Obama on health care reform: "I own it"

In an interview to air on Sunday, President Barack Obama suggested his job was at stake if the health reform package he hopes to sign into law fails to lower costs or cover more Americans.

“I have no interest in having a bill get passed that fails. That doesn't work," Obama told CBS' "60 Minutes" in an interview to air this weekend. "You know, I intend to be president for a while and once this bill passes, I own it. And if people look and say, ‘You know what? This hasn't reduced my costs. My premiums are still going up 25 percent, insurance companies are still jerking me around.’ I'm the one who's going to be held responsible. So I have every incentive to get this right.”

Obama's latest remarks are part of the White House's new offensive strategy to manage the health care debate. It began Wednesday, when the president outlined his goals for reform in a speech before a joint session of Congress, promising lawmakers and pundits who revert to "scare tactics" that he would "call you out."

Obama later unveiled new data on Saturday that indicated about half of all Americans would lack health insurance at some point over the next 10 years. The numbers, supplied by a 10-year Treasury Department study, further made the case for prompt and comprehensive health care reform, the president explained.

"In the United States of America, no one should have to worry that they’ll go without health insurance – not for one year, not for one month, not for one day," Obama said during this week's address. "And once I sign my health reform plan into law – they won’t."

The president will continue making the case for reform at rally in Minneapolis on Saturday afternoon. His full interview with "60 Minutes" will air on CBS this Sunday.