President Barack Obama has defended his plans for health reform in a news conference broadcast live in the US.

奥巴马总统在一场全国性的新闻发布会中为自己的医疗改革辩护。

Mr Obama pledged to push through a reform package by the end of the year that would reduce health costs, increase choice and widen coverage¹.

Congress is currently debating various proposals, and lawmakers are struggling to reach agreement.

Mr Obama said he now saw "broad agreement" on passing a reform, but a few issues still needed working out.

The president has made passing a health care reform bill the top priority of his first year in the White House.

In the past 10 days, he has embarked²（着手，从事） on an aggressive push to promote his plans, as members of Congress argue over the details of reform.

The BBC's Jane O'Brien in Washington says this is the first big test of Mr Obama's political strength and a measure of how far he is prepared to bend to achieve his agenda.

Any failure will be seen by his opponents as a major personal defeat, she says.

'Not a game'

In his opening remarks at Wednesday's press conference, the president said Americans were looking to Congress for leadership.

"This debate is not a game," he said. "This isn't about me - I have great health insurance and so does every member of Congress."

Rather, he said, it was about ordinary Americans who had been forced to "shoulder the burden of a problem that Washington has failed to solve for decades."

"We will pass reform that lowers cost, promotes choice and provides coverage that every American can count on," he said.

"And we will do it this year."

"I'm rushed because I get letters every day from families that are being clobbered³（打垮） by health care costs, and they ask me can you help," Mr Obama said.

The president said he would not rule out any ideas proposed in Congress, except any proposal that is "primarily funded through taxing middle class families".

He also said reshaping America's health care system was crucial（关键的，决定性的） to helping⁴ the broader economy, and that any reform would reduce rather than add to the US deficit（赤字，逆差）.

Talking about the general economy, Mr Obama said the US had been "on the verge⁵ of a complete financial meltdown", but there was now "stabilisation".

"We've stepped away from the brink," he said, adding that "things would be even worse" without the government's financial bailout（跳伞） package.