Expectations from US President's State of the Union address

US President George W Bush is scheduled to give his State of the Union speech on January 31, and analysts at Lehman Brothers expect this to have a major focus on covering the health costs of the uninsured Americans. They see him as majoring on expanding Health Savings Accounts, portability of health insurance and additional tax breaks for those without employer-sponsored care, as well as medical malpractice and health care information technology.

While speculation has continued that Pres Bush will propose election year health care cut, they note that Acting Majority Leader Roy Blunt, in a Wall Street Journal editorial, has called for budget reconciliation to be an annual event. The analysts believe that, if Congressman Blunt were to win majority leader, this would put momentum behind reconciliation and volatility in health services.