VOA标准英语2009年-Obama's Choice to Head US Health Agency Vows Re

Former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, President-elect Barack Obama's nominee¹ to be Secretary of Health and Human Services, said if confirmed by the Senate he will work to make health care more affordable² for more Americans. Health care reform is a top domestic priority for the incoming Obama administration.
　

Senate Health, Education, Labor3 and Pensions Committee Chairman Edward Kennedy (L), Tom Daschle (C), and Sen. Christopher Dodd (R) on Capitol Hill, 08 Jan 2009

At a hearing before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, Tom Daschle acknowledged the challenges involved in reforming the U.S. health care system - as medical costs rise and the numbers of Americans without health insurance grow.

"The fact that health care premiums⁴ have doubled in the last eight years leave some families to make the awful choice between health insurance and rent or heat and food," he said.

Daschle - who is expected to be easily confirmed by the Senate - is author of the book, "Critical: What We Can Do About the Health Care Crisis.

Daschle said the health care crisis is affecting U.S. economic competitiveness - noting, for example, that the U.S. automaker General Motors spends more on health care than it does on steel.

"We have serious cost problems now. But every expert says, if we fail to address the issue of cost, that the situation will double just in the next 10 years alone," he said.

Mr. Daschle also vowed⁶ to restore confidence in federal agencies such as the Food and Drug Administration, which critics have said have been too close to industry under the Bush administration. Some lawmakers from both political parties have said the FDA has ignored or suppressed its own scientists' conclusions on safety issues relating to drugs and medical devices. Daschle took note.

"I want to reinstate a science-driven environment. I want to take ideology⁷, politics, as much as humanly possible, out of the process and leave the scientists to do their job," said Daschle.

Chairing the committee was Senator Ted⁵ Kennedy, his first hearing since undergoing brain cancer surgery last year.

"Tom Daschle understands the urgency and the challenge of health reform. He knows that Americans feel the heavy weight of rising costs," he said.

Health care has been a key issue for the Massachusetts Democrat⁸ throughout his long Senate career.
　

US Secretary of Labor-designate Hilda Solis , 19 Dec. 2008

Thursday's confirmation⁹ hearing is the first for an Obama cabinet nominee. On Friday, the same Senate committee will hold a hearing on the nomination¹⁰ of Congresswoman Hilda Solis, a California Democrat, to be labor secretary.

Next Tuesday, hearings are scheduled for five nominees¹¹, including Senator Hillary Clinton to be Mr. Obama's secretary of state.

　

1 nominee   

n.被提名者；被任命者；被推荐者

参考例句：

• His nominee for vice president was elected only after a second ballot.他提名的副总统在两轮投票后才当选。
• Mr.Francisco is standing as the official nominee for the post of District Secretary.弗朗西斯科先生是行政书记职位的正式提名人。

2 affordable   

adj.支付得起的，不太昂贵的

参考例句：

• The rent for the four-roomed house is affordable.四居室房屋的房租付得起。
• There are few affordable apartments in big cities.在大城市中没有几所公寓是便宜的。

3 labor   

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

参考例句：

• 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。

4 premiums   

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

参考例句：

• 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》

5 ted   

vt.翻晒，撒，撒开

参考例句：

• The invaders gut ted the village.侵略者把村中财物洗劫一空。
• She often teds the corn when it's sunny.天好的时候她就翻晒玉米。

6 vowed   

起誓，发誓（vow的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• He vowed quite solemnly that he would carry out his promise. 他非常庄严地发誓要实现他的诺言。
• I vowed to do more of the cooking myself. 我发誓自己要多动手做饭。

7 ideology   

n.意识形态，(政治或社会的)思想意识

参考例句：

• The ideology has great influence in the world.这种思想体系在世界上有很大的影响。
• The ideal is to strike a medium between ideology and inspiration.我的理想是在意识思想和灵感鼓动之间找到一个折衷。

8 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

9 confirmation   

n.证实，确认，批准

参考例句：

• We are waiting for confirmation of the news.我们正在等待证实那个消息。
• We need confirmation in writing before we can send your order out.给你们发送订购的货物之前，我们需要书面确认。

10 nomination   

n.提名，任命，提名权

参考例句：

• John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
• Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。

11 nominees   

n.被提名者，被任命者( nominee的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• She's one of the nominees. 她是被提名者之一。 来自超越目标英语 第2册
• A startling number of his nominees for senior positions have imploded. 他所提名的高级官员被否决的数目令人震惊。 来自互联网