Welfare Reform Bill
[WELFARE REFORM BILL]
Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
AMENDMENT NO. 2943
Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, I rise to discuss amendment 2943, which is the Cornyn-Bingaman amendment. I ask unanimous
consent that Senator Kennedy be added as a cosponsor to that amendment.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. CORNYN. This amendment is very simple. It would correct a technical problem caused during the passage of the Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act in 1996. Section 411 of the welfare law reads that State and local governments may not use their own resources to provide nonemergency health services to nonqualified immigrants unless the State has passed new legislation authorizing such expenditures.
This provision has caused quite a bit of confusion. As a matter of fact, when I was Attorney General of Texas I was asked to interpret this provision. It was during the course of that official action that I discovered the Federal law, because our State legislature had not acted, had unintended consequences. It is safe to say this provision has been read by State and local governments with varying interpretations.
Essentially, the current law imposes a double standard on State and local governments. Because certain Federal public health programs are exempt from this requirement, identical State and local government health programs are not. The end result is more legal and administrative costs on State and local governments, even though the provision has no enforcement mechanism. Even without the confusion, section 411 makes no practical sense. We should not put up more roadblocks for those who want to provide preventive treatment, especially when it comes to potential community problems such as infectious diseases.
By giving localities control over preventive services, here again at their own expense, not at Federal taxpayers' expense, we ensure local funds are spent where the people who know best believe they should be spent. Ultimately, this will have the effect of driving down health care costs by preventing treatable illnesses before they become acute and before they require expensive taxpayer-supported care, usually in an emergency room where anyone, no matter who they are, knows they can be treated and indeed must be treated according to a Federal mandate which I know is an interest of the presiding Senator, particularly because it is an unfunded Federal mandate.
Our amendment would simply strike the word "health" from section 411 of the welfare law. This step clarifies that State and local governments can use their own funds to provide health services to immigrants, including primary and preventive health care and infectious disease services, without enacting a new law. It is a commonsense step and one I hope my colleagues will support.
This amendment is also widely supported by several well-respected national associations, including the American Hospital Association, the National Association of Public Hospitals and Public Health Systems, the National Association of Counties, and the Catholic Health Association.
AMENDMENT NO. 2942
I also want to briefly discuss another amendment, No. 2942. I ask unanimous consent that Senator Lieberman be added as a cosponsor to this amendment.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. CORNYN. The Senator from Connecticut has a deep understanding of the importance of child support enforcement, and I like me, learned about how critical that issue is during his service as his State's attorney general, as I did during my service as attorney general of my State.
This amendment features two positive reforms for child support enforcement. It encourages States to adopt electronic payment systems by 2008. While States can opt out of that if they choose to, it will help get payments to custodial parents more quickly than is currently done now. It creates an option for States to centralize all child support payments to reduce confusion among employers who withhold child support payments from the wages of their employees, and it will ensure children get the financial support they need on time which, of course, is our universal goal.
I hope my colleagues will support this second amendment as well.
I ask unanimous consent that letters of support from each of these organizations be printed in the RECORD, and I yield the floor.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in the RECORD, as follows:
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
OF COUNTIES,
March 30, 2004.
Hon. JOHN CORNYN,
Hon. JEFF BINGAMAN,
Hart Senate Office Building,
Washington, DC.
DEAR SENATORS CORNYN AND BINGAMAN: On behalf of the National Association of Counties (NACo), I would like to express our support for the Cornyn-Bingaman amendment to the Personal Responsibility, Work, and Family Promotion Act of 2003. The amendment, as you know, would clarify that states and counties may use their own funds to provide critical preventative health care services to immigrants.
NACo is the only national organization representing county governments. Many of our country's 3066 counties own and operate hospitals and other health care facilities. Without the passage of this amendment, county governments are placed in a precarious position if they decide to provide preventative care to unqualified immigrants in order to protect the local community's health. As has been repeatedly demonstrated, the provision of preventative care is less costly over time than providing evasive services in emergency rooms. However, the cost savings to preventative care are far outweighed by the protection provided to the community's public health as a whole.
Counties serve as safety-net providers, ultimately financing and providing care for our Medicaid ineligible and un-enrolled populations. We support the ability to finance this care in the most appropriate manner.
Thank you for your leadership and efforts to ensure that counties are able to protect the health of our local communities. We look forward to working with you on this important issue.
Sincerely,
LARRY NAAKE,
Executive Director.
THE CATHOLIC HEALTH
ASSOCIATION OF THE UNITED STATES,
St. Louis, MO, March 30, 2004.
Hon. JOHN CORNYN,
Hart Senate Office Building,
Washington DC.
DEAR SENATOR CORNYN: On behalf of the Catholic Health Association of the United States (CHA), the national leadership organization of more then 2,000 Catholic health care sponsors, systems, facilities, and related organizations, I am writing in support of your efforts to ensure that state and local governments have the ability to use their funds to provide non-emergency health services to legal and undocumented immigrants.
Specifically, CHA supports your amendment to strike the word "health" from Section 411 of the Personal Responsibility and
Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA), which has been interpreted by some states to prohibit the use of any state and local funds to provide lifesaving health care to immigrants. This interpretation stands in sharp contrast to the thrust of PRWORA, which generally gave states greater authority to determine welfare rules, and the resulting confusion has had a negative impact on the health of immigrants in many states.
By clarifying that states and local governments may use their own funds to provide health services to immigrants, including important preventive care, your amendment can help ensure that hospitals and clinics have the clarity they need to serve the best interest of all of their patients. As organizations founded in a faith tradition and committed to the principles of Catholic social justice teaching, Catholic hospitals recognize and affirm the inherent dignity of every human being. Your amendment helps to further that principle.
Thank you again for your efforts to ensure that state and local governments have the certainty they need to use their own funds to provide appropriate health care to all immigrants. If we can be of any assistance, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Sincerely,
REV. MICHAEL D. PLACE, STD,
President and Chief Executive Officer.