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President Barack Obama has apologized to Americans whose health insurance plans have been cancelled as a result of his signature health law.

In recent weeks, insurance companies have reportedly cancelled policies that do not meet strict requirements under Barack Obama’s 2010 healthcare overhaul.

“We didn’t do a good enough job in terms of how we crafted the law,” the president said in an interview with NBC News.

But a senior Republican labeled his remarks a “half-hearted apology”.

During his campaign for the passage of the Affordable Care Act, also known as ObamaCare, Barack Obama repeatedly insisted that people who liked their health insurance policies would be able to keep them.

But it now appears that millions of people who purchased plans on the private individual market rather than receive health coverage from the government or their employers may in fact have to buy new, possibly more expensive plans.

“I am sorry that they are finding themselves in this situation based on assurances they got from me,” Barack Obama said.

“We’ve got to work hard to make sure that they know we hear them, and we are going to do everything we can to deal with folks who find themselves in a tough position as a consequence of this.”

Barack Obama has apologized to Americans whose health insurance plans have been cancelled as a result of his signature health law

Barack Obama has apologized to Americans whose health insurance plans have been cancelled as a result of his signature health law

The health law’s supporters have said most people thrown off their health plans will be able to buy better insurance policies at better prices, especially those eligible for subsidies provided under the health law.

The opposition Republicans, who have fought the president’s healthcare law at every turn, have seized on the reports of the policy cancellations. Some have gone so far as to accuse Barack Obama of lying to the public during his campaign for the law’s passage.

Even some of Barack Obama’s fellow Democrats have suggested the administration delay parts of the law’s implementation, including a requirement that people carry health insurance or face a penalty.

Barack Obama’s remarks on Thursday came after weeks of serious problems with healthcare.gov, a website established under the law that is akin to a shopping site for private health insurance plans.

Among other issues, it has been plagued by long wait times to sign up for an insurance plan and serious flaws on the back end where customers’ data are processed and sent to insurance companies.

Barack Obama has vowed the website will be repaired.

The Republican response to Barack Obama’s remarks was swift, with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell saying “if the president is truly sorry for breaking his promises to the American people, he’ll do more than just issue a half-hearted apology on TV”.

Thursday’s television interview was the latest effort by Barack Obama to win public support for the embattled healthcare law.

On Wednesday Barack Obama travelled into the heart of Republican territory to seek cross-party support for the measure.

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Protests continued today in capital Bucharest and other cities in Romania, the third consecutive day of street riots in the country.

Demonstrations spread in Bucharest from downtown University Square to other areas in the center of the city. Riot police increased in number after a group of football supporters joined the over 1,000 people who were already in the University Square. The supporters, nicknamed “ultras”, threw flamed bottles, crackers, stones and even trash bins towards the gendarmes. Most of protesters covered their faces to avoid being recognized and fined by the authorities.

Protests continued today in capital Bucharest and other cities in Romania, the third consecutive day of street riots in the country

Protests continued today in capital Bucharest and other cities in Romania, the third consecutive day of street riots in the country

 

Protesters in Bucharest and across Romania ask for the dismissal of Romanian president Traian Basescu, of the Government led by Emil Boc, as well as for salary and pensions raise.

Some were even protesting against the Rosia Montana gold mine project.

Thousands of Romanians took their anger to the streets over the week-end, with protests ending in clashes with the Police downtown Bucharest. Riot police and protesters alike were injured. Over 40 people were taken into the Police custody on Saturday evening, after a heated evening in the University Square downtown Bucharest. Riot police managed to disperse protesters by firing tear gas and increasing troops on the street on Saturday evening in Bucharest.

These were the most heated protests in Romania so far, after the country applied some harsh measures, such as a 25% public salary cut and an increase in VAT. The recent events show the decreasing popularity of president Traian Basescu and the Democratic Liberal Party (PDL) Government led by Emil Boc.

The spark for the recent protests in the Romanian capital was the proposed health law, which, if enforced, would have brought changes to the country’s emergency health system.

Sub-secretary of state Raed Arafat’s resignation from the Health Ministry over the planned changes to the system was the pretext that send Romanians protesting.

Initially started mid-last week as support demonstrations for Dr. Raed Arafat, the protests soon turned against the Romanian president Traian Basescu, asking for his and the Government’s dismissal, and for early elections. Hundreds of people in other Romanian cities, as Iasi, Cluj, Timisoara joined the protests.

President Traian Basescu was publicly for the changes in the health law and quarreled on TV with Dr. Raed Arafat. On Friday evening however, he publicly asked the Government to withdraw the proposal, saying it saw the public protest against it.

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