Bush fixing US health care is ''urgent priority''

WASHINGTON, Feb 17 (Reuters) President George W Bush said today it was crucial to rein in US health care costs that are surging at twice the rate of wages and urged the Democratic-led Congress to work with him on the issue.

''I am confident that if we put politics aside, we can find practical ways to improve our private health care system,'' Bush said in his weekly radio address.

He called health care an ''urgent priority'' and said rising costs were putting a burden on families and businesses.

Some 47 million Americans -- nearly a sixth of the population -- do not have health insurance and there has been a growing movement among states such as California and Massachusetts to try to tackle the problem.

In a proposal that received a chilly response from many Democrats, Bush wants to use tax breaks to encourage people who lack health insurance to buy it on their own.

The plan would also impose taxes for the first time on some people with the most expensive employer-provided coverage. That has led some prominent Democrats such as New York Rep. Charles Rangel, who chairs the House of Representatives Ways and Means Committee, to criticize it as a tax hike on the middle class.

Bush said on radio he was encouraged by a letter sent to him earlier in the week by a bipartisan group of 10 senators offering to work with him on expanding health care coverage.

The senators, led by Oregon Democrat Ron Wyden, outlined several goals, including making sure all Americans have access to affordable health care and changing tax rules for health care that ''disproportionately favor the most affluent.'' Bush said he looked forward to hearing more.

WYDEN ALSO HAS A PLAN Wyden has introduced legislation for universal health coverage, but the Bush administration has touted its proposal as one that would reduce the number of uninsured without mandating health care for all.

''I'm glad the president is talking about health care, and I hope the White House will soon agree to the first item on our bipartisan letter -- you cannot fix American health care without quality, affordable health coverage for all,'' Wyden said in statement responding to Bush's radio speech.

Bush's plan would give all families a standard 15,000 dollar tax deduction for health care. But those with coverage valued above that level would have to pay taxes on the difference.

The president said his proposal would provide a ''level playing field'' for people who have health insurance, whether they buy it on their own or get it through their jobs.

But critics, including many labor unions, contend the plan would worsen the problem of the uninsured by eviscerating the system of employer-provided coverage.

To highlight his proposal, Bush plans to tour a hospital in Tennessee and meet at the White House with a panel of health care experts next week.

REUTERS AB RN2310