WASHINGTON Sen. Max Baucus on Monday pushed a new health care plan including an industry fee to help pay for covering the uninsured as President Barack Obama said insurance companies must share accountability for the troubled system.
The Finance Committee is the last best hope for a bipartisan bill since four of five congressional committees have produced partisan proposals. Baucus, D-Mont., has said he would move forward on his own if there's no agreement by Sept. 15.
Meanwhile, Obama said in a Labor Day speech in Cincinnati that a health insurance system should work as well for all Americans as it does for the insurance industry.
"They should be free to make a profit. But they also have to be fair. They also have to be accountable," the president said. "That's what we're talking about security and stability for folks who have health insurance, help for those who don't, coverage they need at a price they can afford, finally bringing costs under control that's the reform that's needed."
