DEMOCRATS CALL ON BUSH TO OFFER REAL HEALTHCARE REFORM IN STATE OF THE UNION Reid, Kennedy, Schumer, Durbin, Stabenow say Bush’s Current Proposals Will Only Make a Bad Situation Worse

Washington, DC: Today, Senators Reid, Kennedy, Durbin, Schumer, and Stabenow sent President Bush the following letter urging him to reassess the health care proposals he plans on making on Tuesday and instead offer the American people a solution that will work. After five years of ignoring our nation's healthcare crisis, President Bush is expected to announce at the State of the Union proposals to encourage health savings accounts (HSAs). The Senators believe that HSAs benefit the wealthiest and healthiest Americans but leave ordinary working families with higher medical costs and more people uninsured. The expanded use of tax deductions for health care would also primarily benefit high-income houses. Below is a text of the letter signed by Senators Reid, Kennedy, Schumer, Durbin, and Stabenow and a fact sheet on Health Savings Accounts.