Obama Seeks Votes on Health-Care Reform

U.S. President Barack Obama is heading to the Capitol on Saturday for a final, personal appeal to Congressional Democrats for support in what he calls a "fateful debate" about the future of health care in the United States.

Republicans, however, are maintaining their staunch opposition to the bill. Speaking for the party's Saturday response address, House Republican leader John Boehner said the bill would mean higher taxes and too much government intervention in health-care decisions.

Nevertheless, Mr. Obama's administration is pressing hard for public support to persuade Congress to approve the legislation.

At a rally outside Washington on Friday, Mr. Obama said a "yes" vote on health-care reform would be a victory for the American people.

Privately, Mr. Obama has been lobbying to gain the votes of House members who say they are undecided about the sweeping health-care reform bill.

The U.S. Senate passed a health-care bill last year, and the House is to vote Sunday on that bill.

The White House and Democratic Party leaders in the House predict they will have the votes of at least 216 representatives - a simple majority of the lower house of Congress - needed to pass the legislation.

Mr. Obama was to have left on a trip to Indonesia and Australia Thursday, but he postponed it until June, so he can be in Washington for the vote and subsequent Congressional action.

On Thursday, the independent Congressional Budget Office said the health care plan will cost $940 billion in its first 10 years. The CBO said the bill will reduce the federal deficit by $130 billion during that same decade, and in the next 10 years will cut more than $1 trillion from the national debt.

The proposed legislation would provide health-care insurance to more than 30 million Americans who do not have it, and would ban certain insurance company practices, such as denying benefits for pre-existing medical conditions or refusing to continue providing coverage for some individuals. It would also require that most Americans purchase insurance or face penalties.