Health Secretary Nominee says “Action is not a choice. It is a necessity.”

By Kayleigh Harvey – Talk Radio News Service

“We face an obesity epidemic that threatens to make our children the first generation of American children to face life expectancy shorter than our own….We now must guard against man-made as well as natural disasters, as disease has become a weapon. Perhaps most importantly, we face a health system that burdens families, businesses and government budgets with sky-rocketing costs. Action is not a choice, it is necessity,” said Governor Kathleen Sebelius at her nomination hearing for Secretary of Health and Human Services in the Senate today.

Senator Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.), was back chairing his first Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee hearing since suffering from cancer earlier last month and looked in high spirits, smiling throughout the hearing. Kennedy said, “Over the past ten months I’ve seen our health care system up close. I’ve benefited from the best of medicine, but we have too many uninsured Americans. We have sickness care and not health care.”

In less high spirits appeared to be Senator John McCain (R-Ariz.), who became frustrated and irritated with the answers provided on his questions regarding employer provided health insurance, McCain said, “these are pretty straightforward questions, Governor, I would think.”

During their exchange, Governor Sebelius told the committee in response to Senator McCain’s questions that she favored public insurance in addition to private insurance.

McCain asked whether she supported a government run health insurance plan, to which Governor Sebelius responded, “If you are talking about insuring all 15 million Americans…if the question is do I support a public option side-by-side with private insurers in a health insurance exchange, yes I do.”

Testifying in support of Governor Sebelius was Former Senator Bob Dole, who told the Committee she would work well with both parties. He said, “people understand that when the D’s and R’s work together it’s going to be successful.”

In closing, Governor Sebelius said, “we have by far the most expensive health system in the world. We spend 50 per cent more per person than the next most costly nation. Americans spend more on healthcare than housing or food. General Motors spends more on healthcare than steel.”