US Presidency
1978

If successful, we should expect lower inflation and lower interest rates for consumers and businesses alike. As for medical care, where costs have gone up much faster than the general inflation rate, the most important step we can take is to pass a strong bill to control hospital costs. This year the Senate passed one. Next year I will try again, and I believe the whole Congress will act to hold down hospital costs, if your own Members of Congress hear from you. Between now and January, when the new Congress convenes, I will be preparing a package of specific legislative proposals to help fight inflation. The Government will do its part, but in a country like ours, Government can not do the job alone. In the end, the success or failure of this effort will also rest on whether the private sector will accept and act on, the voluntary wage and price standards I am announcing tonight. These standards are fair. They are standards that everyone can follow.