Affordable Health Care For America Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. NEAL of Massachusetts. Thank you, Chairman Rangel.

Mr. Speaker, let me stand in support of this health care bill today. Reforming this health care system has not been easy, but we come here today after deliberating for countless years, weeks, months--and as recently as this morning more hours added--because we are building a baseline of health care for the American family.

We've worked hard to reform this health care system because, if we do nothing, family premiums will increase $1,800 a year; and by 2020, 61 million Americans will be uninsured. We have analyzed, and we have debated the details of the bill line by line and section by section.

To the critics, yes, we've read the bill.

For all of the misinformation that has surrounded this legislation, there is a great deal that we all here today agree upon: this bill ends discrimination based on preexisting medical conditions; it limits out-of-pocket expenses for families; it bans lifetime limits on health care coverage that a family with a critically ill child can bump up against in no time at all.

Limiting out-of-pocket expenses is something we do all agree on. Half the bankruptcies in America are health care-related. This bill removes the uncertainties of our health care system for families and for businesses, for young adults who are no longer eligible for their parents' insurance coverage, and for senior citizens in the Medicare part D doughnut hole. This is a solid piece of legislation.

As I close, remember the party that stood with Social Security, and remember the party that stood with Medicare as we proceed to this vote this evening.

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