On March 30, 2010, President Obama signed into law the Health Care and Education Affordability Reconciliation Act. This ambitious omnibus bill was designed to 1) increase tax credits to the middle class 2) invest in community health centers 3) fight waste and fraud in the federal system, and 4) strengthen the American education system. The new law was projected to save the country $68 billion while making education more affordable for students because it allows them to get college loans without the intervention of private banks with high interest rates. The act also upgrades community and technical colleges so that students can learn skills to enter the workforce. The President made the following statement. “For a long time, our student loan system has worked for banks and financial institutions. Today, we’re finally making our student loan system work for students and our families. But we’re also doing something more. From the moment I was sworn into office, I’ve spoken about the urgent need for us to lay a new foundation for our economy and for our future. And two pillars of that foundation are health care and education, and each has long suffered from problems that we chose to kick down the road. |
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