Date: 1981-12-04
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

Madam President. today I am pleased to join in cosponsoring the pending measure which has been offered by Mr. METZENBAUM. Madam President. the 4day. onceInadecade. White House Conference on Aging has drawn to a close. The Congress authorized this conference with the mission to develop "am comprehensive. coherent national policy on aging together with recommendations to implement tho policy." The 1981 meeting carried with It a past tradition of being a nonpartisan meeting to develop recommendations on Issues affecting and impacting elderly Americans. The last two conferences have had Important results which have affirmed our national character and commitment in meeting the needs of our aging Population. The 1961 conference paved the way for enactment of medicare. Passage of the Older Americans Act sprung from the recommendations of the 1971 conference. This year. however. the spirit and tradition of the conference has been somewhat marred by delegate discontent under a heavy shadow of White House Politics. There have been unsettling decisions in the hiring and firing of conference committee staff. The conference has had three executive directors. including one Republican who lasted only 2 months in the job. In the fall. the Republican National Committee Polled conference delegates on their views of the administrations budget cuts in social security retirement benefits. medicare. nutrition funding for the elderly. and housing assistance for the aging. as well as the Presidents general handling of the economy. Unexpectedly. the administration Moved to appoint 400 new delegates to the conference. A significant number of these delegates were Placed In what many consider key committee positions. As an extra measure. Secretary Schweiker exercised strong and final say over conference rules. Those final rules greatly limited Opportunity for debate and dissent. The 1981 meeting has taken place somewhat in a vacuum. We know that the President asked. more than 2 months ago. that a Presidential commission be formed to study social security financing Issues. The administration has yet to let us know what such a Commission will be: Who will serve and under what conditions the commission will meet. After the conference delegates return to their homes. away from Washington. I expect that we will begin hearing the details of this commission. When the President signed his Federal budgetcutting bill into law last August. he cut medicare costs and raised elderly Americans personal health care bills. In recent months. we have heard consistently that the August medicare "reforms" were Just the tip of the Iceberg. and that more entitlement reform legislation is expected to reduce the size of the Federal budget. The legislation will reportedly include proposals to further reduce the cost and size of the medicare program. It Is unfortunate that we do not have any details of these proposals and we did not have them prior to the conference on aging. because delegates to the meet-. Ing voted. many times over. to expand medicare coverage and protection. Conference delegates sought to assure retirement income security for all Americans. They sought to Insure better Job opportunities for older workers. The d4elegates were committed to Improved health care protection for older Americans and access to adequate medical care for all Americans. The resolution offered by the Senator from Ohio . cosponsored by myself and others. simply expresses support of the Senate for general principles endorsed by many conference delegates. I commend these delegates for their spirit and dedication In pursuing the discussion of national goals at the conference. I urge all Senators to vote for the Pending resolution.