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Obama, in Raleigh, says vote on health-care plan not likely until fall

By James Romoser | Journal Reporter

Published: July 29, 2009

Raleigh - President Obama said in Raleigh today that Congress would likely not vote on a plan for health care reform until this fall.

For most of the year, Obama has been pushing both chambers of Congress to hold floor votes on health care legislation before the August recess. But moderate "Blue Dog" Democrats, including several key congressmen from North Carolina, have succeeded in holding up the legislation because of concerns about the financial costs of the plan.

At a town hall meeting at a high school near downtown Raleigh today, Obama acknowledged that votes would almost certainly have to wait. He was responding to an audience member's question about the timeline of health care reform.

"We won't even vote on it probably until the end of September, maybe October. We're just trying to get the bills out of committee," he said.

"We did give them a deadline," Obama added. "And, sort of, we missed that deadline."

In a 30-minute speech, Obama laid out his case for why health insurance reform is critical to the nation's economy. He repeated his pledges that he won't sign a health reform bill unless it reigns in the inflation in health care costs and doesn't add to the federal deficit.

The president sought to fight back against his opponents, who he said are using scare tactics and trying to spread a cynical message that government programs can never be effective.

"We've got to overcome the understandable skepticism that Washington somehow can never get anything right. That's the biggest challenge we've got to confront right now," Obama said.

Many of those skeptics could be seen gathered on sidewalks outside Obama's town hall, holding signs with slogans like "Government is the problem!" and "Stop Spending, Stop Socialism."

Republicans oppose Obama's plan, saying it would cost too much and would lead to too much government interference in medical decision-making.