Affordable Health Care For America Act
Floor Speech
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Ms. CLARKE. I thank the gentleman from New Jersey very much.
Mr. Speaker, today I rise to support H.R. 3962, the Affordable Health Care for America Act. As we approach the dawning of the second decade of the new millennium, this evening we will usher in a new assurance of the health and well-being of all Americans. Our children will have the health and peace of mind to exceed the productivity of our generation. Our willingness to do what it takes to transition into the 21st century health care delivery system will guarantee future generations the advancement of a productive civil society.
Every American has a right to adequate physical and mental health care, and I believe that we, as a national government, have a responsibility to assist our citizenry in securing quality health care. It is unfortunate that there are those amongst us who just couldn't care less; those who were satisfied with the status quo of rising premiums, satisfied with individuals being denied coverage because of preexisting conditions, satisfied with ignoring the pain and suffering of the 47 million Americans who are uninsured.
Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to vote for this measure.
[Begin Insert]
Mr. Speaker, today, I rise in support of H.R. 3962, Affordable Healthcare for America Act. This evening, as we approach the dawning of the second decade of the new millennium, we will usher in a new assurance of the health and well being of all Americans. Our children will have the health and peace of mind to exceed the productivity of our generation. Our willingness to do what it takes to transition to a 21st century healthcare delivery system will guarantee future generations the advancement of a productive civil society.
In the United States, one of the richest countries in the world, nearly 47 million Americans lack health insurance, 13.5 percent of whom are New Yorkers. Last year alone, New York City's hospitals spent $1.2 billion in charity costs. Tragically, people who are either uninsured or underinsured often have to go without vital healthcare simply because they cannot afford it.
Every American has a human right to adequate physical and mental healthcare, and I believe that we as a national government have a responsibility to assist our citizens in securing quality healthcare.
Unfortunately, my Republican colleagues don't seem to fully grasp the dire situation our healthcare system is in. Maybe they would have come up with a bill that actually addressed the deficiency in our broken healthcare.
It is unfortunate that there are those amongst us who just could care less--those who are satisfied with the status quo of rising premiums, satisfied with individuals being denied coverage because of pre-existing conditions, satisfied with ignoring the pain and suffering of the 47 million Americans who are uninsured.
Instead of working with us to fix the problem, they capitalize on people's fears and doubts. It is meant to distract, delay, confuse, and engender fear among our citizens. Today we will not allow the voices of fear to dominate the healthcare reform debate.
This bill provides healthcare coverage to 96 percent of Americans and includes a strong public option that will provide the needed competition to lower premium costs. That is why I support H.R. 3962, Affordable Healthcare for America Act.
With preventative care as the cornerstone of the 21st century healthcare delivery system, eliminating the disparate treatment of women, eliminating discrimination based on pre-existing conditions, creates a new health exchange for access to quality affordable health insurance and turns medical visits from a broken volume based system to a 21st century value based system. I will cast my vote this evening in memory of a distinguished New Yorker, Brooklynite and friend Jackie Ward, who died of heart failure as a young woman in her early 50s.
In my district, the 11th Congressional District of Brooklyn, the Affordable Healthcare for America Act will: First, improve employer-based coverage for 367,000 residents. As a result of the insurance reforms in the bill, there will be no co-pays or deductibles for preventative care; no more rate increases or coverage denials for pre-existing conditions, gender, or occupation; and guaranteed oral, vision, and hearing benefits for children. Second, it will provide credits to help pay for coverage for up to 160,000 households, if they need to purchase their own coverage. Third, under the bill's insurance reforms, 11,900 individuals in the district who have pre-existing medical conditions will now be able to purchase affordable coverage. Finally, this bill will allow 11,300 small businesses to obtain affordable healthcare coverage and provide tax credits to help reduce health insurance costs for up to 11,400 small businesses.
Healthcare is a fundamental human right, rather than a commodity. A year ago, Americans cast a historic vote to change the course of this Nation. Today, we cast this historic vote, to finally manifest the change they demanded: Access to Affordable Healthcare. I am proud to cast my vote in favor of this bill.
[End Insert]
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Ms. CLARKE. Mr. Speaker, today, I rise in support of H.R. 3962, Affordable Healthcare for America Act. In the United States, one of the richest countries in the world, nearly 47 million Americans lack health insurance, 13.5 percent of which are New Yorkers. Last year alone, New York City's hospitals spent 1.2 billion dollars in charity costs. Tragically, people who are either uninsured or underinsured often have to go without vital healthcare simply because they cannot afford it.
Every American has a human right to adequate physical and mental healthcare, and I believe that government has a responsibility to assist its citizens in securing quality healthcare. Unfortunately, my Republican colleagues don't seem to fully grasp the dire situation our healthcare system is in. Maybe they would have come up with a bill that actually addressed the deficiency in our broken healthcare.
It is unfortunate that there are those who just don't care. Those who are satisfied with the status quo of rising premiums, satisfied with individuals being denied coverage because of preexisting conditions, satisfied with ignoring the pain and suffering of the 47 million Americans who are uninsured. Instead of working to fix the problem, they capitalize on people's fears and doubts. It is meant to distract, delay, confuse, and engender fear among our citizens. Today we will not allow the voices of fear to dominate the health care reform debate. This bill provides healthcare coverage to 96 percent of Americans and includes a strong public option that will provide the needed competition to lower premium costs. That is why I support H.R. 3962, Affordable Health Care for America Act.
In my district, the 11th Congressional District of Brooklyn, the Affordable Health Care for America Act will:
First, improve employer-based coverage for 367,000 residents. As a result of the insurance reforms in the bill, there will be no co-pays or deductibles for preventive care; no more rate increases or coverage denials for pre-existing conditions, gender, or occupation; and guaranteed oral, vision, and hearing benefits for children.
Second, it will provide credits to help pay for coverage for up to 160,000 households, if they need to purchase their own coverage.
Third, under the bill's insurance reforms, 11,900 individuals in the district who have pre-existing medical conditions will now be able to purchase affordable coverage.
Finally, this bill will allow 11,300 small businesses to obtain affordable health care coverage and provide tax credits to help reduce health insurance costs for up to 11,400 small businesses.
Healthcare is a fundamental human right, rather than a commodity. A year ago, Americans cast a historic vote to change the course of this Nation. Today, we cast this historic vote, to finally manifest the change they demanded. Access to Affordable Healthcare. I am proud to cast my vote in favor of this bill.
Mr. Speaker, I believe that H.R. 3962, the Affordable Health Care for America Act, will improve health care for all of our constituents. Another significant benefit of this legislation, which has not received as much attention, will be the creation of new high paying jobs, high quality jobs in healthcare delivery, technology and research in the United States.
First, this bill will create enormous demand for healthcare workers, especially in the area of primary care. Insuring that the millions of Americans, who currently have no insurance, will have access to primary care providers so that they can receive the preventive care they have been denied for too long. This influx of new patients will create a need for doctors, nurses and technicians, while reducing overall healthcare costs because of the new focus on preventative medicine. I support channeling resources, that for too long have been used to treat people once they become sick, into jobs and services that will prevent people from getting sick in the first place.
Second, this bill will continue the efforts we began in the stimulus package to deploy new health information technologies that better manage both the quality of care and the cost of it. New health care exchanges and new demands on the health system to provide high quality and cost-effective health care will create new opportunities and markets for our brightest technological minds. They will be incentivized to develop high quality healthcare products at an affordable price.
Third, this bill will create new research opportunities in this country. The Energy and Commerce Committee enacted a framework for allowing biosimilar competition in this country. This new class of medicines will help lower costs and bring competition to one area that is key to the future of our healthcare system. Biotechnology is on the cutting edge of efforts to reduce costly invasive procedures, thereby allowing our constituents to live healthier and more productive lives. The creation of this new class of medicines comes with requirements for new clinical research and testing. This research will create high quality, high paying jobs. It is imperative that we keep this research, and these jobs in this country. We cannot allow these research opportunities to leave this country, and I intend to work with the Secretary of HHS and the Commissioner of the FDA to ensure they stay in the United States.
I do not look at this bill as a drain on our economy, like so many of its opponents on the other side of the aisle. I see this bill as an exciting opportunity to create the kind of jobs we so desperately need in this country, while at the same time improving the lives of all Americans. This bill will improve health care, create jobs and grow our economy.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Source