Affordable Health Care For America Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. MARKEY. Mr. Speaker, thank you Speaker Pelosi, Chairman Waxman, Chairman Emeritus Dingell, Chairman Rangel and Chairman Miller for your leadership in bringing us to this historic day.

For almost a century, we have been laying the groundwork for comprehensive health care reform in our country--ever since Theodore Roosevelt's Progressive Party included health insurance coverage in its platform for the 1912 elections.

Since then, there has been some progress--Medicare for seniors, Medicaid for the poor, CHIP for children,--as well as successful efforts in some states, including the landmark health reform law enacted in my home state of Massachusetts three years ago. But we have continued to come up short. And now the 46 million Americans without health care are paying the price.

Our health care system has been ailing for decades, and now it's in intensive care. The consequences of this broken health care system are severe--the number one cause of personal bankruptcies today is medical bills--Americans going broke when they get sick. And 80 percent of these medical bankruptcies strike Americans who actually have insurance. It is unconscionable that so many Americans have to fight their insurance companies while they fight for their very lives. Their insurance policies fail to cover all of the astronomical costs associated with their treatment. They are insured, but not covered.

I recently received a letter from a constituent that illustrates one of the reasons why we need health care reform now. Peter returned home from the hospital to find a bill informing him that his insurance company denied coverage for the anesthesia used during his operation. The insurance company deemed the anesthesia ``medically unnecessary'' and billed him $10,000.

He had open heart surgery, Mr. Chairman. So he asked me, did the insurance company expect him to ``take a swig of whiskey and bite a bullet'' while the surgeon cut open his chest? Unbelievable, Mr. Chairman, but true. Like too many Americans, he was insured, but not covered. We desperately need health care reform because there are too many stories like Pete's all across the country.

My Republican colleagues want to put a Band-Aid on our badly broken system, but what it really needs is CPR--Coverage, Prevention and Research. That's exactly what our health bill delivers for the American people.

We expand COVERAGE to ensure that all Americans have access to affordable care.

We invest in PREVENTION to transform our system from a ``sick care'' system into a true health care system.

We support RESEARCH, building on the $10.4 billion down payment in the recovery and reinvestment act for NIH. In this bill, we will invest in comparative effectiveness research to help improve the quality of care and reduce costs.

The Republicans' plan is really quite simple: You're On Your Own. The Republican plan tells Americans--``If you get sick and don't have insurance, you're on your own.'' The Republican plan tells Americans if you are denied coverage because of a pre-existing condition ``You're on your own.'' Republican Leaders in Washington seem to be suffering from a pre-existing condition of their own--a heart of stone. If you kicked their heart, you'd break your toe! And under the Republican plan, they could be denied coverage.

The Republicans say the Democratic Plan will put the government between you and your doctor, but the doctors who make up the American Medical Association support the Democratic bill, not the Republican Plan. They say it will hurt small businesses but the Main Street Alliance, representing thousands of small businesses around the country, support the Democratic bill, not the Republican Plan. The Republicans claim the Democratic bill will hurt seniors, but the AARP has endorsed the Democratic bill, not the Republican Plan.

There are reasons why the AARP supports the Democratic bill. The Democratic bill will close the Medicare part D donut hole, the Republican bill does not. We provide support for low-income seniors, they do not. We will extend the solvency of Medicare, they do not.

You know, GOP used to stand for Grand Old Party. Now it stands for Grandstand, Oppose, and Pretend. They grandstand with phony claims about non-existent death panels. They oppose any real reform. And with this Substitute they pretend to offer a solution while really doing nothing. GOP--Grandstand, Oppose, and Pretend.

Make no mistake about it; the Republican substitute is not real reform. It does nothing to curb skyrocketing health care costs. It does nothing to provide real insurance coverage to millions who are now uninsured. It does nothing to stop the unfair practices of insurance companies.

Mr. Speaker, there are too many Americans living in fear of a terrorist attack, but not the kind that comes from a gunshot, bomb or box cutter. It's the kind that may strike during a phone call from the doctor's office or during a check-up when the doctor delivers devastating news: ``You have cancer''; ``Your memory loss is early onset Alzheimer's''; ``The numbness is Parkinson's''; ``The Lou Gehrig's Disease that claimed your grandfather will strike you one day.''

We can fight against the terror of disease by reforming our health care system with better coordination, focusing on prevention, and ensuring that all Americans have access to quality, affordable care. And that's exactly what our bill will do.

I am pleased that this historic bill includes provisions that I authored, including:

A Medicare program to provide coordinated care to severely ill patients by a team of doctors and other health care professionals right in the beneficiaries' own homes, allowing these frail Americans to remain independent as long as possible.

A provision to allow patients with rare diseases, like cystic fibrosis, to participate in clinical trial research to find a cure for their devastating disease without losing eligibility for the Social Security benefits they depend on.

A safeguard to ensure that insurance companies don't game the new health care exchange by cherry-picking only healthy individuals.

Today, we are here to write a new chapter in our century-long effort to provide every American with the health care coverage they need and deserve.

Today we can vote for a bill that uses the American values of choice, innovation, and competition to address some of our nation's greatest challenges--skyrocketing health care costs, millions without health insurance, and millions more who are under-insured and struggling to pay their medical bills.

Today we can pass legislation that gives all Americans access to quality, affordable health care. I urge my colleagues to vote ``aye'' on this bill.

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Mr. MARKEY of Massachusetts. The Republican plan is really quite simple: you're on your own.

The Republican plan tells Americans if you get sick and you don't have insurance, you're on your own. The Republican plan tells Americans if you are denied coverage because of a preexisting condition, you're on your own.

The Republican leaders in Washington seem to be suffering from their own preexisting condition: a heart of stone. If you kicked them in the heart, you would break your toe.

They say that the Democratic plan will put the government between you and your doctor, but the doctors who make up the American Medical Association support the Democratic bill and not the Republican bill. The Republicans claim the Democratic bill will hurt seniors, but AARP has endorsed the Democratic bill and not the Republican bill. Why does AARP support the Democratic bill? Because the Democratic bill will close the Medicare part D doughnut hole for seniors. The Republican bill does not. We provide support for low-income seniors; they do not. We will extend the solvency of Medicare; they do not. Right now 60 percent of all bankruptcies in America are because of medical expenses. The Democratic bill makes sure that never happens again; the Republican bill does not.

You know, the GOP used to stand for Grand Old Party. Now it stands for ``grandstand, oppose, and pretend.'' They grandstand with phony claims about nonexistent death panels. They oppose any real reform. And with this substitute they pretend to offer a solution while really doing nothing. GOP: grandstand, oppose, and pretend.

And make no mistake about it, the Republican substitute is not real reform. It does nothing to curb skyrocketing health care costs. It does nothing to provide real insurance coverage to millions who are now uninsured. It does nothing to stop the unfair practices of insurance companies.

I urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' on the Republican ``do-nothing'' substitute.

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