Obama's Health Care Summit

Looks like single-payer advocates finally got a seat at the table...Almost as if Obama heard my ranting about his early health care positions.

President Obama said on Thursday that though “special interests” and “industry lobbying” had blocked improvements in the health care system for decades, he vowed to end the stalemate this year and ensure that all Americans have access to affordable health care.

“Those who seek to block any reform at any cost will not prevail this time around,” Mr. Obama said in opening a White House conference, where he promised to reduce health costs and expand coverage.

The conference is drawing more than 150 participants, including members of Congress and leaders of labor unions, business groups, doctors, hospitals, insurance companies and consumer organizations.

In his opening remarks, Mr. Obama provided no new details of how he would extend coverage to the 46 million people who have no health insurance. Instead, he expressed his hope that a “transparent and inclusive” process would produce a bipartisan consensus, overcoming the objections of those who had a financial stake in the status quo.

Read more at NYTimes.com.