Obama says he's attending to healthcare

DENVER, Feb. 17 (UPI) -- The $787 billion American Reinvestment and Recovery Act will help prevent healthcare coverage loss and stabilize the system, the White House said Tuesday.

The legislation President Barack Obama signed into law Tuesday provides $87 billion for a temporary increase in the federal Medical Assistance percentage so that states won't have to cut eligibility for Medicaid and SCHIP participants because of budget shortfalls, protecting about 20 million people whose eligibility might otherwise be at risk, the White House said in a news release.

The measure also gives people who lose their jobs a 65 percent tax credit to keep their health insurance through COBRA, which the White House estimated would help provide coverage for 7 million Americans.

The ARRA also will modernize the healthcare system by spurring the computerization of medical records, reducing waste and lowering the risk of errors, the White House said.

The bill also allocates $1 billion for proven clinical preventive services and community-based prevention programs.

"Because we know that spiraling healthcare costs are crushing families and businesses alike, we are taking the most meaningful steps in years towards modernizing our healthcare system," Obama said during the bill-signing ceremony.

Combined with the enactment of a bill to extend a children's health insurance program "we have done more in 30 days to advance the cause of health reform than this country has done in a decade," he said.