The Bush Administration disagrees with several recommendations of the Citizen’s Health Care Working Group, which was asked by Congress to determine what the American people want in health care, reports the Associated Press. In a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt wrote that President Bush agrees with the intent of the recommendations but not how to achieve them. After surveying 6,500 people, the group said that Americans wanted guaranteed healthcare coverage and felt that a national commission should determine the particular health benefits all citizens should receive. Leavitt disagreed, saying, “A nationally determined set of core health benefits would place important decision making about a person’s health care in the control of federal appointees, rather than allowing the consumer to choose the benefits that best meet their needs.” Leavitt also said the administration found fault with the group’s approach “based on mandates and government intervention rather than an approach emphasizing consumer choice and options.”
