care they can receive. [applause] this year -- this year all new insurance plans will be required to offer free spreptive care and this year -- preventive care and this year young adults will be able to stay on their parents' policies until they are 26 years old. that happens this year. [applause] . .

[applause] >> win this exchange is up and running millions of people will get tax breaks to help them with coverage which represents the largest middle class tax cut in history. that is what this reform is about. [applause]

this legislation will also lower cost to families and businesses and for the federal government, reducing our deficit by over $1 trillion in the next two decades. it is paid for, it is fiscally responsible, and it will help lift the decades-long drag on our economy. that is what all of you worked together on and made happen. [applause] that our generation is able to succeed in passing this reform is a testament to the persistence and the character of the american people who championed this cause, who mobilized, who organized, who believe that the people love this country can change. it is also a testament to the historic leadership and uncommon courage of the men and women of the united states congress who have taken their lumps during

this difficult debate. >> yes, we did. [laughter] >> there are few tougher jobs in politics or government then leading one of our legislative chambers. these chambers of our men and women who come from different places and face different pressures and reach different conclusions about the same thing and feel deeply concerned for their constituents. by necessity, leaders have to speak to those concerns. it is not always tidy. it is almost never easy. perhaps, the greatest and most difficult challenge is to cobble together of these differences his sense of common interest and common purpose which requires advancing the dreams of all

people, especially in a country as large and diverse as ours. we're blessed by leaders in each chamber who not only to their jobs very well but who never lost sight of that larger mission. they did not play for the short term. the to not play to the polls or to politics. one of the best speakers the house of representatives has ever had, speaker nancy pelosi. [applause] one of the best majority leader's the senate has ever had, mr. harry reid. [applause]

all of the terrific committee chairs, all the members of congress who did what was difficult but did what was right and passed health care reform, this generation will thank you and the next generation of americans will thank you. this decree was also made possible by the painstaking work of this administration including our outstanding director of health and human services, kathleen sebelius. and one of the unsung heroes of

this effort, an extraordinary woman who led the reform effort from the white house, nancy-ann deparle. [applause] today, i am signing this reform bill into law on behalf of my mother, who argued with insurance company -- companies even as she battled cancer in her final days. i am signing it for brian smith who is here today. he runs a small business with five employees and trying to do the right thing to pay half the cost of coverage for his workers. this bill will help them for that coverage. i am signing it for 11-year-old

marcellus owens who is also here. [applause] marcellus -- marcellus -- marcellus lost his mom to an illness and she did notpc2 have insurance and could not afford the care she needed. in her memory, he has told her story across america so that no other children have to go through what his family went through. [applause] i am signing it for natoma canfield who had to give up insurance after her insurance company jacked up her premiums by over 40%. she gave up for insurance to

hold onto her house. she is lying in a hospital bed, as we speak, faced with an illness, praying that she can afford to get well without insurance. her family is here today because she cannot beat. . [applause] i am signing this bill for all the leaders who took up this cause through the generations, from teddy roosevelt to franklin roosevelt, from harry truman to lyndon johnson, from bill and hillary clinton to one of the deans who has been fighting this so long, john dingell. [applause]

to senator ted kennedy -- [applause] it is fitting that heads would go, vicki, is here. -- it is fitting that his widow, vicki is here. [applause] it is fitting that teddy's widow of the key is here and his niece caroline, his son patrick whose vote helped make this bill at reality. [applause]

i remember seeing ted walked through that door in a summit in this room one year ago, one of his last public appearances and it was hard for him to make it. he was confident that we would do the right thing. our presence here today is remarkable and improbable. with all the pundits and lobbyists and the game playing that passes for governing in washington, it has been easy at times to doubt our ability to do such a big thing, such a complicated thing. to wonder if there are limits to what we as a people can still achieve. it is easy to succumb to the sense of cynicism about what is possible in this country. to date we are affirming that

essential truth, the truth every generation is called to reaffirm for itself, that we are not a nation that scales back its aspirations. we are not a nation that falls prey to doubt. we do not fall prey to fear. we are not a nation that does what is easy. that is not who we are. that is not how we got here. we are a nation that faces its challenges and accept its responsibilities. we are a nation that does was hard, what is necessary, what is right. here in this country, we shape our own destiny. that is what we do. that is who we are. that is what makes us the united states of america. we have now just enshrined, as soon as i sign this bill, a core principle that everybody should have some basic security when it comes to their health. [applause] it is an extraordinary

achievement that has happened because of all of you and all the advocates all across the country. thank you, thank you, god bless you and may god bless the united states of america. [applause] thank you. all right, i would now like to call up to the state some of the members of congress who made this day possible and some of the americans who will benefit from these reforms. and we will sign this bill. [no audio]

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>> ladies and gentlemen, the president of united states. [applause] >> thank you all.

>> yes, he did. thank you all for being here, ladies and gentleman. please be seated. ladies and gentlemen, to state the obvious, this is truly an historic day. as all of you know, if history is not merely what is printed our textbooks. it does not begin or end with the stroke of a pen. history is made. history is made when men and women decide that there is a greater risk of accepting a situation we cannot bear them in stealing our spine and embracing the promise of change. history is made when eight leaders passion is matched with his principles and in the service of this country.

mr. president, your passion to make the lives of ordinary americans better has been on display and the principles that guide your public service beginning when you were a community organizer have led this nation to this moment. mr. president, 30 minutes ago, by the stroke of your pen, you began the process of making life better for tens of millions of americans today and forever more. [applause] for much too long, for much too long, americans have been denied with every human being is entitled to, decent affordable health care. starting with teddy roosevelt, straight through to you, mr. president, everyone else tried.

they were great men. they gave it their best but they came up short. you succeeded, mr. president, and we owe you for that. [applause] as i said before the president's time the health care bill, i quoted virgil the classic greek poet who said the greatest wealth is helalth, the greatest wealth is health. ladies and gentlemen, the president of united states, barack obama. [applause]

>> we want to do this twice because force -- there are some of the people we have to thank. as i look around the room, we have leaders of labor who helped to make this happen. we of ordinary folks who knocked on doors and made phone calls at the last minute to get this thing over the top. extraordinary members of my cabinet, we still have additional members of congress who helped lead the charge on this. my staff who i see are still here. [laughter] at any given moment, i thought they were going to quit. they just stuck it out with me. the main purpose here is to say thank you. thank you on behalf of the

american people. after a century of striving, after a year of debate, after an historic moment, health care reform is no longer and on that promise. it is on bulova land. it is of the block of the land. -- it is the block of the land. it is the law of the land. [applause] my signature is affixed to the bottom of the bill, it was your work, your commitment, your unyielding hope that made this victory possible. when the special interests deployed an army of lobbyists, an onslaught of negative energy to preserve the status quo, you did not give up.

you hit the phones and you took to the streets. you mobilized an organized. you turned up the pressure and you kept up the fight. when the opposition said this was not the right time, you did not want to wait another year or another decade or another generation for reform. you felt the fierce urgency of now. you met allies with troops, -- he met the lies with the truth.

you met with pope. -- you met it with hope. despite decades in which washington failed to tackle our toughest challenges, despite some much of what passes for politics these days, despite those who say progress is impossible, you may people believe that people who love this country can still change it for this victory is not mine. it is your victory. it is a victory for the united states of america. [applause] for two years on the campaign trail, and for the past year as we worked to reform our system of health insurance, it has been folks like you who have propelled this moment and kept us fixed on what was at stake in this fight.

rarely has a day gone by when i have not heard from somebody personally whether in a letter or e-mail or town hall who has reminded me of why it was so important not to give up, who reminded me of what we could not quit. i heard from brian smith who is here today and runs a small business with five employees. he is trying to do the right thing, paying for half of the cost of coverage for his workers. as premiums keep going up, he is worried he will have to stop offering health care for his people. but, because of this bill, he is now going to be getting tax credits that allow him to do what he knows is the right thing to do. that will be true for millions of employers all across america. [applause] i heard this story of 11-year-

old marcellus owens, who is looking sharp. [applause] he and i made sure to coordinate our ties. [laughter] it looks good. [laughter] marcellus is a yacht wonderful young man. he loves his mom. he lost his mom to illness. she did not have insurance and could not afford the care she needed. in her memory, marcellus, 11 years old has told her story across america so that no other children have to go through what is family has experienced. [applause] that is why we don't quit.

hi heard from folks likenatoma canfield boost rates went up. she might lose the house her parents built a bridge also knew that issue is burdened by these huge premiums, she could not pay the mortgage. she decided not to keeper health insurance. she is now lying in a hospital bed as we speak, faced with just such an illness and she is praying that she can somehow afford to get well. her sister connie is here today. [applause] it is because of that family that we could not quit. i met people like ashley who

worked for my campaign. i know she's around here somewhere. she is right in front. she doesn't like waving. [laughter] ashley decided to get involved with their campaign a couple of years ago because her own mother lost her job and with it for health insurance when she got sick. they had to file bankruptcy. ashley worked tirelessly, not to get me elected, but to solve a problem that millions of families across the family -- across the country are facing. each of these americans made their voices heard. because of them and so many others, so many of you, that real meaningful change is coming to the united states of america. [applause] it is because of you that we did not quit. it is because of you that congress did not quit. it is because of you that i did

not quit. it is because of you. [applause] let me tell you would change looks like those fighting to change are still out there, still making a lot of noise about what this reform means. i want the american people to understand it and look up for yourself. : our website, white house.gov

and look in terms of what reform will mean for you. or you can go to any reputable news website. [laughter] this bears repeating -- if you like your current insurance, you will keep your current insurance. no government takeover, nobody is changing what you got if you are happy with it. if you like your doctor, you will be able to keep your doctor. in fact, more people will keep their doctor because your coverage will be more secure and more stable than it was before i signed this legislation. and now that this legislation has passed, you don't have to take my word for it, you will be able to see it in your own lives. i heard one of the republican

leaders say that this would be armageddon. two months from now, six months from now, check it out and we will look around. [laughter] and we will say. [applause] you don't have to take my word for it. what works in our system will not change and many people are happy with the health care they've got and that will not change because of this legislation. here is what will change and here is what will change her away. this year, we will start offering tax credits to about 4 million small businesses to help them cover the cost of coverage. that means that folks like ryan will get a tax break immediately so they can better afford the coverage he has already provided for his employees. because of that tax break, he may decide to hire a couple of

more folks in his small business because of this legislation. this year, tens of thousands of uninsured americans with a pre- existing condition and parents with children who have a pre- existing condition, will finally be able to purchase the coverage they need. that means that folks like natoma can field will have access to affordable insurance. that will happen this year. [applause] this year, insurance companies will no longer be able to drop coverage when people get sick or place lifetime limits are restricted annual limits on the care they can receive. this year, all new insurance plans will be required to offer free preventive care and this year, young adults will be able to stay on our parents policies

until they are 26 years old. that all happens this year. [applause] this year, seniors who fall into coverage gap known as the dome of hall, will get some help -- the dome of whole will get help to pay for prescriptions. despite what some have said, these reforms will not cut your guaranteed benefits. let me repeat that -- they will not cut your guaranteed benefits. i would be wary of anybody who claim otherwise. these are repeat the reforms that take place right away. these reforms will not give the government more control over health care. they certainly will lead give the insurance companies more control over your health care. these reforms give you more control over door health care. that is only the beginning. [applause]

that is only the beginning. after more than a decade, we finally renewed the indian health care improvement act. and the other changes, the other changes will take several years to implement fully but that is because this is a difficult and complex issue and we want to get it right. one of these reforms is the creation of a health insurance exchange. this is one of the most important reforms. by the way, originally, i should point of, it was a republican idea. imagine that. [laughter] the idea is that right now, there are a lot of people out there buying health insurance on their own or small businesses buying it on their own. they are not part of a big pool so that have no leverage. they have no bargaining power with insurance companies.

what we will do now is create exchanges across the country were uninsured people, small businesses, they will be able to purchase affordable quality assurance. they will be part of a big pool. just like federal employees are part of a big pool. they will have the same choice of private health insurance that members of congress get for themselves. that will happen as a consequence of this legislation and when this exchange is up and running, [applause] not only because a better bargaining power will basie ♪ they see their premiums reduced, but millions of people who still cannot afford it will get tax breaks they can afford coverage and this represents the largest middle-class tax cut for health care in our history. [applause] it will mean that millions of people can get health care that do not have currently.

for those of us who fought so hard for these reforms and believed in them so deeply, i have to remind you that our job is not finished. we will have to see to it that these reforms are administered fairly and responsibly and this includes rooting out waste and fraud and abuse in the system. that is held will extend the life of medicare and bring down health-care costs for families and businesses an. we achieved the biggest reduction in our long term deficit since the balanced budget back to the 1990's. for all those folks out there who are talking about being fiscal hawks and did not do much when they were in power, let's just remind them that according to the congressional budget office, this represents over a $1 trillion deficit-reduction

that is being done in a smart way. for those who have been suspicious of reform, and there are many wonderful folks out there, with all the noise, have concerns. because of the misinformation that has marred this debate, i repeat, do not take my word for go to our website, white house. goc and you will see a common- sense approach that makes it work for you. that is what health reform is all about. as long erode as this has been, we all know our journey is far from over. there is still work to do to rebuild this economy. there is to work to do to spur

hiring. there is work to do to improve our schools and make sure every child has a decent education. there is work to do to reduce air in the -- our dependence on foreign oil. there's work to do to provide greater economic security to a middle class that has been struggling for a decade. this decree does not erase the many serious challenges we face as a nation. those challenges have been allowed to linger for years, even decades. we will not solve them all over night. as we tackle all these other challenges that we face, as we continue on this journey, we can take our next steps with new confidence, a new wind at our backs because we know it is still possible to do big things in america, because it is still possible to rise above the skepticism, to rise above the cynicism, to rise above the fear, because it is still possible to fulfill our duty to one another and future

generations. this has been a difficult two years. there will be difficult days ahead but let us always remember that the lesson of this day and history is that we as a people do not shrink from a challenge, we overcome it. we don't shrink from our responsibilities, we embrace it. we don't feel the future, weak shape the future. that is what we do. that is who we are. that is who we are in the united states of america, god bless you and god bless the united states of america. thank you. [applause]

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