House Ways and Means Committee Chair Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) is predicting presidential hopeful Barack Obama (D-Ill.) will quickly move first to address health care reform if elected. Rangel believes expanding access and focusing on quality will be more popular and feasible than trying to tackle tax reform immediately. [Wall Street Journal's Health Blog puts their spin on it here.]

Whether it’s Obama or McCain in the White House next January, the new the prez will have to take a hard look at health care. Just last week, the Commonwealth Fund reported that 41 percent of working-age Americans — or 72 million people — have trouble paying their medical bills or have medical bill debt. Seven million seniors are also struggling, for a whopping total of 79 million adult Americans weighed down by medical debt.

Times are tough for the nation’s employers, too. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) reported recently that employer premiums are up more than 100 percent since 1996, with the average annual premium for a family rising from $4,954 in 1996 to $11,381 in 2006. And they are expected to rise over 10% on average for employers in 2009. Ouch.

Whoever lands in the Oval Office, the ACC is positioning to help shape systemic reform.