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Finalizing two major pieces of his agenda,
President Barack Obama on Tuesday sealed his health care overhaul
and made the government the primary lender to students by cutting
banks out of the process.


      Both domestic priorities came in one bill, pushed through by
Democrats in the House and Senate and signed into law by a beaming
president.


      The new law makes a series of changes to the massive health
insurance reform bill that he signed into law with even greater
fanfare last week. 


Those fixes included removing some specials
deals that had angered the public and providing more money for
poorer and middle-income individuals and families to help them buy
health insurance.


      But during an appearance at a community college in suburban
Virginia, he emphasized the overshadowed part of the bill:
education.


      In this final piece of health reform, Democrats added in a
restructuring of the way the government handles loans affecting
millions of students.


      The law strips banks of their role as middlemen in federal
student loans and puts the government in charge. The president said
that change would save more than $60 billion over the next 10
years, which in turn would be used to boost Pell Grants for
students and reinvest in community colleges.


      "I didn't stand with the banks and the financial industries in
this fight - that's not why I came to Washington - and neither did
any of the members of Congress who are here today," Obama said to
a supportive crowd at Northern Virginia Community College. "We
stood with you. We stood with America's students."


      Private lenders still will make student loans that are not
backed by the government, and they still will have contracts to
service some federal loans. But the change reflected in the new law
represents a significant loss in what has been a $70 billion
business for the banking industry.


      Among many other features, the new law is expected to make it
easier for some college graduates to repay loans.


      The government will essentially guarantee that workers in
low-paying jobs will be able to reduce their payments. Current law
caps monthly payments at 15 percent of these workers' incomes; the
new law will lower the cap to 10 percent.


      About half of undergraduates receive federal student aid and
about 8.5 million students are going to college with the help of
Pell Grants.


      Obama was effusive in his praise for the lawmakers who stood by
him on the health care and education legislation. Many of them face
tough sells in their home districts over the massive health care
legislation, a complex mix of crackdowns on the insurance industry,
coverage expansions and insurance mandates.


      He was introduced by Dr. Jill Biden, the vice president's wife,
who teaches English there.

Gallery

A look at the health care overhaul bill

Congress completes overhaul of health care

Bill would cut banks out of the student lending equation

College loan overhaul passes along with health care bill

President Barack Obama has signed a law that
finalizes his health care overhaul and makes the government the
issuer of all federal college loans.

Obama signs law finalizing health care, student loan changes

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