WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama said today he's seeing "unprecedented consensus" behind overhauling health care, though he acknowledged continued partisan gridlock in Congress.

"The historic movement to bring real, meaningful health insurance reform to the American people gathered momentum this week as we approach the final days of this debate," Obama said in his weekly radio and Internet video address.

The consensus "includes everyone from doctors and nurses to hospitals and drug manufacturers" — even Republican governors and former GOP lawmakers, Obama said.

Obama's consensus, however, does not extend to congressional Republicans. GOP senators remain united in their opposition to the Democrats' health care package, as are most Republicans in the House.

The president, instead, noted that California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, former Senate Majority Leaders Bob Dole and Bill Frist, all Republicans, and former Health and Human Service Secretaries Louis Sullivan and Tommy Thompson, who both served in Republican administrations, have all come out in favor of overhauling health care, even though they differ on some specifics.

"These distinguished leaders understand that health insurance reform isn't a Democratic issue or a Republican issue, but an American issue that demands a solution," Obama said.

A health care bill soon to emerge from the Senate Finance Committee is the only one judged to meet Obama's conditions for expanding insurance coverage without raising the federal deficit, while also slowing the rise in medical costs.

By The Associated Press