibbs said at a press conference Monday.
The president will outline over the next several weeks ways he plans to build on healthcare reform established in the economic recovery plan, including the use of healthcare IT, Gibbs said.
"I think you'll see real detail around what he's proposing," he said.
The president's speech follows a Monday fiscal responsibility summit at the White House. On Thursday, the president will release his federal budget proposal.
Gibbs said the president's budget will include "some specific cuts" and "hard choices" related to healthcare entitlement programs.
The president's plans will increase the security of the Medicare trust fund by saving money on healthcare through healthcare reform, Gibbs said.
"The President is committed to dealing with the rising costs of retirement security and health security in this country," he said.
