Obama: 'We Will Do It This Year'

President Obama will take to the airwaves tonight in his fourth prime-time news conference with a familiar message: Health care reform is not only long overdue, it's a "central" part of the plan to keep the economy on track. In excerpts released in advance of tonight's 8pm EST address, Obama vows that "we will pass reform that lowers cost, promotes choice, and provides coverage that every American can count on," reports Talking Points Memo. "And we will do it this year."

Without action to rein in costs, "we will not be able to control our deficit," says Obama, who again promises that reform will not add to the nation's red ink. He also warns that "premiums and out-of-pocket costs will continue to skyrocket" and that "14,000 Americans will continue to lose their health insurance every single day" unless Congress acts. The nation "cannot afford to wait for reform any longer." (More President Obama stories.)