Providing for Consideration of H.R. Breaking the Gridlock Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, during consideration of this resolution, all time yielded is for the purposes of debate only. General Leave

Mr. Speaker, all I can say is, it is about damn time. I mean, we have had to wait months while the Republican leadership of this House dragged their feet, all so we could take up a simple vote on whether to stop people's healthcare premiums from doubling or tripling.

We could have done this months ago. Instead, Republican leadership literally shut down the entire government rather than just allow this one vote on making sure that regular people can afford their healthcare. That is absurd.

If billionaires want another tax break, they get it in a nanosecond. If the rich and powerful want another loophole, it materializes out of thin air. Somehow days stretch into weeks and then stretch into months when it comes to healthcare for hardworking families.

Every night, those families are sitting around their kitchen tables trying to figure out how to pay for childcare so they can get to work. They are trying to figure out how they can pay their rent so their kids have a safe place to grow up. They are trying to figure out how they can afford groceries amid skyrocketing costs.

Because of the stalling and hesitation and delay from this President and this Speaker, millions of these families are now left trying to figure out how they can afford their healthcare.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to think it is not up for debate that in the richest country in the history of the world, no person--and I mean no person--should be left without healthcare. No mom or dad should have to forego their own health insurance because they can't afford to pay for their kids and themselves. No small business owner should have to go without coverage to pay the bills.

That is exactly what is happening right now. It is happening all because this leadership here in this House refused to lift a finger. They were too busy helping Big Banks, Big Oil, Big Tech, and whatever billionaire needed a handout.

This Congress musters up the will to spend trillions of dollars on tax breaks for billionaires and to send the Pentagon billions of dollars more than they even ask for.

Mr. Speaker, the administration came up with tens of billions of dollars to bail out Argentina, for God's sake. Somehow, helping moms and dads, grandparents, and kids afford trips to the doctor is a step too far for this Republican leadership.

The truth is that this should not be a partisan issue. We are here today debating this rule because four Republicans joined Democrats to put good policy ahead of party and demand that this House take up this measure. Thanks to their efforts to be on the right side of this, we were able to get around the Speaker's logjam and force a vote on this bill.

We have a moral obligation to act, Mr. Speaker. It is unconscionable that anyone in the richest country in history should not have access to good, quality healthcare.

How long have we heard that the Republican healthcare plan is coming? It still hasn't materialized. The reality is that, in the meantime, reversing the massive premium increases that families across this country are grappling with is the bare, bare minimum that we should do.

America's healthcare system is broken, and I am not going to defend the status quo. It has been broken for decades. America spends more per patient than any other major country for the worst outcomes. People lack access to care. Medical bills still leave families in debt. This sure as hell isn't the healthcare system that I would have designed.

In fact, Democrats believe that every person in the United States should have high-quality, affordable healthcare. I personally believe in Medicare for All. Also, there is no doubt in my mind that the American people are better off due to the Affordable Care Act.

Like I said, our system was broken long before the ACA, and the ACA took major steps to try to move us toward comprehensive coverage. That is part of the reason that the ACA is so popular. An overwhelming majority of Americans support the ACA because it protects people with preexisting conditions, provides free preventative care, and requires coverage for essential health benefits like emergency services and maternity care.

The ACA gave health insurance to millions of people, and improvements made to the law made premiums more affordable. Failing to act and failing to extend these tax credits will leave millions of Americans paying more for their healthcare.

Families in my district are reaching out to me to share that their healthcare premiums are going up by hundreds and even thousands of dollars every month due to the inaction of this Congress.

Mr. Speaker, I know that many of the people back home must be writing to you with similar stories. We can't fail these families. We can't turn our backs on working people who are struggling to get by. Healthcare is a basic and fundamental human right. If we have it in our power right now, today, to help make people's lives better, how could we not take the opportunity to do that?

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Mr. McGOVERN. Wasserman Schultz).

Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Speaker, I rise to insist that we pull our Nation back from the largest-ever, Republican-forced loss of healthcare in our history.

These catastrophic coverage cutoffs and massive premium hikes will hammer millions of us back in Florida, and it is all because Republicans chose billionaire tax breaks over extending the Affordable Care Act tax credits for our hardworking families.

That is all on top of the $1 trillion that Republicans slashed from Medicaid and $500 billion from Medicare. Over 203,000 people will lose coverage in my district. Let's be really clear: Many of them will get needlessly sick or die.

Thankfully, Democrats refused to accept this Republican healthcare crisis and forced this vote to extend the ACA tax credits.

Mr. Speaker, Republicans have made life too expensive. From burger and coffee prices to rent, home insurance, and utilities, costs keep soaring. We can't add crushing cost burdens by forcing families to pick between seeing a doctor and buying groceries.

Yes, Republicans chose to unleash this healthcare crisis, but they can avoid it right now. Millions of anxious families are watching.

Mr. Speaker, I urge a ``yes'' vote.

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Mr. McGOVERN. Johnson).

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Mr. McGOVERN. Bonamici).

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Mr. McGOVERN. McClellan).

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Mr. McGOVERN. Castor).

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Mr. McGOVERN. Tokuda).

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Mr. McGOVERN. Balint).

This is it, Mr. Speaker. We need a majority of this House to vote ``yes'' on this rule so that we can have an up-or-down vote on reversing the premium increases. It is that simple.

If we do nothing, millions of families will lose their healthcare. People won't be able to see doctors if they get sick. Medical bills will stack up. Millions more will be left paying hundreds or even thousands of dollars more every month just to maintain their coverage. They will have to cut back on food or won't be able to make their rent because of these steep increases.

In some cases, the damage has already been done. Many people have already decided to forgo coverage. In my home State of Massachusetts, over 25,000 people canceled their coverage because Republicans let premiums skyrocket.

That is nearly double the number of people who canceled coverage last year. It is a huge increase that will drive up costs for everyone and make America less healthy. I am sure that my colleagues are seeing their constituents make similar choices.

Let me end with this. We have the power right now to give peace of mind to working families that they won't go bankrupt just trying to afford health insurance. We can make their lives a little easier. We can help them sleep a little more soundly and breathe more easily knowing that they can afford coverage for their families.

I have said this over and over and over again, but we are the richest country in the history of the world. People ought to have better coverage. They ought to have more affordable coverage. Healthcare is a fundamental human right, and we should come together in a bipartisan way and support this rule and support the underlying legislation. We can prevent a catastrophe from impacting millions and millions of people in this country.

We have lots of disagreements, but, boy, I would like to think if we could all agree on one thing, it ought to be that people ought to not get screwed over when it comes to healthcare, that they ought not be paying double, triple, quadruple what they normally pay for their health insurance premiums.

I urge a ``yes'' vote on this rule. I yield back the balance of my time, and I move the previous question on the resolution.

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