Buffett says U.S. on slow path to recovery - NYT

Aug 19 (Reuters) - The United States economy is out of the emergency room and appears to be on a slow path to recovery,, Warren Buffett wrote in an opinion column in the New York Times.

The country will need to deal with the side effects of enormous dosages of "monetary medicine" that continue to be administered, said Buffett, who runs insurance and investment company Berkshire Hathaway Inc (BRKa.N)(BRKb.N).

The country's "net debt" - which he described as the amount held publicly - is mushrooming, he wrote. In this fiscal year, it will increase more than one percentage point per month, climbing to about 56 percent of GDP from 41 percent, he added.

"Our immediate problem is to get our country back on its feet and flourishing -- 'whatever it takes' still makes sense," Buffett said in the paper.

But once recovery is gained, Congress must end the rise in the debt-to-GDP ratio and keep its growth in obligations in line with its growth in resources, he said. (Reporting by S. John Tilak in Bangalore)