时间:2019-02-12 作者:英语课 分类:VOA标准英语2009年(十月)


英语课

By Elizabeth Lee
Washington
16 October 2009


 
Man is transported to hospital room 
The U.S. Senate Finance Committee has approved a sweeping 1 health care reform bill aimed at lowering insurance costs and expanding coverage 2 to more Americans. In the committee's vote, Senator Olympia Snow was the first Republican to vote in support of health care reform. But lawmakers are not the only ones involved in the health care debate. Lobbyists have been paying special attention to the issue. Public policy experts say groups representing the insurance, hospital and pharmaceutical 3 industries are powerful in shaping health care legislation. Groups representing consumers and labor 4 unions are also trying to influence the outcome.


In Washington, a win for President Obama as a health care bill was passed in the Senate Finance Committee...taking him one step closer to reforming health care in America. The latest bill will require most Americans to buy health insurance or face a penalty. Insurance Companies will no longer be able to turn down coverage to individuals with pre-existing conditions.


But the measure still faces stiff opposition 5. A new report by a health insurance industry group says the overhaul 6 will drive up costs on families' annual premiums 7 by as much as $4000 over the next decade.


 
Karen Ignagni, president of America's Health Insurance Plans
Karen Ignagni is president of the group, America's Health Insurance Plans. She says the bill passed in the Senate committee does not include enough penalties to force uninsured Americans to buy coverage.


"If you don't have everybody in the pool, you have a situation where people are encouraged to purchase only when they need it," Ignagni said.


Seven months ago, the insurance industry group pledged to support President Obama's plan.


"You have our commitment to play, to contribute, and to help pass health care reform this year," she said.


Georgetown University professor Judy Feder says lobbyists often change their views as bills in Congress evolve.


 
Judy Feder says lobbyists often change views as bills evolve in Congress
"Healthcare interest groups, like the insurance industry, the pharmaceutical industry, the hospital [industry,] the physicians have a tremendous stake in any changes we make in our health care system and in the current system," Feder said, "and they are always very watchful 8 about whether those changes are in their interest or in directions they believe will harm them."


Feder says special interests played a critical role in defeating health care reform when President Bill Clinton was in the White House. In the early 90s, an insurance industry group tried tried to scare Americans away from health care reform in one commercial.


"A lot of that had to do with the aggressive opposition of those interests along with some business interest, particularly small business who really attacked the plan," Feder noted 9.


More than a decade later, the voices in support of reform are louder. The pharmaceutical industry as well as the the largest association of doctors are standing 10 with President Obama, making it a more even fight.


 
Doctor examines patient
Public policy experts say putting pressure on lawmakers and creating fear among American citizens are tools lobbyists use to influence the final outcome on policies being debated in Congress.


And fear is being used by both sides of the issue.


"They frighten people because the American public is very uncertain about the consequences of a big reform," Ignagni said.


There is still a long way to go to health care reform. The House and Senate will have to merge 11 their bills. As to which groups get their way in this debate, that could depend on how public opinion evolves and whether lawmakers feel they're better off voting for or against reform.



adj.范围广大的,一扫无遗的
  • The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
  • Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗?
n.报导,保险范围,保险额,范围,覆盖
  • There's little coverage of foreign news in the newspaper.报纸上几乎没有国外新闻报道。
  • This is an insurance policy with extensive coverage.这是一项承保范围广泛的保险。
adj.药学的,药物的;药用的,药剂师的
  • She has donated money to establish a pharmaceutical laboratory.她捐款成立了一个药剂实验室。
  • We are engaged in a legal tussle with a large pharmaceutical company.我们正同一家大制药公司闹法律纠纷。
n.劳动,努力,工作,劳工;分娩;vi.劳动,努力,苦干;vt.详细分析;麻烦
  • We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
  • He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后,他已经疲惫不堪了。
n.反对,敌对
  • The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
  • The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。
v./n.大修,仔细检查
  • Master Worker Wang is responsible for the overhaul of this grinder.王师傅主修这台磨床。
  • It is generally appreciated that the rail network needs a complete overhaul.众所周知,铁路系统需要大检修。
n.费用( premium的名词复数 );保险费;额外费用;(商品定价、贷款利息等以外的)加价
  • He paid premiums on his life insurance last year. 他去年付了人寿保险费。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
  • Moves are afoot to increase car insurance premiums. 现正在酝酿提高汽车的保险费。 来自《简明英汉词典》
adj.注意的,警惕的
  • The children played under the watchful eye of their father.孩子们在父亲的小心照看下玩耍。
  • It is important that health organizations remain watchful.卫生组织保持警惕是极为重要的。
adj.著名的,知名的
  • The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
  • Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。
n.持续,地位;adj.永久的,不动的,直立的,不流动的
  • After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
  • They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。
v.(使)结合,(使)合并,(使)合为一体
  • I can merge my two small businesses into a large one.我可以将我的两家小商店合并为一家大商行。
  • The directors have decided to merge the two small firms together.董事们已决定把这两家小商号归并起来。
学英语单词
A and P
aether petrolei
aleurodaphis blumeae
ambisonics
antagonisticsubstance
Anuska
atomizing and spraying
basswood oil
be gone
beating orders
bilge course
boat painter
bobbio
bronchodilatations
cathode-ray magnetron
colobometra perspinosa
convergent lens
copy on write
cutter gummer
deltastar
Derkali
dollar control
enquirying mind
eradication
etablissement
extraditables
formamide (hconh2)
freezing front
gaudens
height of crawler
heptapodies
heuer
high-voltage insulation
impaired credit
in a manner similar to
inodiate
intermediate frequency generating set
internodal pathway
inverse discrete cosine transform
irrigated plot
kodas
Kyaungwa
Leti, Pulau
Little Coco I.
Lysionotus kwangsiensis
material inlet
maximally general conjunctive generalization
medevaced
Metallostroy
minimum detectable temperature difference
minimum risk equivariant (mre) estimator
mirror scale
monadelphus
monogamous animal
multilevel storage hierarchy
nayl
noncomplementary
notch impact test
open sand
opinionist
order dinoflagellatas
outside the law
overhead crane with slewing crab
overhead-type crane
parthanatos
peacock ore (bornite)
pediculicidal
perchloric acid
Petersen's theorem
petronian
phallo-
phonon wind
phytolectin
pilocarpine nitrate
Predgornoye
product segmentation
Ravius' process
reactor vessel instrumentation
reauthenticated
Reenstierma antiserum
refurnishing
Resag, Gunung
resultant amplitude
reversible generator motor
rexnord
sector of economy
Senica
SF (signal frequency)
ship distance
SIGCPR
slush treatment
tachyauxesis positive allometry
Tantabin
Tarim Basin
tongue joint
transmitiing initialize
typehigh
undertie
upalong
us magazine
winks at
yellow mercuric oxide