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Source: Monroe News Star

Date: 21-Dec-2008

Barack Obama's presidency could make life different for Americans in some everyday ways.

While it's debatable how much progress the 44th president can make on big picture policy issues ranging from his campaign promise to make the nation less dependent on foreign oil to his vow to make health care coverage nearly universal, there are other pledges that might be quickly enacted.

Here are 10 things that have a better chance than most.

1. Health insurance for more children. An estimated 4 million low-income children who have no health insurance might have coverage within a few months. If Congress enacts bipartisan legislation vetoed by President George W. Bush, Obama would sign it. The legislation gives priority to families living below the poverty line, but coverage also is offered to families just above it who don't have the extra money to pay insurance premiums.

2. Cheaper prescription drugs. Wal-Mart and Target stores have led the way in lowering the cost of generic drugs. Several Canadian mail-order drug companies might do the same for brand name prescriptions in coming months if Congress passes, and Obama signs into law, a measure that allows citizens to fill prescriptions outside the United States.

3. Broader unemployment benefits. Eligibility rules for unemployment benefits are likely to be broadened to cover many people who don't currently qualify and the number of weeks those benefits are offered could be extended up to a year. There were 10.3 million unemployed Americans in November and most economists expect the jobless rate will rise throughout 2009. Eligibility for job retraining also is likely to be broadened when Congress considers overhauling the Trade Adjustment Assistance program.

4. More college student loans - More universities, colleges and community colleges are likely to participate in the direct loan program run by the federal government if Congress passes legislation providing new incentives to opt out of the Federal Family Educational Loan Program operated by banks and Sallie Mae with federal guarantees.

5. Easier small business loans - People who want to start or expand a small business might find it easier to get a loan in the next federal fiscal year that begins in October. Obama wants to use existing Small Business Administration programs to provide low-interest, fixed-rate loans. Private lenders will find it easier to tap into the SBA loan guarantee program.

6. Simpler tax filing - Obama wants to emulate a California experiment in which people with simple income tax returns would be mailed a tax bill. This involves taxpayers whose information - such as wage income - already is collected by the government electronically. Taxpayers could reject the proposed return and do their own. But those who accept the suggested bill would no longer need to hire a tax preparer or buy tax return software.

7. Less time filling out medical forms - Obama supports funding for the technology to speed progress on electronic medical records. That means patients won't have to write down the same basic information about themselves each time they are referred by their family doctor to a spetadalafilt or sent someplace for a test. Progress will depend on hospitals and medical groups making the conversion.

8. More access to government data - Information about the personal wealth of high-level Obama administration appointees should be online within a year or two. Making that happen will be the job of the chief technology officer, a position Obama has said he'd create to carry out his promise of greater government transparency. That person also would prod government agencies to post their reports and audits online instead of keeping them in a binder in the basement.

9. Time off work - Rules allowing workers to take unpaid leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act are likely to be broadened to allow parents legal protection to take time off to attend to family responsibilities without fear of being fired. Some advocacy groups and labor unions also want to require employers to offer seven days of paid sick leave annually, but that's highly controversial and much less likely to be enacted.

10. Role model - Polls have found that black children from low-income families, particularly boys, often look up to professional athletes and entertainers as their models for success. Obama can provide a powerful influence on an entire generation of children to strive to follow in the footsteps of the first black president, who is a Harvard Law School graduate and an expert in constitutional law.