Obama on healthcare: 'I hear you loud and clear'

US President Barack Obama has announced that companies will be allowed to continue selling health insurance plans that would have been cancelled under his embattled healthcare law for at least one more year.

While pushing for the law's passage in 2010, the president vowed Americans who liked their policies could keep them.

But in recent weeks insurance companies have cancelled many policies that do not meet the Affordable Care Act's strict new requirements for policies sold on the individual private market.

Speaking on Thursday Mr Obama said: "I completely get how upsetting this can be for a lot of Americans.... To those Americans, I hear you loud and clear".