Obama in Ohio, seeks to reassure seniors on health care
Toldeo Blade – STRONGSVILLE, Ohio – President Obama came to Ohio Monday to push insurance reform just as Congress is bearing down on a controversial plan to pass a health care bill and circumvent Republican opposition in the Senate.
Mr. Obama, speaking in a gym of the Ehrnfelt Recreation and Senior Center in this suburb south of Cleveland, highlighted the plight of Natoma Canfield, a Medina, Ohio, cancer survivor who came down with leukemia just two weeks ago after dropping an unaffordable health care plan in January.
House Democratic leaders have vowed to bring a Senate-passed health bill up for a vote this week, but it is not known whether House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has a majority to pass the bill. Congress is proposing to use the so-called reconciliation process that avoids the requirement of 60 votes in the Senate, but which Republicans claim should be reserved for budget measures.
