(Host) Governor Jim Douglas says he’s come to the conclusion that health care is key to economic development.
Douglas is chairman of the National Governors Association and has made health care his top priority for the year.
Douglas says when he was first elected he made job creation his focus. But he says he came to believe that the economy can’t be strong if health care spending isn’t controlled.
(Douglas) "It became clear to me that as a way of getting to job creation strategy implementation health care has to be a key part of it because it’s a sixth of our economy, it’s 25 or 30 percent of our state budget. If we’re going to make this a competitive state, if we’re going to make it attractive for employers to create those jobs, we have to get health care costs under control."
(Host) Douglas says he’s keeping close track of the health care debate in Washington on behalf of the governors.
He says the governors will probably have a big role in implementing whatever changes Congress adopts.