• A Town Hall, and a Health Care Model, in Green Bay

    Jesse Lee
    Jesse Lee
    June 11, 2009
    02:30 PM EST

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    The President just concluded a town hall at Southwest High School in Green Bay, Wisconsin, with a focus on one of the President’s top priorities for his entire presidency. Over the past two weeks, the President has spelled out his vision for health care reform, met with key Members of Congress, and dedicated his Weekly Address to discussing the urgency of getting reform done and the unprecedented coalition that has formed to support that goal.
    But passing health care reform is no DC parlor game, it is an issue that affects every family in America, addressing a problem that hangs over the head of every parent who faces the question of whether they can afford to give their children the care they need. And so it makes sense that the President is leaving the Beltway to talk directly to the American people. However, Green Bay is not just any American town, rather it has shown itself to be a model of controlling health care costs which have skyrocketed across the country and which will continue to do so unless reform gets done. The Washington Post describes a study from the University of Dartmouth, which the President and many others have cited: 
    In the final two years of a patient's life, for example, they found that Medicare spent an average of $46,412 per beneficiary nationwide, with the typical patient spending 19.6 days in the hospital, including 5.1 in the intensive-care unit. Green Bay patients cost $33,334 with 14.1 days in the hospital and just 2.1 days in the ICU, while in Miami and Los Angeles, the average cost of care exceeded $71,000, and total hospitalization was about 28 days with 12 in the ICU.
    For a President who has looked at every possible avenue to lower costs and expand access for all Americans while ensuring patient choice, Green Bay was a natural venue. But of course even as a model, Green Bay could not solve all the problems themselves, showing even more why comprehensive reform is necessary.   In his remarks the President addressed the broad problems at hand:
    For the government, the growing cost of Medicare and Medicaid is the biggest threat to our federal deficit, bigger than Social Security, bigger than all the investments that we've made so far.  So if you're worried about spending and you're worried about deficits, you need to be worried about the cost of health care.
    We have the most expensive health care system in the world, bar none.  We spend almost 50 percent more per person on health care than the next most expensive nation -- 50 percent more.  But here's the thing, Green Bay:  We're not any healthier for it; we don't necessarily have better outcomes.  Even within our own country, there are a lot of the places where we spend less on health care, but actually have higher quality than places where we spend more.  And it turns out Green Bay is a good example.  Right here in Green Bay, you get more quality out of fewer health care dollars than many other communities across this country.  (Applause.)  That's something to be proud of.  I want to repeat that:  You spend less; you have higher quality here in Green Bay than in many parts of the country.  But across the country, spending on health care keeps on going up and up and up -- day after day, year after year.
    I know that there are millions of Americans who are happy, who are content with their health care coverage -- they like their plan, they value their relationship with their doctor.  And no matter how we reform health care, I intend to keep this promise:  If you like your doctor, you'll be able to keep your doctor; if you like your health care plan, you'll be able to keep your health care plan.
    And he also addressed some of the specific solutions he would like to see, in addition to measures already passed like improved health IT:
    But the real cost savings will come from changing the incentives of a system that automatically equates expensive care with better care.  We've got to move from addressing -- we've got to address flaws that increase profits but don't actually increase the quality of care for patients.
    We have to ask why places like Geisinger Health systems in rural Pennsylvania, or Intermountain Health in Salt Lake City, or communities like Green Bay can offer high-quality care at costs well below average, but other places in America can't.  We need to identify the best practices across the country, learn from the successes, and then duplicate those successes everywhere else.
    And we should change the warped incentives that reward doctors and hospitals based on how many tests and procedures they do -- (applause) -- even if those tests and procedures aren't necessary or result from medical mistakes.  Doctors didn't get into the medical profession to be bean counters or paper pushers.  They're not interested in spending all their time acting like lawyers or business executives.  They became doctors to heal people, and that's what we have to free them to be able to do.
    We also have to provide Americans who can't afford health insurance more affordable options.  That's a economic imperative but it's also a moral imperative, because we know that when somebody doesn't have health insurance, they're forced to get treatment at the ER, and all of us end up paying for it.  The average family pays a thousand dollars in extra premiums to pay for people going to the emergency room who don't have health insurance.  So you're already subsidizing other folks; it's just you're subsidizing the most expensive care.  You'd be better off subsidizing to make sure they were getting regular checkups.  We're already paying for it.  It's just it's hidden in your premiums.
    So what we're working on is the creation of something called the Health Insurance Exchange, which would allow you to one-stop shop for a health care plan, compare benefits and prices, choose the plan that's best for you.  If you're happy with your plan, you keep it.  None of these plans, though, would be able to deny coverage on the basis of pre-existing conditions.  (Applause.)
    Every plan should include an affordable, basic benefits package.  And if you can't afford one of these plans, we should provide assistance to make sure that you can.  (Applause.)  I also strongly believe that one of the options in the Exchange should be a public insurance option.  (Applause.)  And the reason is not because we want a government takeover of health care -- I've already said if you've got a private plan that works for you, that's great.  But we want some competition.  If the private insurance companies have to compete with a public option, it'll keep them honest and it'll help keep their prices down.  (Applause.)
    Now, covering more Americans is obviously going to require some money up front.  We'll save money when they stop going to the emergency room and getting regular checkups, but it's going to cost some money up front.  Helping families lower their costs, there's going to be a cost to this.  And it comes at a time when we don't have a lot of extra money to spend, let's be honest.  When I came in we had a $1.3 trillion deficit.  And with the economic recession that we're going through, tax revenues are down -- I was talking to Governor Doyle -- tax revenues are down, more people are seeking help from the state.  So we've got a lot of pressure on our budget.
    So that's why I've already promised that reform cannot add to our deficit over the next 10 years.  And to make that happen, we've already identified hundreds of billions of dollars worth of savings in our budget -- savings that will come from steps like reducing Medicare overpayments to insurance companies and rooting out waste and fraud and abuse in both Medicare and Medicaid.  And I'll be outlining hundreds of billions of dollars more in savings in the days to come.  And I'll be honest, even with these savings, reform will require some additional up front resources.  And that's why I've proposed that we scale back how much the highest-income Americans can deduct on their taxes back -- take it back to the rate that existed under the Reagan years, and we could use some of that money to help finance health care reform.  (Applause.)
    In all these reforms, our goal is simple:  the highest-quality health care at the lowest-possible cost.  Let me repeat what I said before:  We want to fix what's broken, build on what works.
    As the President made clear, no excuses, no endless delay. 
    The President speaks at a town hall in Green Bay
    (President Barack Obama speaks at a town hall meeting on health care reform Thursday, June 11, 2009, at Southwest High School in Green Bay, Wisconsin.  Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy.)

  • On the Holocaust Museum Shooting

    Jesse Lee
    Jesse Lee
    June 10, 2009
    07:04 PM EST

    The President and Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar offer condolences.
    President Obama:
    I am shocked and saddened by today’s shooting at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum. This outrageous act reminds us that we must remain vigilant against anti-Semitism and prejudice in all its forms. No American institution is more important to this effort than the Holocaust Museum, and no act of violence will diminish our determination to honor those who were lost by building a more peaceful and tolerant world.
    Today, we have lost a courageous security guard who stood watch at this place of solemn remembrance. My thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends in this painful time.
    Secretary Salazar:
    Today, we witnessed an act of violence and hatred in one of our world's most sacred sites of remembrance.  This horrible crime took the life of Officer Stephen Tyrone Johns, whose courage in the line of duty saved lives and protected the hallowed halls of the Holocaust Museum.  Americans' thoughts and prayers tonight are with Officer Johns’ family.
    We are also reminded of the great sacrifices our law enforcement officials, including security guards and the Park Police who protect the National Mall, make every day on our behalf.  This tragic act of violence only reaffirms the lessons of peace and human dignity that the Holocaust Museum teaches.

  • Welcoming the Steelers: Behind the Scenes

    Jesse Lee
    Jesse Lee
    June 10, 2009
    06:51 PM EST

    A follow-up video to the Pittsburgh Steelers' visit last month, get a look at their day of service with the President, 50 Wounded Warriors from Walter Reed Army Medical Center and National Naval Medical Center, and their families:
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  • Rubber Hitting the Road on Health Care

    Jesse Lee
    Jesse Lee
    June 10, 2009
    03:21 PM EST

    The President invites key Senators on health reform to the White House to hear out their ideas and express his own as the committees begin working through their bills:

    (President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden meet in the Oval Office Wednesday, June 10, 2009 with (from left) Senate Finance Committee Chairman Sen. Max Baucus, (D-Mont.) Sen. Michael Enzi, (R-Wyo.) the ranking member on the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, Sen. Charles Grassley, (R-Iowa)  the ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, and Sen. Chris Dodd, (D-Conn.), the senior member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions to discuss health care reform.  Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

  • Accountability on Executive Compensation

    Jesse Lee
    Jesse Lee
    June 10, 2009
    03:18 PM EST

    Today Treasury Secretary Geithner announced that the Administration is calling for new measures to ensure executive compensation is structured in the best interest of companies, including the shareholders. As he explained, these measures are not simply about fundamental fairness, they are about the fundamental stability of our financial system:
    This financial crisis had many significant causes, but executive compensation practices were a contributing factor. Incentives for short-term gains overwhelmed the checks and balances meant to mitigate against the risk of excess leverage.
    Secretary Geithner spelled out five guiding principles for executive compensation to ensure that executives and shareholders’ goals remain aligned: it should be legitimately tied to performance; it should reflect long-term gains and risks; it should take into account sound risk management, rather than rewarding risk above all; golden parachutes should only be granted when in the long-term interest of the company; and compensation should be as transparent and accountable as possible.
    One key proposal along those lines is "say-on-pay" legislation that would give the SEC the authority to require non-binding annual say-on-pay votes for all public companies. In essence, shareholders would get a powerful moment of transparency and accountability for the executives of the companies they own, and an opportunity to disapprove where they see the kind of greed and misguided incentive schemes that wrought havoc on individual companies and in turn the broader economy in recent years. As Secretary Geithner pointed at, this kind of provision "has already become the norm for several of our major trading partners."
    Read the full "Say-on-Pay" fact sheet (pdf)
    A second proposal would require the SEC to issue rules and guidelines insuring that the compensation committees that help decide executive compensation are completely independent from the executives they are rewarding or punishing. In turn, those committees with protected independence would be given the responsibility and the resources to hire their own independent compensation consultants and outside counsel.   It is hardly difficult to imagine how the lack of independence of the committees setting compensation from the executives they were granting it to has contributed to the crisis we see today, and to the losses shareholders have seen as they were the only ones not in the loop.
    Read the full Compensation Committee Independence fact sheet (pdf)
    You can also read Secretary Geithner’s full statement to get a more thorough explanation, one more brick in America’s new foundation.

  • Wrap-Up of the Open Government Brainstorming: Participation

    Beth Noveck
    Beth Noveck
    June 09, 2009
    09:45 PM EST

    On May 21st through June 3rd, thousands of you shared your ideas in Phase I of this public consultation process, the Open Government Brainstorm.   June 3rd marked the beginning of Phase II, the Discussion Phase. We started with your ideas on Transparency.  Hundreds of comments flooded in from across the country.  Tomorrow we turn to Participation. This blog posting sets the stage for that conversation by summarizing the input we received on participation during the Brainstorm.
     
    As the President noted in his January 21st Memorandum on Transparency and Open Government, participation is essential because: "Public engagement enhances the Government's effectiveness and improves the quality of its decisions. Knowledge is widely dispersed in society, and public officials benefit from having access to that dispersed knowledge." In the Open Government Brainstorm, you suggested many ideas for how to create and improve opportunities for public participation in government. In the next four days, we will take the next step in translating those ideas into concrete, measurable and cost-effective solutions.
     
    We’ve heard from so many of you just how important public participation in political life can be. Several groups sent us lofty participation principles, such as these from the International Association of Public Participation and these from the National Coalition for Dialogue and Deliberation. We read and considered all the participation ideas you generated during the Open Government Brainstorm hosted by the National Academy of Public Administration (NAPA). We also reviewed ideas submitted by federal employees, who were particularly engaged and lively on this topic. NAPA did an analysis of the Brainstorm (pdf).
     
    We grouped the participation-related suggestions you submitted into four topics that we want to discuss with you this week:
     
    ·         Enhancing citizen participation in government decision-making
    ·         Promoting civic education
    ·         Improving Web 2.0: technology and policy frameworks
    ·         Enhancing e-rulemaking.
     
    Here’s how the Discussion will unfold.
     
    On Wednesday, June 10th, we’ll address "Enhancing citizen participation in government decision-making." On this topic, you offered a number of suggestions.  Here are a few examples of those:
     
    ·         A five day public review period before Presidential bill signing.
    ·         Require an "Open Government" button on each agency home page, linking to opportunities for two-way interaction.
    ·         Equitably incorporate diverse people, voices, ideas, and information into the participation process.
    ·         Decision makers communicate to participants how their input affected the decision post-hoc.
    ·         Make the decision framework explicit, and give the public access to that framework to increase the likelihood of comments being salient.
    ·         Promote a culture of participation with programs and institutions that support ongoing quality public engagement.
    ·         Co-create compelling alternative visions of the future as a springboard for creative policy recommendations and citizen empowerment.
    ·         Create ad hoc, randomly selected councils of average citizens to deliberate on an important issue and deliver an informed, thoughtful, shared solution.
    ·         Host a national town hall meeting or national network of citizen conversations, in which individuals would have a chance to discuss and share issues of highest public concern.
    ·         Host standing brainstorming sessions to generate ideas on important issues.   Appoint a small office of people to review the most popular proposals.
    ·         Provide citizens with nonpartisan, highly-accessible guides to public issues.
     
    On Thursday, June 11th, we’ll turn from talking about how government can create better opportunities for participation to address how to promote the civic literacy needed to participate effectively in government. On Promoting Civic Education, you said:
     
    ·         Provide a toolkit, including neutral discussion guides, to facilitate community discussions and a website for groups to share conclusions.
    ·         Invest in educating Americans (e.g. through town halls) to analyze complex information.
    ·         Train neighborhood facilitators to use proven dialogue methods that engage a group in 3 hours or less.
    ·         Establish listening and personal story sharing skills workshops in homes & schools.
    ·         Create and sponsor teen model governments to seek solutions.
    ·         Combine deliberation and service on Martin Luther King Day and other holidays.
     
    On Friday, June 12th, we’ll have 2 postings about Web 2.0: one will focus on technology, the other on policy. With regard to technology, you’ve said:
     
    ·         Permit the public to use mobile text messaging as one means to obtain information and submit input.
    ·         Expand access to government information through systems such as application programming interfaces (APIs), Really Simple Syndication (RSS) or Atom feeds, syndicated search results, email notifications, and similar technologies.
    ·         Centralize petitions to the President on a single website (like petitions.number10.gov.uk).
    ·         Create an online portal for citizen participation that would allow citizens to research, discuss, and oversee formation of public policy as well as locate and log community service.
    ·         Implement a policy wiki to enable widespread participation and help opinions converge on solutions.
    ·         Create a website where Americans can post personal writings and postings about the problems they face, mark their location, and vote on others’ entries as they affect them.
    ·         Use navigable animated demonstrations and data visualizations to help the public understand what is going on in their cities, states, and regions.
    ·         When using novel technologies, also advertise them in traditional media.
    ·         Leverage crowdsourcing strategies to write transcriptions for videos to improve accessibility for people with disabilities and ensure 508 compliance.
     
    As part of this same discussion on June 12th, we will talk about the policies we need to support the adoption of new tools for civic engagement by federal agencies. Government officials, in particular, had a lot to say on this topic on the MAX wiki:
     
    ·         Use the insights in the document Social Media and the Federal Government: Perceived and Real Barriers and Potential Solutions from the Federal Web Managers to craft better policy.
    ·         Update the Paperwork Reduction Act to distinguish between citizen engagement and burdensome forms. Redefine the meaning of "form" for the digital age.
    ·         Define some guidelines for standard web applications that are pre-approved under the Paperwork Reduction Act, e.g. any online survey with fewer than 10 questions that does not record personal information.
    ·         Develop strategies for modern records management compliance to ensure accurate archiving using electronic and collaborative technologies.
    ·         Provide the federal information technology infrastructure community with opportunities for training around new technologies.  Make Web 2.0 part of standard operating procedure.
    ·         Update the cookies policy to come up to speed with the latest in browser practices and persistence technologies.  Enable agencies to harness capabilities of cookies by streamlining approval process.
    ·         Make social media sites and web 2.0 technologies accessible to government employees at their desks.
    ·         Develop policy to support informal interaction between government employees and the citizenry.
    ·         Develop model no-cost agreements and guidelines for use of free software by agencies.
     
    On Saturday, June 13th, we’ll open up a dialogue on the specific topic of how to improve online public participation in agency rulemaking and talk about the new Regulations.gov Exchange site, which is set up specifically to generate brainstorming about how to enhance the quality of participation in rulemaking processes. On this topic, a number of you made suggestions, which included:
     
    ·         Feature major rulemakings on Whitehouse.gov so more of the public can participate.
    ·         Change regulations.gov to be more consumer-friendly, in line with recommendations from the American Bar Association.
    ·         Augment the regulations.gov "docket" with educational resources to help the public better understand issues and participate.
    ·         Provide average citizens with the information they need to participate early in the process.
    ·         Modify the regulatory agenda to encourage timelier, more effective participation. Specifically, eliminate the "Long Term Actions" category.
    ·         Improve and expand use of tools such as Action Initiation Lists for informing people about regulations under development.
    ·         Make it easier to stay in touch with the status of rules under development by 1) encouraging or requiring agencies to open dockets much earlier in the rulemaking process or 2) enabling the public to sign up for notifications from regulations.gov as soon as rulemaking is added to the Regulatory Agenda or Action Initiation List.
    ·         Invite people with expertise to volunteer to be individually contacted to get input on specialized matters during rulemaking.
    ·         Explain the Office of Management & Budget’s role in rulemaking, specifically demands made on advance drafts of agency rules
    ·         Allow the public to post anonymously to make it more difficult for institutions to "stack the deck" where there are opportunities to vote or rank ideas.
    ·         Instantly post comments submitted during comment period.
    ·         Provide information about rulemakings not required to be in the Regulatory Agenda (e.g. regulations or rules limited to agency organization, management, or personnel matters).
    ·         Ensure due review of proposed rules by flagging regulations that receive twice as many negative as positive comments.
    ·         Create a structured approach to match questioners and responders to ensure that a topic receives a response from the citizens most qualified/knowledgeable to give such response.
    ·         Make the chain of logic for new rules transparent by providing 1) models used, 2) numbers inserted, 3) conclusions drawn, and 4) justifications for the above.
    ·         Invest in new technologies for analyzing and summarizing comments.
     
    As mentioned previously, Debategraph is a visual policy mapping tool that is being used for running citizen engagement on climate change in Europe.  Debategraph took the redacted participation proposals and created this interactive Debategraph.

    Look for a blog post on participation beginning on June 10th and get involved! We improve citizen participation by demonstrating its effectiveness in practice.

     

    Beth Noveck is Deputy Chief Technology Officer for Open Government.

  • Photostream: The Middle East and Europe

    Kori Schulman
    Kori Schulman
    June 09, 2009
    04:56 PM EST

    The White House Photo Office drops sixty photos from the President's trip to the Middle East and Europe last week:
    [View full size slideshow]

  • Race for the Cure

    Katherine Brandon
    June 09, 2009
    04:46 PM EST

    The Vice President and Dr. Biden served as Honorary Co-Chairs of the Susan G. Komen Global Race for the Cure, joining around 45,000 participants on Saturday as they walked and ran on the National Mall.  "My husband Joe and I are thrilled to participate in the ongoing effort to raise awareness, fund research and empower people throughout the world in the fight against breast cancer," Dr. Biden said.
    Dr. Biden speaking to crowd(Dr. Jill Biden and Vice President Biden speak at the opening ceremonies of the Global Race For the Cure on the National Mall, Saturday, June 6, 2009. Official White House Photo by David Lienemann)
    Dr. Biden, who has long been involved in advocating breast health education and awareness herself, addressed the crowd at the opening ceremony and thanked them for their efforts in the global fight.  She started her own charity, the Biden Breast Health Initiative, in the early 1990s after several of her friends were diagnosed with breast cancer. The program works to educate young women about the importance of breast self-examination and living a healthy lifestyle.
    Dr. Biden speaks to crowd(Dr. Jill Biden and Vice President Biden speak at the opening ceremonies of the Global Race For the Cure on the National Mall, Saturday, June 6, 2009. Official White House Photo by David Lienemann)

  • TARP Funds Returned, Spending Reigned In

    Jesse Lee
    Jesse Lee
    June 09, 2009
    03:05 PM EST

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    Today the President spoke in the East Room of the White House, bearing good news for the taxpayer. The President’s intention was to discuss all of the progress already underway on the fiscal responsibility front, from ending the kind of wasteful no-bid contracting we have all come to know, to cutting unnecessary programs, to eliminating subsidies lavished on health insurance companies through Medicare. 

    At the top of the list was codifying the PAYGO principle, stating that government cannot spend an additional dollar without saving it somewhere else, into law. As the President often notes -- and noted again today -- it is a principle that families are forced to live by and one that helped balance the government’s books for years before it was abandoned.

    But as it happened, there was even more good news before he discussed those issues:
    THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you.  Thank you all for joining us here in the White House.  Before I begin, I want to comment briefly on the announcement by the Treasury Department with regard to the financial stability plan.
    As you know, through this plan and its predecessor, taxpayer dollars were used to stabilize the financial system at a time of extraordinary stress.  And these funds were also meant to be an investment -- and they were meant to be temporary.  And that's why this morning's announcement is important. 
    Several financial institutions are set to pay back $68 billion to taxpayers.  And while we know that we will not escape the worst financial crisis in decades without some losses to taxpayers, it's worth noting that in the first round of repayments from these companies the government has actually turned a profit.
    This is not a sign that our troubles are over -- far from it.  The financial crisis this administration inherited is still creating painful challenges for businesses and families alike.  And I think everybody sees it in their own individual districts. But it is a positive sign.  We're seeing an initial return on a few of these investments.  We're restoring funds to the Treasury where they'll be available to safeguard against continuing risks to financial stability.  And as this money is returned, we'll see our national debt lessened by $68 billion -- billions of dollars that this generation will not have to borrow and future generations will not have to repay.
    I've said repeatedly that I have no interest in managing the banking system -- or, for that matter, running auto companies or other private institutions.  So today's announcement is welcome news to me.  But I also want to say the return of these funds does not provide forgiveness for past excesses or permission for future misdeeds.  It's critical that as our country emerges from this period of crisis, that we learn its lessons; that those who seek reward do not take reckless risk; that short-term gains are not pursued without regard for long-term consequences.

    The President gives remarks(President Barack Obama delivers remarks on the new tax or entitlement policies for the pay-as-you-go plan Tuesday, June 9, 2009, in the East Room of the White House.  Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)

  • Streaming at Noon: Health Care Stakeholder Discussion on Health Disparities and Health Reform

    Jesse Lee
    Jesse Lee
    June 09, 2009
    11:10 AM EST

    Watch the live-stream. [UPDATE: This event has now concluded.]
    In discussing health reform, it is always difficult to conceive of what the statistics really mean when every individual represented has their own story of heart-wrenching decisions, cascading consequences, and tragedy compounded by frustration. Nowhere is that more true than when it comes to the disparities in health care that minorities and low-income Americans see, as the new report from HHS makes clear:
    Reduced Access to Care
    Access to quality care is vital to overall health and wellness, and health insurance plays a key role. In the United States, racial and ethnic minorities and low-income populations experience serious disparities in rates of insurance and access to health care.
    Health Insurance
    More than one in three Hispanics and American Indians – and just under one in five African Americans – are uninsured. In comparison, only about one in eight whites lacks health insurance.
    Four in 10 low-income Americans do not have health insurance, and half of the nearly 46 million uninsured people in the United States are poor. About one-third of the uninsured have a chronic disease, and they are six times less likely to receive care for a health problem than the insured.  In contrast, 94% of upper-income Americans have health insurance.
    Lack of a Primary Care Provider and Usual Source of Care
    A primary care provider and a facility where a person receives regular care substantially improve health outcomes. However, Hispanics are only half as likely to have a usual source of care as whites. What's more, half of Hispanics and more than a quarter of African Americans do not have a regular doctor, compared with only one fifth of whites.
    Low-income Americans are three times less likely to have a usual source of care compared to those with higher incomes – and almost half of low-income Hispanics lack a usual source of care.
    Read the full report, watch the live-stream, or read the live-blog from Rebecca Adelman of HHS below once this event starts.
    1:40: The meeting just concluded with loud applause. Secretary Sebelius thanked the stakeholders for their remarks today, and their work every day on these issues. She said as we work to enact health care reform legislation this year, she is very committed to also working within HHS to address these alarming health care disparities.
    1:34: Nancy Zirkin from the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights is affirming the importance of improving data collection in underserved communities. We must learn the causes of health problems in minority communities to learn to what extent genetics or the environment are factors.
    1:27: As the meeting begins to wind down, Rea Panares, Director of Minority Health Initiatives at Families USA, says that this conversation about health care reform is a new opportunity to close the gap in health care access and quality for minorities.
    1:25: Barbara Kornblau with the Special Olympics is asking the stakeholders and Administration officials gathered to keep Americans with disabilities part of the conversation around health disparities, as disabilities can confront members of any ethnic or racial group.
    1:15: Obesity is one of the major topics of discussion today. According to the new HHS report, seven out of ten African-Americans aged 18-64 are obese or overweight. This statistic points to another problem, which is that many ethnic and racial minorities. do not have a primary care physician who could educate them of the importance of prevention and the dangers of obesity. More than a quarter of African-Americans and half of Hispanics do not have a regular doctor, according to the report.
    1:05: Stacey Bohlen, Executive Director of the National Indian Health Board, just spoke passionately about health care conditions in Indian Country. "The disease we suffer from is anonymity," she said. The health care system, despite help from the Indian Health Service and private programs in tribal areas, is starving. She is urging the Administration to focus on obtaining more data about the health of Native Americans, and she also highlights that most of the diseases plaguing tribal communities such as diabetes, alcoholism, heart disease, and HIV/AIDS are preventable.
    12:55: Secretary Sebelius cites the new HHS report on health care disparities in the United States, singling out a few dramatic statistics. 48 percent of African-American adults have chronic diseases, and the rate of HIV/AIDS infection among African-Americans is seven times that of White men and women. She notes that minorities are more likely to be uninsured and are less likely to have access to quality care when they need it. We are here today, she says, because we all agree the system is broken, and we have to all work together to do something about it.
    12:45: Office of Public Engagement Director Tina Tchen opens by encouraging the stakeholders to stay involved in the health reform effort after this meeting concludes. We are at a critical juncture, she says, and your continued involvement will help push is over the top.
    12:40: Nancy-Ann DeParle, OPE Director Tina Tchen and HHS Secretary Sebelius just opened the Health Disparities Stakeholder Discussion on the fourth floor of the Old Executive Office Building. Gathered here with them are 26 representatives of racial, ethnic, and other minority groups to discuss persisting disparities in our health care system. Nancy-Ann DeParle says in her opening remarks that the issue of health care disparities is both a health issue and a civil rights issue that we must resolve. Who you are, where you are from, and how much money you have should not determine your ability to access quality health care, she says.

  • Transparency: Open Government Operations

    Robynn Sturm
    June 08, 2009
    05:13 PM EST

    How do agencies make decisions about health care reform, economic recovery, and clean energy? Who are the decision-makers? With whom do they meet and from whom do they take advice?  How do they work?  Openness of government operations is crucial to ensuring accountability and effectiveness.
    As the Obama Administration contemplates new approaches to making government more open, we want to hear from you. What do you – the non-profit fighting in the public interest, the company creating jobs for Americans, the journalist engaged in newsgathering, the teacher of civics, the mother and interested citizen – need to know about the way government works in order to feel more knowledgeable, to be empowered to participate, and to hold government accountable?
    Many promising ideas emerged in the Open Government Brainstorm and the online dialogue with government employees.    They included suggestions such as requiring every agency to publish a directory of employees, webcasting all Federal Advisory Committee Act meetings, using innovative, new technology to create more transparent, effective, and efficient procurement strategies,  and developing agency-specific "Web 2.0" communications strategies. You can find a full list of ideas proposed in the Transparency Wrap-up posted last week.
    Your ideas raise several important questions, on which we invite your thoughts and comments:
    • How do we weigh the value of transparent operations against the costs required to report accurately and comprehensively on the day-to-day workings of government?
    • ow do we balance the demands of open government with the need to create spaces where advisors, experts, and stakeholders can speak candidly without fearing short-term political ramifications?
    • How do we provide citizens with meaningful insights about how their government works rather than deluging everyone in overwhelming detail?
    Tell us the three most important pieces of information you think every agency should be required to disclose about its operations.  While you are at it, tell us how the private sector and government can best "mash up" such information (e.g. mapping campaign contributions against meeting schedules) to transform raw data into knowledge.  As always, go to the OSTP blog to say your piece.
    Robynn Sturm is Assistant Deputy CTO for Open Government.

  • Accelerating Our Efforts: The Next 100 Days

    Katherine Brandon
    June 08, 2009
    03:19 PM EST

    The President and Vice President met with Cabinet officials today to discuss the wide-ranging effects of the Recovery Act, as well as an ambitious plan announced by the Vice President this morning to accelerate efforts for the next 100 days called the Roadmap to Recovery.  In remarks before the meeting, the Vice President called these projects ambitious but realistic:
    A couple weeks ago, I asked the Cabinet members to give me a list of new projects that they were absolutely certain of they could get up and running in the second hundred days that would build momentum and accelerate the job growth in the next hundred days.
    And they each came back with new projects.  The 10 most significant of those projects, Mr. President, we've put in this book that we're going to give you -- it's called "Roadmap to Recovery"
    Some of these projects include creating and building 1,129 health care facilities, improving veterans’ medical centers across the country, putting 5,500 law enforcement officers on the streets, and creating 135,000 education jobs.  In total, the Vice President said 600,000 jobs will be created in the next 100 days.
    In May, we lost 345,000 jobs, which marks the smallest monthly job loss since September but which nonetheless represents 345,000 terrible stories.  Therefore, the Administration is boosting recovery efforts to build on the progress we’ve already made. The President emphasized that although we have a long way to go, the American people are already seeing progress:
    Now I know that there are some who, despite all evidence to the contrary, still don't believe in the necessity and promise of this Recovery Act, and I would suggest to them that they talk to the companies who, because of this plan, scrapped the idea of laying off employees and in fact decided to hire employees.  Tell that to the Americans who receive that unexpected call saying, come back to work.  Tell it to the Americans poised to benefit from critical investments that this plan makes in our long-term growth and prosperity.
    In the end, that's the only measure of progress, is whether or not the American people are seeing some progress in their own lives.  And so although we've seen some stabilizing in the financial markets and credit spreads have gone down, we're seeing a reduction in the fear that gripped the market just a few months ago, stock market is up a little bit -- all that stuff is not our ultimate goal.  Our ultimate goal is making sure that the average family out there -- mom working, dad working -- that they are able to pay their bills, feel some job security, make their mortgage payments; the small business owner there is starting to see customers coming back in, they can make payroll, they can even think about hiring a little bit more and expanding.  That's the measure, how ordinary families are helping to rebuild America once more.
    In the first 100 days, the Recovery Act provided immediate relief with a tax break for 95 percent of Americans, expanded unemployment insurance and food assistance programs, and launched more than 4,000 infrastructure improvement projects, which will continue to create jobs in the next 100 days. The Recovery Act has also provided record investments in new technologies, which will lay the foundation for the future economy.  We are now going in the right direction, and this summer we will go down that road even faster.
     
    The President listens to the Vice President(President Barack Obama listens as Vice President Joe Biden (left) presents the report on the Roadmap to Recovery as he meets with his Cabinet in the State Dining Room of the White House, Monday, June 8, 2009. Looking on at right are Attorney General Eric Holder and Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan. Official White House Photo by Pete Souza.)

  • 600,000 Jobs on the Road to Recovery

    Cammie Croft
    June 08, 2009
    11:00 AM EST

    It’s been a little over 100 days since the Recovery Act was signed by the President.  We’ve come a long way –- we’ve created or saved over 150,000 jobs, cut taxes for 95 percent of working families, and made funds available for over 4,000 transportation projects.  But while we’ve made progress, we still have a lot more work to do on this road to recovery.
    To accelerate our recovery efforts, the Vice President announced the Roadmap to Recovery, ten major projects that will keep more teachers in the classroom, put more cops on our streets, and give more people access to healthcare over the next 100 days.
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    As the Vice President says, "It’s going to be a busy summer!"  We’ll be revving up the recovery engine getting more dollars out the door and more money into the pockets of working families who need it most.  And most importantly, by the end of the summer, we’ll have created or saved another 600,000 American jobs.
    Along the way, we’ll be telling the stories of recovery in your community.  Share your photos, videos or comments about recovery projects happening in your neighborhood.  We’ll be highlighting some of your submissions here on the Recovery blog.
    While WhiteHouse.gov/Recovery will be the place where our story of Recovery is told, you can always go to Recovery.gov to make sure your recovery dollars are going where they should: jobs, jobs, jobs.

  • Recovery in Action: TN, CO, TX, LA, MS

    Kori Schulman
    Kori Schulman
    June 08, 2009
    10:50 AM EST

    Not too long after President Obama signed the Recovery Act into law, the stories started rolling in – stories about hard working folks that were able to keep their jobs and struggling communities that received funding to improve their schools and their roads. These are the kinds of stories we’ll be sharing with you on WhiteHouse.gov/Recovery – the Recovery Act in action in communities all across the country.
     
    Tennessee [Tennessean, 6/2/09]:
    "When Kenneth Wade lost her job making washing machine motors for General Electric in Murfreesboro, she knew a midlife career change was in order after 29 years on the assembly line. So, Wade, 52, has spent the last two years learning about computer programming to get an associate's degree in information technology — all at taxpayers' expense. Wade, whose job moved to India, was able to receive unemployment checks for two years and get a few other perks as part of a federal program that aids people whose employers shift their jobs overseas. And now, the federal Trade Adjustment Assistance program is being expanded as part of President Barack Obama's stimulus plan, a move that may double the annual cost of the federal program to $2 billion within five years. New rules cover a broader range of workers than simply those in the hard-hit manufacturing sector. Covered workers are able to qualify for unemployment checks for up to three years — or nearly twice as long as the typical worker who isn't affected by ‘off-shoring’ or the shift of jobs to foreign countries. Others get help paying health insurance costs. Also, starting in May, laid-off white-collar workers in service industries such as accounting, software development, auto-parts design and call center operations became eligible for the more generous benefits, a move that could add more workers to the rolls as unemployment in Tennessee flirts with the 10 percent level, a full percentage point above the U.S. rate."
    Colorado [Cherry Creek News, 6/2/09]:
    "Today, the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) started a three-mile asphalt resurfacing project on Colfax Avenue (US 40) between Kipling Street and Sheridan Boulevard. The $4.7 million project is funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) and is one of two Recovery Act projects starting this week in the Denver metro area, bringing the total to four in Denver. ‘This is the second transportation infrastructure stimulus project to begin in the Seventh Congressional District. This project will improve a heavily used section of Colfax Avenue while creating and saving jobs for APC, a company in my district. This legislation continues to invest in our aging infrastructure while providing economic opportunities for many Coloradans,’ stated U.S. Rep. Ed Perlmutter (CO-07). This segment of Colfax Avenue carries approximately 27,800 vehicles a day and is currently in poor condition. The rotomilling and asphalt paving will help extend the life of the pavement. In addition to paving, the project will repair and replace concrete curb and gutter and sidewalk."
    Texas, Mississippi, Louisiana [Reuters, 6/2/09]:
    "Willie Fort is a lucky man. Last month he came within a whisker of losing his construction job, but now he is off to Louisiana to work on a highway project that will employ him for at least two years. The 32-year-old father of four from Mississippi is among hundreds of construction workers who are either keeping their jobs or finding new employment as the U.S. government's record $787 billion package to jump-start the economy is slowly disbursed. His employer, Texas-based Austin Bridge and Road, bid for some of the stimulus-funded construction projects across the United States, saving Fort and several other employees from joining the country's growing ranks of unemployed. "We were getting ready to lay off about two dozen people on a project in Mississippi and as a result of having picked up one of the stimulus projects in Louisiana, we offered them all jobs," said Jim Andoga, the company's president. "We have not hired new people, but what this project did is to save 20 to 30 other jobs. The project is going to go into high gear in about three months and we are going to need to hire about 20 people more." Austin Bridge and Road has retained 12 to 15 white collar jobs. The company, which employs about 1,200 workers across the country, had been getting ready to lay off in the neighborhood of 50 to 60 white-collar and blue-collar workers, but these jobs were saved because of the stimulus, Andoga said. Rob Loch, owner of Loch Sand and Construction Company in Missouri, said he had rehired 15 laid-off workers after being awarded work to rebuild the interstate highway. "We anticipate in the next couple of weeks several more hires as well. Without this job, none of these people would have been called back," Loch told Reuters. AGCA's Simonson said about 85 percent of construction companies have indicated they were scrapping layoffs or adding new employees because of the stimulus funds."

     

  • D-Day

    Jesse Lee
    Jesse Lee
    June 06, 2009
    01:47 PM EST

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    The American Cemetery at Normandy(The American Cemetery in Colleville-sur-Mer, a tiny Normandy village which will welcome yet another US president when Barack Obama visits its clifftop graveyard, a symbol of America's sacrifice for Europe's freedom. Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)
    In Normandy this morning, the President spoke at the 65th Anniversary Ceremony:
    Lyndon Johnson once said that there are certain moments when "...history and fate meet at a single time in a single place to shape a turning point in man's unending search for freedom."  
    D-Day was such a moment.  One newspaper noted that "we have come to the hour for which we were born."  Had the Allies failed here, Hitler's occupation of this continent might have continued indefinitely.  Instead, victory here secured a foothold in France.  It opened a path to Berlin.  It made possible the achievements that followed the liberation of Europe:  the Marshall Plan, the NATO alliance, the shared prosperity and security that flowed from each.   
    It was unknowable then, but so much of the progress that would define the 20th century, on both sides of the Atlantic, came down to the battle for a slice of beach only six miles long and two miles wide.
    More particularly, it came down to the men who landed here -- those who now rest in this place for eternity, and those who are with us here today.  Perhaps more than any other reason, you, the veterans of that landing, are why we still remember what happened on D-Day.  You're why we keep coming back.
    For you remind us that in the end, human destiny is not determined by forces beyond our control.  You remind us that our future is not shaped by mere chance or circumstance.  Our history has always been the sum total of the choices made and the actions taken by each individual man and woman.  It has always been up to us.   
    You could have done what Hitler believed you would do when you arrived here.  In the face of a merciless assault from these cliffs, you could have idled the boats offshore.  Amid a barrage of tracer bullets that lit the night sky, you could have stayed in those planes.  You could have hid in the hedgerows or waited behind the seawall.  You could have done only what was necessary to ensure your own survival. 
    But that's not what you did.  That's not the story you told on D-Day.  Your story was written by men like Zane Schlemmer of the 82nd Airborne, who parachuted into a dark marsh, far from his objective and his men.  Lost and alone, he still managed to fight his way through the gunfire and help liberate the town in which he landed -- a town where a street now bears his name.   
    It's a story written by men like Anthony Ruggiero, an Army Ranger who saw half the men on his landing craft drown when it was hit by shellfire just a thousand yards off this beach.  He spent three hours in freezing water, and was one of only 90 Rangers to survive out of the 225 who were sent to scale the cliffs.
    And it's a story written by so many who are no longer with us, like Carlton Barrett.  Private Barrett was only supposed to serve as a guide for the 1st Infantry Division, but he instead became one of its heroes.  After wading ashore in neck-deep water, he returned to the water again and again and again to save his wounded and drowning comrades.  And under the heaviest possible enemy fire, he carried them to safety.  He carried them in his own arms. 
    The President an European leaders arrivePresident Barack Obama (L-R), Britain's Prince Charles, Britain's Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Canada's Prime Minister Stephen Harper and France's President Nicolas Sarkozy arrive at the Colleville-sur-Mer cemetery to attend a ceremony marking the 65th anniversary of the D-Day landings in Normandy June 6, 2009. Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)

    Carli Bruni, First Lady Michelle Obama and Charles Payne (Carli Bruni, First Lady Michelle Obama and Charles Payne listen to President Barack Obama speak during the ceremony marking the 65th anniversary of the Allied D-Day landings in Normandy at the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial in Colleville sur Mer in Western France, Saturday, June 6, 2009. Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)

    President Obama speaks at NormandyPresident Barack Obama speaks during the ceremony marking the 65th anniversary of the Allied D-Day landings in Normandy at the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial in Colleville sur Mer in Western France, Saturday, June 6, 2009. Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)

  • Weekly Address: President Obama Calls for Real Health Care Reform

    Jesse Lee
    Jesse Lee
    June 05, 2009
    11:59 PM EST

    The President makes clear that as Congress works through health care reform legislation, it must include fundamental changes that lower costs, ensure Americans have choices, and establish access to quality, affordable health care for all Americans. "But what we can’t welcome," the President says, "is reform that just invests more money in the status quo – reform that throws good money after bad habits."
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  • Ryan Howard Talks Healthy Diet With the White House Chef

    Jesse Lee
    Jesse Lee
    June 05, 2009
    04:57 PM EST

    Ryan Howard of the World Series Champion Philadelphia Phillies recently got a tour of the new White House garden and spoke with White House chef Sam Kass about the importance of a healthy diet.
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  • Buchenwald

    Jesse Lee
    Jesse Lee
    June 05, 2009
    01:42 PM EST

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    In Germany today, the President visited Dresden castle, held meetings and a press conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, and toured the Church of Our Lady. The event of greatest significance, however, was a visit with Chancellor Merkel and Elie Wiesel to Buchenwald Concentration Camp, where they were joined Bertrand Herz, a survivor of the camp. 
    The President and Chancellor Merkel tour Buchenwald Concentration Camp, joined by camp survivors Elie Wiesel and Bertrand Herz.(President Barack Obama places a flower at a memorial at Buchenwald Nazi concentration camp, June 5, 2009.  With the President are German chancellor Angela Merkel, Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel, and camp survivor Bertrand Herz.  Official White House Photo by Pete Souza.)
    Chancellor Merkel clearly had a heavy heart as she discussed the overwhelming regret felt in Germany, concluding her remarks with a focus on the tremendous sense of responsibility she and her country feel towards the future as well:
    Third, here in Buchenwald I would like to highlight an obligation placed on us Germans as a consequence of our past: to stand up for human rights, to stand up for rule of law, and for democracy. We shall fight against terror, extremism, and anti-Semitism. And in the awareness of our responsibility we shall strive for peace and freedom, together with our friends and partners in the United States and all over the world.
    The President spoke of his great uncle:
    I've known about this place since I was a boy, hearing stories about my great uncle, who was a very young man serving in World War II. He was part of the 89th Infantry Division, the first Americans to reach a concentration camp. They liberated Ohrdruf, one of Buchenwald's sub-camps.
    And I told this story, he returned from his service in a state of shock saying little and isolating himself for months on end from family and friends, alone with the painful memories that would not leave his head. And as we see -- as we saw some of the images here, it's understandable that someone who witnessed what had taken place here would be in a state of shock.
    My great uncle's commander, General Eisenhower, understood this impulse to silence. He had seen the piles of bodies and starving survivors and deplorable conditions that the American soldiers found when they arrived, and he knew that those who witnessed these things might be too stunned to speak about them or be able -- be unable to find the words to describe them; that they might be rendered mute in the way my great uncle had. And he knew that what had happened here was so unthinkable that after the bodies had been taken away, that perhaps no one would believe it.
    And that's why he ordered American troops and Germans from the nearby town to tour the camp. He invited congressmen and journalists to bear witness and ordered photographs and films to be made. And he insisted on viewing every corner of these camps so that -- and I quote -- he could "be in a position to give first-hand evidence of these things if ever in the future there develops a tendency to charge these allegations merely to propaganda."
    We are here today because we know this work is not yet finished. To this day, there are those who insist that the Holocaust never happened -- a denial of fact and truth that is baseless and ignorant and hateful. This place is the ultimate rebuke to such thoughts; a reminder of our duty to confront those who would tell lies about our history.
    Elie Wiesel spoke last, discussing hope and hopelessness, and addressing the President directly:
    I was so hopeful. Paradoxically, I was so hopeful then. Many of us were, although we had the right to give up on humanity, to give up on culture, to give up on education, to give up on the possibility of living one's life with dignity in a world that has no place for dignity.
    We rejected that possibility and we said, no, we must continue believing in a future, because the world has learned. But again, the world hasn't. Had the world learned, there would have been no Cambodia and no Rwanda and no Darfur and no Bosnia.
    Will the world ever learn? I think that is why Buchenwald is so important -- as important, of course, but differently as Auschwitz. It's important because here the large -- the big camp was a kind of international community. People came there from all horizons -- political, economic, culture. The first globalization essay, experiment, were made in Buchenwald. And all that was meant to diminish the humanity of human beings.
    You spoke of humanity, Mr. President. Though unto us, in those times, it was human to be inhuman. And now the world has learned, I hope. And of course this hope includes so many of what now would be your vision for the future, Mr. President. A sense of security for Israel, a sense of security for its neighbors, to bring peace in that place. The time must come. It's enough -- enough to go to cemeteries, enough to weep for oceans. It's enough. There must come a moment -- a moment of bringing people together.
    And therefore we say anyone who comes here should go back with that resolution. Memory must bring people together rather than set them apart. Memories here not to sow anger in our hearts, but on the contrary, a sense of solidarity that all those who need us. What else can we do except invoke that memory so that people everywhere who say the 21st century is a century of new beginnings, filled with promise and infinite hope, and at times profound gratitude to all those who believe in our task, which is to improve the human condition.
    A great man, Camus, wrote at the end of his marvelous novel, The Plague: "After all," he said, "after the tragedy, never the rest...there is more in the human being to celebrate than to denigrate." Even that can be found as truth -- painful as it is -- in Buchenwald.
    Thank you, Mr. President, for allowing me to come back to my father's grave, which is still in my heart.

  • Napolitano, Holder, and Kerlikowske Announcing Southwest Border Counternarcotics Strategy

    Jesse Lee
    Jesse Lee
    June 05, 2009
    11:49 AM EST

    At 12:15 EDT, 10:15 MDT, Secretary Napolitano will swear in members of the Homeland Security Advisory Council, then join U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and Office of National Drug Control Policy Director Gil Kerlikowske to announce the President’s National Southwest Border Counternarcotics Strategy.  Speaking to a group of local law enforcement, elected officials and the general public, their remarks will be streamed live to state and local intelligence fusion centers throughout the Southwest in conjunction with partners down in New Mexico.
    Watch both events yourself through their stream.
    UPDATE: The Department of Homeland Security issues the following release:
    Obama Administration Announces National Strategy to Reduce Drug Trafficking and Flow of Bulk Cash and Weapons Across Southwest Border
    (Albuquerque, N.M.)—Today, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, U.S. Department of Homeland Secretary Janet Napolitano, and Director of National Drug Control Policy Gil Kerlikowske released President Obama’s strategy to stem the flow of illegal drugs and their illicit proceeds across the Southwest border and reduce associated crime and violence in the region.
    The National Southwest Border Counternarcotics Strategy directs Federal agencies to increase coordination and information sharing with State and local law enforcement agencies, intensifies national efforts to interdict the southbound flow of weapons and bulk currency, and calls for continued close collaboration with the Government of Mexico in their efforts against the drug cartels. The strategy is an important component of the Administration’s national drug control policy and complements the Administration’s comprehensive efforts to respond to threats along the border.
    "Drug trafficking cartels spread violence and lawlessness throughout our border region and reach into all of our communities, large and small," said Attorney General Holder.  "By focusing on increased cooperation between the U.S. and Mexican governments as well as enhanced communication within U.S. law enforcement agencies, the National Southwest Border Counternarcotics Strategy we introduce today provides an effective way forward that will crack down on cartels and make our country safer."
    "The President’s counternarcotics strategy will play a critical role in our efforts to stop cross-border drug trafficking and violence," said Secretary Napolitano. "The plan calls for tougher inspections, more enforcement personnel and close coordination with our partners in Mexico as we work across Federal, State and local governments to achieve safety and security in our communities. Together, we will continue to reduce the flow of illegal drugs across the Southwest border and ensure that those who ignore our laws are prosecuted."
    "Under President Obama’s leadership we have designed a new plan to pull together the capabilities not only of Federal agencies, but also state, local, and tribal law enforcement officials," said Director Kerlikowske.  "This new plan, combined with the dedicated efforts of the Government of Mexico, creates a unique opportunity to make real headway on the drug threat.  At the same time, we are renewing our commitment to reduce the demand for drugs in the United States, which will support this effort.  The National Southwest Border Counternarcotics Strategy will improve the safety of communities on the border and throughout our Nation."
    National Southwest Border Counternarcotics Strategy Objectives
    • Enhance intelligence capabilities associated with the Southwest border.
    • Interdict drugs, drug proceeds, and associated instruments of violence at the ports of entry, between the ports of entry, and in the air and maritime domains along the Southwest border.
    • Ensure the prosecution of all significant drug trafficking, money laundering, bulk currency, and weapons smuggling/trafficking cases.
    • Disrupt and dismantle drug trafficking organizations.
    • Enhance counterdrug technologies for drug detection and interdiction along the Southwest border.
    • Enhance U.S.-Mexico cooperation regarding joint counterdrug efforts.
    The Director of National Drug Control Policy will oversee the implementation of the strategy, in coordination with the Department of Homeland Security, Office of Counternarcotics Enforcement, and the Department of Justice, Office of the Deputy Attorney General. The Director will also ensure that the strategy is coordinated with other border related efforts, including the Merida Initiative, led by the State Department, and the Department of Homeland Security’s Southwest border operations plan.
    The National Southwest Border Counternarcotics Strategy can be found at www.whitehousedrugpolicy.gov.

  • Streaming at 12:30: Health Care Stakeholder Discussion with Women’s Groups

    Jesse Lee
    Jesse Lee
    June 05, 2009
    10:30 AM EST

    Today the White House holds another Health Care Stakeholder Discussion, this time with women’s groups, and keeping with the tradition of transparency in these meetings that goes back to the original White House Forum on Health Reform, it will be streamed at our very own WhiteHouse.gov/live. 
    Watch the meeting at WhiteHouse.gov/live. [UPDATE: This event has concluded]
    There’s no question that the problems with the current health care system affect everybody, but as the recent HHS report demonstrated women in particular are struggling with rising health care costs and finding quality, affordable health care.  Today’s discussion will be hosted by White House Office of Health Reform Director Nancy-Ann DeParle, Domestic Policy Council Director Melody Barnes, and Office of Public Engagement Director Tina Tchen, who also joined HHS Secretary Sebelius at a roundtable with women small business owners a few weeks ago.
     
    Rebecca Adelman of the Department of Health and Human Services gives us a play-by-play:

    12:35: In the final minutes of the meeting, the discussion revolved around ways these stakeholder groups can help in the health reform effort. Many participants noted the strong enthusiasm for health care reform around the country, and the importance of a public education plan as details of the proposal are announced. As Tina Tchen closed the meeting by expressing her intention to work in cooperation with the stakeholder groups in the months ahead, several participants praised the administration for understanding that health care reform is not just a top down process, but a bottom up process.

    12:20: There is wide agreement about the need for health care reform among the diverse constituencies at the meeting. Sabrina Corlette, Director of Health Policy Programs at the National Partnership of Women and Families, notes that as a plan is crafted in Congress, it is crucially important that the plan's details are transparent and easily understandable so that women and their families can make informed choices about their health care options.

    12:05: The shortage.of nurses and primary care physicians is another issue about which many of the participants are expressing concern. Some women in America have health insurance, but no doctors, or they visit their OB-GYN as their primary care physician because of doctor shortages in many communities. 

    11:49:     The impressive group of stakeholders are delving quickly into the issues of health care quality and affordability. How do we address health care disparities? How do we achieve equity in health care? Many of the participants are emphasizing that women are required to pay more for health care coverage than men, excluding the cost of maternity coverage. Marcia Greenberger, Co-President of the National Women's Law Center, says that the issue of affordability cannot be underscored enough. 

    11:38:     Tina Tchen and Melody Barnes thank the stakeholders for joining the meeting. Both are expressing how much of a priority health care reform is for President Obama this year. Melody Barnes explains that as she traveled around the country for the Regional White House forums on health reform over the past three months, she heard stories that she brings with her to work every day. Neera Tanden, Counselor to HHS Secretary Sebelius, says that now is the moment when our work on health care reform over the last decade could come to fruition: "This is the moment where the rubber hits the road." 

    11:35: Nancy-Ann DeParle just opened the Women's Health Care Stakeholder meeting. This is a remarkable gathering of 30 women who are here to discuss how we can make the health care system work for women. Premiums in the private market for young women are often higher than they are for men, and 21 million women and girls went without health insurance in 2007. To set the scene: sitting beside Nancy-Ann at the table are Melody Barnes, Director of the Domestic Policy Council at the White House, Director of the Office of Public Engagement Tina Tchen, and HHS's Neera Tanden. Nancy-Ann emphasized in her opening remarks that this meeting is just one way we are hearing from women as we work to reform our health care system this year.