Presidential News Conference on Healthcare

I listened closely to the President's news conference on Healthcare. It was quite a masterfully performance compared to his predecessor. Obama comes off as very "teacher" like when he is explaining his point of view.

I am happy he continues to mention a government option to compete with private healthcare insurance. He continues to bring up the poll tested, feel good answers answers like: "it won't add to the deficit","We will pay for it by getting ride of waste", and "everyone can used the doctor of their choice." And he wants to cover everyone.

There was no mention of mandated coverage for small businesses. We will have to wait and see on that one.

I also like how he, in the great political tradition, completely dodged the question about what the American people would have to give up. The answer is simple: either pay more or give up the gold-plated healthcare we currently have. And who knows, we might be healthier in the long run if healthcare is limited by price or policy. At least we won't be broke.

The preseident and many healthcare economists and cost analyst frequently reference the OECD's health care data set. You can view some of the OECD Healthcare Data Here