Calling it "a moral duty," Sens. Max Baucus and Edward M. Kennedy, pledged to do their best to achieve healthcare reform this year.
In a letter Thursday to President Barack Obama, the two senators reiterated their commitment to moving health reform legislation and expressed confidence that the president would soon nominate a strong candidate to lead the Department of Health and Human Services and to partner with Congress in the effort.
Baucus, a Democrat from Montana and Kennedy, a Democrat from Massachusetts have been working together on plans to reform the healthcare system. Baucus heads the Senate Finance Committee, and Kennedy, a longtime proponent of healthcare reform and the use of healthcare information technology, is chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee.
In their letter, they said they were saddened by former Sen. Tom Daschle's decision to withdraw from the nomination process to head the Department of Health and Human Services. Daschle also would have served the dual role of White House healthcare chief, heading healthcare reform initiatives. He withdrew his name from consideration after it was revealed he failed to pay a portion of his taxes.
"We are writing to affirm our continuing commitment to enacting comprehensive health care reform this year, and to express our confidence that you will swiftly choose an exceptional qualified and dedicated alternate nominee for Secretary of Health and Human Services to assist in our efforts," the senators wrote. "As you have emphasized, we must act now. The ranks of the uninsured grow larger each day. The cost of health care to families, businesses and government are crippling and, although we spend more on health care than any other country, the quality of care provided by America's health care system is often uneven compared to other industrialized nations."
"We have a moral duty to ensure that every American can get quality health care. We must act to contain the growth of health care costs to ensure our economic stability; to help American businesses deal with the health care challenge; and to make sure that we are getting our money's worth," they continued. "Incremental efforts will no longer suffice and we cannot afford to wait any longer."