from the federal level and on the ground. at healthcare.gov or [speaking spanish] in is nformation right now available and it will be very state specific information as we move forward. october 1, we and on toll-free e is the call in number. about who information the navigators are in this area will begin to populate so people to go find an individual. i know that will continueso to play a role. that will continue to be a very key outreach opportunity starting october 1 is really a

six- month open romans periodf. so it goes from october 1- through march. the insurance would actually start in january. it is an opportunity for people really to get information and make some comparisons and make some choices that are good for themselves and their families. look at the information, ask questions, call a helper, go see somebody. we want to make sure that folks understand that there will be help available on the phone, in person, on the web. we have announced partnerships with libraries and a number of local libraries are stepping up to dedicate computers and have a trained resource librarian as well as materials. that will become available. pharmacies are training their employees so when someone comes to fill a prescription, they will understand who has insurance and who doesn't and will have an

roman information available. and a lot of healthcare providers will have similar information. blue cross blue shield has announced a partnership with walgreens. it will also have outreach and enrollment. you will see more and more visible presence as we move closer to october and hopefully, people can find a way to get questions answered that they have someone help them if they need that help, come together and really take advantage of this historic opportunity. but i would say the medicaid battle has to continue. we cannot forget that for the lowest income working pennsylvanians, if you don't expand medicaid you will still have -- the numbers i was given -- about 95,000 individuals here and over allia

about 200,000 individuals in pennsylvania who would not have any financial help at all. that would be a terrible tragedy as we implement this important law. i will give you the shorter one. i can't even remember the longer one. phila.health, go to the website and with october when coming up, we are gearing up to partner in many instances with the navigators and we will talk about some of our enhanced efforts to make sure people are getting the word out. -- i truly do not understand -- i have read some things. i have not been able to have any understanding as to why the state of pennsylvania is not expanding medicaid.

we hear about costs and the governors have figured out that it brings in money and it does not cost you any money so i don't know -- i truly don't know what this is about. i don't know if you can read between the tea leaves on this one. many other governors have figured out how to do it regardless of party. we are quite unique and special here in pennsylvania and but we are not that unique on this particular issue. we need to expand medicaid. >> just to put a fine point on what the mayor said, in the first five years of medicaid expansion, a $17 billion of federal funding would come to the state of pennsylvania to pay for what is now often uncompensated or undelivered care. those costs are being born by hospitals, health care providers to deliver health care and do not have reimbursements. $17 billion would be coming to the state to allow tax dollars to be spent elsewhere. one thing to say, on the federal

>>one thing to say, on the federal website now it is early information for people who will be eligible for the exchanges to help them but it. one thing icing we often forget is that someone whose income is 150% of the poverty level has a really tight budget. paying anything for health care, even though it will be a very small amount, it requires planning and budgeting. my experience is and home visiting groups that going out to deliver information now, are finding people now are very interested in learning about what will this cost so they can start budgeting, and people's interest in signing up for the exchange is very much tied to, how much will it cost me if i go to the exchange? please get the word out that

people can with no risk and no harm and no questions asked go to one of the web sites now and learn personally for themselves what the benefits are, and what the small but real costs are so they can get excited and ready, and then when we start real enrollment, we will have 100,000 prepared philadelphians who will all signed up. >> this concludes the panel and the event. i want to thank everyone for being here. we will be doing a lot of work. feel free to reach out to us if you have any questions. congreso.net. you will hear from us. thank you so much. [applause]

>> how big of a challenge has that been for you personally and the implementation in general? could you talk about how your own experience as a governor has and for negotiations on that?

>> i would say that even in states where we may not have a governor's full support, the mayors have been extraordinary. they are often on the frontlines of delivering health care services and picking up the cost for and reimbursed care. as i have found that every place i have gone, texas, georgia, florida, and other states with a governor may not be all-in, the mayors are all in and members of congress. faithleaders and health care providers are very enthusiastic. there is always a team on the ground that is very yser -- eager to move forward. this law will work better in states where everyone wants it to work. as it is more challenging when there is more -- misinformation to have to put out. tell people that the law will apply to you. there are people that get up in texas every day that do not

think the law will work in that state. getting through that information.as a former governor, i was on the receiving , i ran thea lot of hhs programi ran the medicaid ,program. i dealt with dual eligible. i can tell you i would have loved to have had the medicaid deal when i was a governor. 100% of the cost of nearly injured people, we would have taken that up and a heartbeat. also giving us flexibility. also, people understand there is not one cookie cutter approach. we are eager to work with states. i am a former recovering insurance commissioner, so i know the marketplace very well. i think those experiences have been enormously helpful being in >>e position i am right now.

this is coming up in 40 days in those 40 days, how will you raise awareness so people know the exchanges are aware -- are there for them? >> i think events like this. the secretary has done a tremendous job in bringing the message to the ground. people are really picking this up as an advocacy. we represent the community and working close with several partners to make sure the information is out. >> there are many mayors across the united states of america. i just finished a conference where we have a leadership meeting, and this was a huge topic of conversation for many of the mayor's. regardless of carter -- party. most of the time mayor's did not pay that much incentive to political parties. we have to make things happen. you want folks to get the health care and want them to be well and healthy.

there is a growing group of mayors across the united states of america who are actively engaged in the process, and i will do my part here. >> it really is now time for us to activate the local advocacy community. the local outreach community, -- theased communities. faith based communities. wonderful organizations like congreso this cannot be done from within washington. it never has been the idea that it would be done. we need partners on the ground. that is why the navigator branch rolled out last week. every community health center in the country has gone resources to hire education and enrollment people. a lot of hospitals are training their own staff. we of train that several thousands that will be part of the network. this is now translated into reaching out in communities where we know there are large numbers of uninsured. being available on the fun in-- on the phone, on

thethe web to answer questions and encouraging people to take advantage of the offer to did they have -- of the opportunity they have.for the first time to get health security for themselves and their family. >> [indiscernible] >> this was never appropriated. we certainly have gone back to congress a number of times for outreach and education funding. that budget has not been forthcoming. we're working with the resources we have, but knowing that makes partnerships -- they were always going to be hugely important, but they are all the more important because we're basically launching a new national product, and in the states were the federal government is running the market places, we are responsible for the outreach and enrollment. >> think about how insane that is. we have this law. congress has an -- has active.-- has acted.

we are about to sign people up, and some in congress think we should not inform people about health care that is available and ready for them and can improve their lives. that is mean-spirited. i do not understand -- if it wants to keep voting to repeal, that is their business. we have a lot and people are-- we have a law and people areabout to sign up. why you would not market the hell out of this is beyond my understanding. the secretary's line run the country and going to the cities. we will get the word out one way or another and get people signed up so they can have health care. >> each state is different with the demands you have been getting from around the country. >> i think clearly we cannot wait issues that are statutory. -- wave issues that are statutory.

we have to work with in the law. having said that, the law, whether it is medicaid expansion or other features, gives us flexibility. we have some states we're partnering with a round of markets. they are running parts of it and we are running parts of it at the federal level. we have the ability to try to incorporate features that are really important to the state. in the state of indiana, they have a healthy indiana program. they wanted that to be part of the new medicaid out reach and enrollment. we fashion that the program to look like that. in arkansas, they are using the assistance dollars and companies in the private exchange market to provide medicaid services. it is not that we have one strategy that every plan has to look exactly the same. we are eager to have states take a look at this. in pennsylvania there would be $17 billion of federal funding in the first five years coming into the state to help answer some of the lowest income

working pennsylvanian spirit that seems to me to be a very good deal. the return on investment analysis is an additional $3 billion in economic development would be produced by the funding. more staff at hospital, more people able to pay their bills and go to work every day. it is a win-win situation, and we hope that conversation stays alive and well in pennsylvania. thank you all.

[captioning performed by national captioning institute] >> hello, buffalo![captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2013] several live events to tell you about today here on c-span. president obama will be at a temple meeting in binghamton, new york at 12:45 p.m. eastern promoting his lands to make higher education more affordable. later in the day in pennsylvania, the president will be joined by scranton native,

vice president joe biden, at lackawanna college before 5:00 p.m. at 7:00 eastern, the road to the --te house 26 team coverage 2016 coverage will feature ted cruz at a fund-raising event hosted by the new hampshire republican party. tonight on the encore presentation of " first ladies," >> when she came to the white house, she was interested to see how it worked and she found it was dilapidated and dirty and sort of ominous and she tried to spruce it up. she went through the cabinets and found old pieces of china and then asked service if they could tell her if anybody remembers how old pieces. . she started the idea of trying to catalog and create a sense of what the chinas were. she had a plan of putting the splay cases in the state dining room but that never came to fruition.

theis credited with being initiator of the concept of a china presentation the white house. >> the encore presentation of " first ladies" is tonight at 8:00 on c-span. >> president obama was in buffalo new york today to unveil his plans for making college more affordable. he is proposing to use college rankings based on affordability performance to allocate federal aid. a 40 minute event which is part of a two-day trip that includes a stop in pennsylvania. [applause]buffalo! hello, bulls! well, it is good to be back in

well, it is good to be back in buffalo, good to be back in the north. i want to begin by making sure we all thank silvana for the wonderful introduction. give her a big round of applause.[applause] her mom and dad are here somewhere. where are they? i know they're pretty proud. there they are right there. give mom and dad a big round of applause.[applause] a number of other people i want to acknowledge here -- first of all, our secretary of education, arne duncan, who's doing a great job.[applause] one of the finest governors in the country, your governor, andrew cuomo, is here.[applause] your outstanding mayor, brian higgins, is here.

give him a big round of applause.[applause] >> congressman! >> what? >> the mayor is byron brown! >> byron brown. that's -- i'm sorry, byron. what i meant was -- your congressman, brian higgins, is here.[applause] your mayor, byron brown, is here.[applause] this is what happens when you get to be 52 years old. [laughter] when i was 51 everything was smooth.[laughter] but your congressman and your mayor are doing outstanding work. we just rode on the bus over from the airport, and they were telling me that buffalo is on the move. that was the story.[applause]

a couple other people i want to acknowledge -- suny chancellor nancy zimpher, is here, doing a great job.[applause] university president satish tripathi is here.[applause] and we've got all the students in the house. thank all the students for being [applause] here.[applause] now, today is a check-in day at the dorms. so i want to thank all the students for taking a few minutes from setting up your futons and -- your mini-fridges just to come out here.[laughter]

i hear that the last sitting president to speak here was millard fillmore.[laughter] [applause] and he was actually chancellor of the university at the same time -- which sounds fun, but i've got enough on my plate. [laughter] this is our first stop on a two- day road trip through new york and pennsylvania. and after this i head to syracuse -- yay, syracuse -- to [applause] speak with some high schoolers. tomorrow i'm going to visit suny binghamton and lackawanna college in scranton. but i wanted to start here at university at buffalo. and i wanted to do it for a couple reasons.[applause]

first, i know you're focused on the future. as i said, talking to the mayor, he was describing a new medical school -- and new opportunities for the high-tech jobs of tomorrow.[applause] so there's great work being done at this institution. i also know that everybody here must be fearless because the football team kicks off against number 2, ohio state, next weekend.[applause] good luck, guys. it's going to be a great experience. it's going to be a great experience. it could be an upset.[laughter] [applause] and third, and most importantly, i know that the young people here are committed to earning your degree, to helping this

university to make sure that every one of you "finishes in four" -- makes sure that you're prepared for whatever comes next. and that's what i want to talk about here today. over the last month, i've been visiting towns across the country, talking about -- yes, feel free to sit down. get comfortable.[laughter] >> we love you! >> thank you. i love you, too.[applause] over the last month i've been out there talking about what we need to do as a country to make sure that we've got a better bargain for the middle class and everybody who's working hard to get into the middle class -- a national strategy to make sure that everybody who works hard has a chance to succeed in this 21st century economy. now, i think all of us here know

that for the past four and a half years, we've been fighting back from a brutal recession that cost millions of americans their jobs and their homes and their savings. but what the recession also did was it showed that for too long we've seen an erosion of middle- class security. so, together, we saved the auto industry. together, we took on a broken health care system. we invested in new technologies. [applause] we started reversing our addiction to foreign oil. we changed a tax code that was tilted to far in favor of the wealthy at the expense of working families.[applause] and add it all up, today our businesses have created 7.3 million new jobs over the last 41 months. we now generate more renewable

energy than ever before. we sell more goods made in america to the rest of the world than ever. health care costs are growing at the slowest rate in 50 years. our deficits are falling at the fastest rate in 60 years. here in buffalo, the governor and the mayor were describing over a billion dollars in investment, riverfront being changed, construction booming -- signs of progress.[applause] so thanks to the grit and the resilience of the american people, we've cleared away the rubble from the financial crisis. we've started to lay the foundation for a stronger, more durable economic growth. but as any middle-class family will tell you, as folks here in buffalo will tell you, we're not where we need to be yet. because even before the crisis hit -- and it sounds like

buffalo knows something about this -- we were living through a decade where a few at the top were doing better and better, most families were working harder and harder just to get by. manufacturing was leaving, jobs moving overseas, losing our competitive edge. and it's a struggle for a lot of folks. so reversing this trend should be, must be, washington's highest priority. it's my highest priority. [applause] i've got to say it's not always washington's highest priority. because rather than keeping focus on a growing economy that creates good middle-class jobs, we've seen a faction of republicans in congress suggest that maybe america shouldn't pay

its bills that have already been run up, that we shut down government if they can't shut down obamacare. >> boo -- >> that won't grow our economy. that won't create jobs. that won't help our middle class. we can't afford in washington the usual circus of distractions and political posturing. we can't afford that right now. what we need is to build on the cornerstones of what it means to be middle class in america, focus on that -- a good job with good wages, a good education, a home of your own, affordable health care, a secure retirement.[applause] bread-and-butter, pocketbook issues that you care about every single day, that you're thinking about every single day.

and we've got to create more pathways into the middle class for folks who are willing to work for it. that's what's always made america great. it's not just how many billionaires we produce, but our ability to give everybody who works hard the chance to pursue their own measure of happiness. that's what america is all about.[applause] now, there aren't many things that are more important to that idea of economic mobility -- the idea that you can make it if you try -- than a good education. all the students here know that. that's why you're here. [applause] that's why your families have made big sacrifices -- because we understand that in the face of greater and greater global competition, in a knowledge- based economy, a great education is more important than ever. a higher education is the single

best investment you can make in your future. and i'm proud of all the students who are making that investment.[applause] and that's not just me saying it. look, right now, the unemployment rate for americans with at least a college degree is about one-third lower than the national average. the incomes of folks who have at least a college degree are more than twice those of americans without a high school diploma. so more than ever before, some form of higher education is the surest path into the middle class. but what i want to talk about today is what's become a barrier and a burden for too many american families, and that is the soaring cost of higher education.[applause]

this is something that everybody knows you need -- a college education. on the other hand, college has never been more expensive. over the past three decades, the average tuition at a public four-year college has gone up by more than 250% -- 250%. now, a typical family's income has only gone up 16%. so think about that -- tuition has gone up 250%, income gone up 16%. that's a big gap. now, it's true that a lot of universities have tried to provide financial aid and work- study programs. and so not every student -- in

fact, most students are probably not paying the sticker price of tuition. we understand that. but what we also understand is that if it's going up 250% and your incomes are only going up 16%, at some point, families are having to make up some of the difference, or students are having to make up some of the difference with debt. and meanwhile, over the past few years, states have been cutting back on their higher education budgets. new york has done better than a lot of states, but the fact is that we've been spending more money on prisons, less money on college. and meanwhile, not enough colleges have been working to figure out how do we control costs, how do we cut back on costs. so all this sticks it to students, sticks it to families,

but also, taxpayers end up paying a bigger price. the average student who borrows for college now graduates owing more than $26,000. some owe a lot more than that. and i've heard from a lot of these young people who are frustrated that they've done everything they're supposed to do -- got good grades in high school, applied to college, did well in school -- but now they come out, they've got this crushing debt that's crippling their sense of self-reliance and their dreams. it becomes hard to start a family and buy a home if you're servicing $1,000 worth of debt every month. it becomes harder to start a business if you are servicing $1,000 worth of debt every month, right?[applause]

and meanwhile, parents, you're having to make sacrifices, which means you may be dipping into savings that should be going to your retirement to pay for your son or daughter's -- or to help pay for your son or daughter's education. so at a time when a higher education has never been more important or more expensive, too many students are facing a choice that they should never have to make -- either they say no to college and pay the price for not getting a degree -- and that's a price that lasts a lifetime -- or you do what it takes to go to college, but then you run the risk that you won't be able to pay it off because you've got so much debt. now, that's a choice we shouldn't accept. and, by the way, that's a choice that previous generations didn't have to accept. this is a country that early on made a commitment to put a good education within the reach of all who are willing to work for

it. and we were ahead of the curve compared to other countries when it came to helping young people go to school.[applause] the folks in buffalo understand this. mayor brown was talking about the city of buffalo and the great work that is being done through the program called "say yes," to make sure that no child in buffalo has to miss out on a college education because they [applause]for it. but even though there's a great program in this city, in a lot of places that program doesn't exist. but a generation ago, two generations ago, we made a bigger commitment. this is the country that gave my grandfather the chance to go to college on the gi bill after he came back from world war ii. [applause] this is the country that helped

my mother get through school while raising two kids. [applause] michelle and i, we're only where we are today because scholarships and student loans gave us a shot at a great education. [applause] and we know a little bit about trying to pay back student loans, too, because we didn't come from a wealthy family. so we each graduated from college and law school with a mountain of debt. and even though we got good jobs, we barely finished paying it off just before i was elected to the u.s. senate. >> whew! >> right? i mean, i was in my 40's when we finished paying off our debt. and we should have been saving for malia and sasha by that time. but we were still paying off what we had gotten -- and we were luckier because most of the debt was from law school. our undergraduate debt was not

as great because tuition had not started shooting up as high. so the bottom line is this -- we've got a crisis in terms of college affordability and student debt. and over the past four years, what we've tried to do is to take some steps to make college more affordable. so we enacted historic reforms to the student loan system, so taxpayer dollars stop padding the pockets of big banks and instead help more kids afford college. [applause] because what was happening was the old system, the student loan programs were going through banks. they didn't have any risk because the federal government guaranteed the loans, but they were still taking billions of dollars out of the program. we said, well, let's just give the loans directly to the students and we can put more money to helping students. then we set up a consumer wa. and that consumer watchdog is already helping students and

families navigate the financial options that are out there to pay for college without getting ripped off by shady lenders. [applause] and we're providing more tools and resources for students and families to try to finance college. and if any of you are still trying to figure out how to finance college, check it out at studentaid.gov. studentaid.gov. then, we took action to cap loan repayments at 10% of monthly income for many borrowers who are trying to responsibly manage their federal student loan debt. [applause] so overall, we've made college more affordable for millions of students and families through tax credits and grants and student loans that go farther than they did before. and then, just a few weeks ago, democrats and republicans worked together to keep student loan rates from doubling. and that saves typical undergraduates more than $1,500 for this year's loans. [applause]

so that's all a good start, but it's not enough. the problem is, is that even if the federal government keeps on putting more and more money in the system, if the cost is going up by 250%, tax revenues aren't going up 250% -- and so some point, the government will run out of money, which means more and more costs are being loaded on to students and their families. the system's current trajectory is not sustainable. and what that means is state legislatures are going to have to step up. they can't just keep cutting support for public colleges and universities. that's just the truth. [applause] colleges are not going to be able to just keep on increasing tuition year after year, and then passing it on to students and families and taxpayers.

[applause] our economy can't afford the trillion dollars in outstanding student loan debt, much of which may not get repaid because students don't have the capacity to pay it. we can't price the middle class and everybody working to get into the middle class out of a college education. we're going to have to do things differently. we can't go about business as usual. because if we do, that will put our younger generation, our workers, our country at a competitive disadvantage for years. higher education is still the best ticket to upward mobility in america, and if we don't do something about keeping it within reach, it will create problems for economic mobility for generations to come. and that's not acceptable. [applause] so whether we're talking about a two-year program, a four-year program, a technical

certificate, bottom line is higher education cannot be a luxury. it's an economic imperative. every family in america should be able to afford to get it. so that's the problem. [applause] now, what are we going to do about it? today, i'm proposing major new reforms that will shake up the current system, create better incentives for colleges to do more with less, and deliver better value for students and their families. and some of these reforms will require action from congress, so we're going to have to work on that. some of these changes i can make on my own. we are going to have to -- we're [applause] we're going to be partnering with colleges to do more to keep costs down, and we're going to work with states to make higher education a higher priority in their budgets.

[applause] and one last thing -- we're going to have to ask more of students who are receiving federal aid, as well. and i've got to tell you ahead of time, these reforms won't be popular with everybody, especially those who are making out just fine under the current system. but my main concern is not with those institutions. my main concern is the students those institutions are there to serve -- because this country is only going to be as strong as our next generation. [applause] and i have confidence that our country's colleges and universities will step up -- just like chancellor zimpher and the folks at suny are trying to step up -- and lead the way to do the right thing for students. so let me be specific. my plan comes down to three main goals. first, we're going to start rating colleges not just by

which college is the most selective, not just by which college is the most expensive, not just by which college has the nicest facilities -- you can get all of that on the existing rating systems. what we want to do is rate them on who's offering the best value so students and taxpayers get a bigger bang for their buck. [applause] number two, we're going to jumpstart new competition between colleges -- not just on the field or on the court, but in terms of innovation that encourages affordability, and encourages student success, and doesn't sacrifice educational quality. that's going to be the second component of it. [applause] and the third is, we're going to make sure that if you have to take on debt to earn your college degree that you have ways to manage and afford it. so let me just talk about each of these briefly.

[applause] our first priority is aimed at providing better value for students -- making sure that families and taxpayers are getting what we pay for. today, i'm directing arne duncan, our secretary of education, to lead an effort to develop a new rating system for america's colleges before the 2015 college year. right now, private rankings like u.s. news and world report puts out each year their rankings, and it encourages a lot of colleges to focus on ways to -- how do we game the numbers, and it actually rewards them, in some cases, for raising costs. i think we should rate colleges based on opportunity. are they helping students from all kinds of backgrounds succeed and on outcomes, on their value to students and parents. [applause] so that means metrics like how

much debt does the average student leave with. how easy it is to pay off? how many students graduate on time? how well do those graduates do in the workforce? because the answers will help parents and students figure out how much value a college truly offers. there are schools out there who are terrific values. but there are also schools out there that have higher default rates than graduation rates. and taxpayers shouldn't be subsidizing students to go to schools where the kids aren't graduating. that doesn't do anybody any good. [applause] and our ratings will also measure how successful colleges are at enrolling and graduating students who are on pell grants. and it will be my firm principle that our ratings have to be carefully designed to increase, not decrease, the opportunities for higher education for

students who face economic or other disadvantages. [applause] so this is going to take a little time, but we think this can empower students and families to make good choices. and it will give any college the chance to show that it's making serious and consistent improvement. so a college may not be where it needs to be right now on value, but they'll have time to try to get better. and we want all the stakeholders in higher education -- students, parents, businesses, college administrators, professors -- to work with secretary duncan on this process. and over the next few months, he's going to host a series of public forums around the country to make sure we get these measures right. and then, over the next few years, we're going to work with congress to use those ratings to change how we allocate federal aid for colleges. we are going to deliver on a promise we made last year, which

is colleges that keep their tuition down and are providing high-quality education are the ones that are going to see their taxpayer funding go up. it is time to stop subsidizing schools that are not producing good results, and reward schools that deliver for american students and our future. [applause] and we're also going to encourage states to follow the same principle. right now, most states fund colleges based on how many students they enroll, not based on how well those students do or even if they graduate. now, some states are trying a better approach. you got tennessee, indiana, ohio they're offering more funding to colleges that do a better job of preparing students for

graduation and a job. michigan is rewarding schools that keep tuition increases low. so they're changing the incentive structure. and i'm challenging all states to come up with new and innovative ways to fund their colleges in a way that drives better results. now, for the young people here, [applause] i just want to say that just as we're expecting more from our schools that get funding from taxpayers, we're going to have to expect more from students who get subsidies and grants from taxpayers. so we're going to make sure students who receive federal financial aid complete their courses before receiving grants for the next semester. [applause] we'll make sure to build in

flexibility so we're not penalizing disadvantaged students, or students who are holding down jobs to pay for school. things happen. but the bottom line is we need to make sure that if you're getting financial aid you're doing your part to make progress towards a degree. and, by the way, that's good for you, too, because if you take out debt and you don't get that degree, you are not going to be able to pay off that debt and you'll be in a bind. [applause] all right, second goal -- we want to encourage more -- >> we love you, obama! >> thank you. the second thing we want to do is to encourage more colleges to embrace innovative new ways to prepare our students for a 21st century economy and maintain a high level of quality without breaking the bank. so let me talk about some

alternatives that are already out there. southern new hampshire university gives course credit based on how well students master the material, not just on how many hours they spend in the classroom. so the idea would be if you're learning the material faster, you can finish faster, which means you pay less and you save money. [applause] the university of wisconsin is getting ready to do the same thing. you've got central missouri university -- i went there, and they've partnered with local high schools and community colleges so that their students can show up at college and graduate in half the time because they're already starting to get college credits while they're in high school or while they're in a two-year college, so by the time they get to a four-year college they're saving money. [applause] universities like carnegie mellon, arizona state, they're starting to show that online learning can help students

master the same material in less time and often at lower cost. [applause] georgia tech, which is a national leader in computer science, just announced it will begin offering an online master's degree in computer science at a fraction of the cost of a traditional class, but it's just as rigorous and it's producing engineers who are just as good. so a lot of other schools are experimenting with these ideas to keep tuition down. they've got other ways to help students graduate in less time, at less cost, while still maintaining high quality. the point is it's possible. and it's time for more colleges to step up with even better ways to do it. and we're going to provide additional assistance to states and universities that are coming up with good ideas. third thing, even as we work to bring down costs for current and future students, we've got to

offer students who already have debt the chance to actually repay it. nobody wants to take on debt -- [applause] especially after what we've seen and families have gone through during this financial crisis. but taking on debt in order to earn a college education has always been viewed as something that will pay off over time. we've got to make sure, though, that it's manageable. as i said before, even with good jobs, it took michelle and me a long time to pay off our student loans -- while we should have been saving for malia and sasha's college educations, we were still paying off our own. so we know how important it is to make sure debt is manageable, so that it doesn't keep you from taking a job that you really care about, or getting married, or buying that first home. there are some folks who have been talking out there recently about whether the federal student loan program should make or cost the government money.

here's the bottom line -- government shouldn't see student loans as a way to make money. it should be a way to help students. [applause] so we need to ask ourselves, how much does a federal student loan cost students? how can we help students manage those costs better? our national mission is not to profit off student loans. our national mission must be to profit off having the best- educated workforce in the world. that should be our focus. [applause] a so, as i mentioned a little bit earlier, two years ago, i capped loan repayments at 10% of a student's post-college income. we called it pay-as-you-earn. and it, along with some other income-driven repayment plans, have helped more than 2.5

million students so far. but there are two obstacles that are preventing more students from taking advantage of it. one is that too many current and former students aren't eligible, which means we've got to get congress to open up the program for more students. and we're going to be pushing them to do that. the other obstacle is that a lot of students don't even know they're eligible for the program. so starting this year, we're going to launch a campaign to help more borrowers learn about their repayment options and we'll help more student borrowers enroll in pay-as-you- earn. so if you went to college, you took out debt, you want to be a teacher, and starting salary for a teacher is, let's say, $35,000, well, only 10% of that amount is what your loan repayment is. now, if you're making more money, you should be paying more back. but that way, everybody has a

chance to go to college, everybody has a chance to pursue their dreams. and that program is already in place. we want more students to take advantage of it. we're really going to be advertising it heavily. now, if we move forward on these three fronts -- increasing value, encouraging innovation, helping people responsibly manage their debt -- i guarantee you we will help more students afford college. we'll help more students graduate from college. we'll help more students get rid of that debt so they can a good start in their careers. [applause] but it's going to take a lot of hard work. the good news is, from what i hear, folks in buffalo know something about hard work. [applause] folks in america know something about hard work. and we've come a long way together these past four years. we're going to keep moving forward on this issue and on every other issue that's going to help make sure that we continue to have the strongest,

most thriving middle class in the world. we're going to keep pushing to build a better bargain for everybody in this country who works hard, and everybody who's trying to get into that middle class. [applause] and we're going to keep fighting to make sure that this remains a country where, if you work hard and study hard and are responsible, you are rewarded, so that no matter what you look like and where you come from, what your last name is, here in america you can make it if you try. thank you very much, everybody. god bless you. god bless america. [applause] ♪ [captioning performed by national captioning institute]

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>> president obama will be in binghamton, new york promoting

his plans to make college cost more affordal. also live at 5:00 p.m. in scranton, pennsylvania where the president will be joined by joe biden. 7:00eastern c-span road to the white house 2016 will cover remarks by senator ted cruz. we'll be joined by marilyn thompson, washington bureau chief for reuters on their story about members of congress who's trips overseas are paid by lobbyist. also marcia howard will focus on state funding if congress does not reach a budget deal. and economic reporter from "washington journal" we'll take your questions about the job

summary. which found the unemployment rate went up in 28 state and declined in eight states. "washington journal" is next. >> the president's plan to try to keep college more affordable is already getting some reaction from capitol hill. we might have to weigh in. some are in support and some are critical saying the new ranging system that the president put out is arbitrary. meantime college can cost up to $30,000 year on average now for some folks and the debt load students carrying can be the same amount. with that background is the cost of college worth it? that's the question for you this