No Government Takeover Of Health Care

Floor Speech

Ms. FOXX. Mr. Speaker, Republicans have been talking for over 3 years about the problem of the debt and deficit facing our Nation. We, as well as average Americans, have realized that these problems are a threat to our existence as the greatest and freest Nation on Earth. But what the Democrats are proposing to do in passing a health care bill that Americans do not want is an even more immediate threat to the future of this Nation. Let me explain just a little bit about that.

What the Democrats are proposing to do is a government takeover of health care that the American people do not want. Because they have a political problem, because there is no support for this bill among Americans, they are going to use a procedural mechanism to avoid an up-or-down vote on the bill that the Senate passed on Christmas Eve. They are going to create a reconciliation bill that meets the Senate test for reconciliation. As the majority leader said out here a few minutes ago, we are not the Senate. We don't have reconciliation rules. He kept making that point over and over again. But they are going to create a mechanism to pass a bill in the House to match reconciliation rules over in the Senate.

What they want to do is to develop mechanics to hide a vote on the Senate bill and create a scheme to pass a bill in the House that will then pass muster in the Senate. It is a cram-down; and despite what the majority leader keeps saying about the fact that we have seen the bill, we know what is in the bill, we have not. Bills have to be developed in bill language, and we have to see specifically what it is we are going to vote on.

The President has never presented a bill to the American people. What the President did present about 3 weeks ago was an 11-page proposal. That is exactly what it is called on the President's Web site: The President's proposal, February 22, 2010. It is really 10 pages with one line on page 11. It has general language. It makes insurance more affordable. It sets up competitive health insurance markets, ends discrimination against Americans with preexisting conditions, and it says that it bridges the gap between the House and Senate bills and includes new provisions to crack down on waste, fraud, and abuse. This is not legislative language. We cannot vote on something like this.

In addition, one of my colleagues just pointed out to me that there is a 19-page summary of the 11-page proposal on the White House Web site. You know, if you haven't read ``1984,'' I ask you, read it. If it has been a long time since you've read it, read it again.

Now let me give you an example of specific legislative language. This is a page out of the Senate bill that passed. I don't know the section before, but this starts out with (1). It is page 35.

``(1) Requirement to provide value for premium payments. A health insurance issuer offering group or individual health insurance coverage shall, with respect to each plan year, provide an annual rebate to each enrollee under such coverage, on a pro rata basis, in an amount that is equal to the amount by which premium revenue expended by the issuer on activities described in subsection (a)(3) exceeds,'' and then it has an (A) and a (B) and a (2). That is specific language that is used in bills that we pass here every day.

What the President has proposed is not legislative language. What they want to do is use something called the ``Slaughter sleight of hand,'' and the American people don't want it.

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