Date: 2011-04-13
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Madam Chair. I rise today in opposition to H.R. 1217. which would repeal the provision of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act ("Affordable Care Act") that established the Prevention and Public Health Fund. a fund which serves as a great stride toward turning our "sickcare" system. where we focus on treating the injured and ill. into a true "healthcare" system that puts focus on keeping the population well. It is because of all that the Prevention and Public Heath Fund accomplished in its first year. the overwhelming support the Fund has received from hundreds of organizations. and how essential prevention is to reducing the overall cost of healthcare for the American people. that I oppose the repeal of this Fund. Despite my general opposition to this bill. yesterday in the Rules Committee meeting. I offered amendments to H.R. 1217. in order to remind this chamber and emphasize to the American people the importance and benefits of preventative care for the American public. My amendments reaffirm to the American people that we as lawmakers understand the importance of preventative care by stating that it is the sense of Congress that prevention of disease and injury is overwhelmingly effective in improving our healthcare system and keeping that system affordable. Furthermore. preventative health care is an effective means for detecting and treating illnesses before they become serious and life threatening. My amendments also make us as lawmakers accountable to the American people who have been and would be benefitting from the services and support provided through this fund. It gives notice to the public. through the Department of Health and Human Services website. of the rescission of funds and the amount rescinded. increasing governments accountability. I think most of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle would agree with me. as evidenced by the intense debate at the end of last week. when I say that we must address our nations spending and growing deficit. However. it is of great concern to me that my friends on the other side of the aisle are attempting to do so by cutting costsaving programs that are also essential to the health and wellbeing of Americans. This attempt. through H.R. 1217. to defund this essential program which was created under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is of particular concern. Todays youth may be the first generation to live shorter and less healthy lives than that of their parents. and this is largely due to increased rates of diseases and conditions which are preventable with proper and consistent healthcare. 75% of our countrys healthcare costs are attributed to treatment of chronic diseases. most of which are preventable. However. less than 5% of our healthcare spending goes towards preventing these diseases. Loss of productivity in the workforce attributed to chronic disease is estimated to cost the United States over $1 trillion each year. With that being said. the 111th Congress. with the intent of seeing these grim statistics changes. appropriated $16.5 billion to be used. over the next ten years to support preventative care and research. Since its establishment the Fund has already begun to strengthen the infrastructure of our healthcare system on the state and national level. The Prevention and Public Health fund. though it has only been in existence for one year. has already been used for: Programs to promote tobacco control and implement tobacco cessation services and campaigns. Obesity prevention which directly decreases risk for Diabetes. Improving nutrition and access to fresh fruits and vegetables. Increasing opportunities for recreational and physical activity. HIV prevention. Support of clinical and communitybased disease prevention. and Bolstering the health workforce by increasing health care personnel. Money towards finding health solutions. rather than treating health problems. comes back to society in terms of increasing productivity. creating jobs. and reducing Medicare. Medicaid. and overall healthcare costs. With just a $10 per person investment towards improving community based activity. nutrition. and other preventative measures would create a return of $56 per person within only 5 years. That translates to a savings of $5.60 for every $1 invested in preventative health care. Most importantly. cost benefits extend beyond government to both American businesses and families. providing savings and an improved quality of life. As a result of the Prevention and Public Health Fund. Texas received $6 million last year that went towards creating committees. testing facilities. laboratories. and training centers which brought over $2 million to the health prevention capacity of Houston alone. Congress must maintain that the prevention of illness. the saving of lives. and the securing of a healthy public are top priorities. and that prevention is an undeniably effective means to achieve these ends. My amendments will do just that. The total loss of $16 billion of funding for prevention efforts. an effective total eradication of our countrys prevention program. will be unfortunate. and thus I urge my colleagues not to lose sight of importance of the Prevention and Public Health Funds accomplishments and goals. Including: The improvement of state and local health departments. giving them the capacity to respond to infections. natural disasters. and terrorist threats. Creating a strong and healthy workforce that will be competitive in the global market. and Saving families. businesses. and the government money. opposed to simply cutting costs. While I do not support what H.R. 1217 purports to do. I urge my colleagues to join me in support of these essential changes to H.R. 1217 to acknowledge the need for preventative care and hold ourselves accountable for what would most certainly be a great loss to the public.