Date: 2011-01-18
Speaker: VAN HOLLEN (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. I yield myself 4 minutes. Mr. Speaker. I hope the tenor and substance of the debate we have in this House over the next few days will be worthy of the American people and reflect well on this Congress. Many of us believe we should focus our efforts here today on measures to help put people back to work. rather than on a bill that takes away important patient and consumer protections. And we dont think it makes a whole lot of sense to debate a bill that. thankfully. will go nowhere in the Senate and would certainly be vetoed by the President. However. the Republican majority is entitled to use its time here as it chooses. And while we believe we should be doing that focused on jobs. perhaps this debate will clear up many of the myths and misinformation about the health care law that was signed by President Obama. Im interested to hear my colleagues say that they can identify with all the problems in the health care system. Between the year 2000 and year 2006. premiums in this country doubled. health insurance company profits quadrupled. and this Congress did nothing. Why not put your plan on the table first so everybody can see it before you begin taking away the important patient protections in this bill taking effect just since last March? And within that 9month period. that law has made an important and positive difference to millions of Americans. In fact. we wish our Republican colleagues would take a few days. maybe even just a few hours. to have congressional hearings to listen to those individuals and families. The new Republican majority said it wanted to listen to the American people. but it has not invited a single American outside this Congress to a hearing to testify on the repeal bill we are debating today. As a result. we on the other side of the aisle have had to schedule an unofficial hearing. Its going on right now. not 100 yards from where we debate. in the Capitol Visitor Center. And I encourage all of you to drop by. because if you do. youre going to hear some stories. Youre going to hear the stories from moms and dads of young people who will tell you how they are relieved that their sons and daughters are no longer kicked off their insurance policies when they turn age 22 or graduate from college and cannot now stay on their parents insurance plan until the age of 26. As a result. if their 20yearold child gets sick or hit by an automobile or another terrible accident. they can get care without the family going bankrupt. You will hear from moms and dads with kids who have cancer. asthma. diabetes or other preexisting conditions telling you theyre relieved that finally insurance companies cant deny their children coverage because of preexisting conditions. And you will hear from senior citizens who are unable to pay for the huge prescription costs of their bills. and then as of January 1 of this year. they are getting a 50 percent discount and they can afford to pay for the medicines their doctors say they need. You will hear from small businesses. The number of small businesses using the tax credit has exceeded everyones expectation. You will hear from those small businesses saying they can now afford to purchase affordable coverage for their employees and. as a result. hire more people. You would hear all that and more. That is why it is such a mistake. its an historic mistake. to take away these patient protections and throw these individuals back over to the whims and the many abuses of the insurance industry. Theres no doubt that the insurance industry will be popping champagne bottles if the health care law was ever to be repealed. Lets put the interests of our constituents. patients and consumers first in this debate.