Date: 2011-01-19
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

I thank the gentleman from Vermont. and I am just very pleased to have heard my good friends from New York. Ms. CLARKE and Mr. WEINER. and my good friend from Maryland. I hope this is a comforting Special Order because even as we speak. I think it is enormously important because people look at this because they saw a debate and they saw a vote. and now we are here on the floor of the House. I want them to know this bill is the law of the land. What we are trying to explain to them is the potential devastation of that bill being repealed. The good news is that this was a payback to those who voted for my good friends on the other side of the aisle. Republicans. and we understand that. But lives are involved. To the distinguished gentleman from Vermont. lives are actually involved. I just have a few points that I want to characterize this debate as and to give people comfort that we are still fighting for this law. This law is in place. Right now. the elimination of lifetime caps: you can still use this bill. The idea that seniors. some 40 million of them. beginning in January 2011 will begin receiving savings on preventative care services: you can still use this. This is very important. the 50 percent discount. If anybody had an earful from the seniors. it was the doughnut hole. At every senior citizen center you go to. theyre talking about the choices I have to make between food and rent and prescription drugs. I want them to know the law is still in place. I know there was a debate on the floor of the House. I know there was a vote. but it should be well known that Democrats put up an able fight. More importantly. we know that our President will be working to preserve the law that exists. Thats very important. In having listened to a gentleman by the name of Ed. first name Ed. who has a chronic diseasehemophiliahe told a very important story of how he and his brother grew up with that and how he lives well today because of the fact that we have passed the elimination of lifetime caps. So he can be treated. He can work. He has insurance. That is why when people ask. How does this impact me? Those of you who have insurance. we are not taking it away from you. but I assure you you have lifetime caps. What about the young woman and her son who came to my town hall meeting who said. in tears. Congresswoman SHEILAwhatever they call mewe had insurance. We went to a doctor for a physical for my son who had to get a physical to get into schoolevery child has to get a physical at the beginning of the school yearand the doctor turned me away and said. Your insurance only covers emergency room. We wont have that kind of halfbaked insurance anymore. So I quickly want to do this. Mr. WELCH. There was a big discussion about the constitutionality of this bill. and I got into another big discussion with one of our wonderful pundits who wanted to argue about whether someone would die without this health insurance. This is a Medicare patient. or someone who is using Medicare. It indicates that she spent the week of New Years of 2008 in an emergency room. and then was confined to her home for weeks because she developed pneumonia. She says she had never been so sick in her life. The good news was. in 2008. she had a governmentrun health care provision. a Medicare program. that allowed her to discover her sickness and to be treated. Her very words: For a time. I was so sick I was afraid I was going to die. Then I was so sick I was afraid I wouldnt. and I was miserable. The real question is: even though she is a senior. this governmentrun program allowed her to get care. and she didnt die. Sometimes walking pneumonia. as everyone knows. is not anything to play around with. Why are my friends on the other side of the aisle complaining about a governmentrun program? This program has not been ruled unconstitutional. and it has been in place since 1965. So when they make the argument and it frightens our seniors who are listening and theyre saying. This vote. do we not have it? You have Medicare. We are enhancing Medicare. We are making it solvent. 2037. This is what this bill will do for you. Then let me just conclude with this. This is probably not readable. but this is my State celebrating the bill. This is the Texas Department of Insurance that has just put out a report celebrating all of the provisions of this bill that will help the millions of uninsured. You all know that Texas has the highest number of uninsured in the Nation. We are obviously a growing State with the highest number. This is not a Democratic Texas Department of Insurance. I only say that to say other States are doing the same. Moneys are now flowing to States to ease the burden of health care. So I dont know what my friends on the other side of the aisle are doing when States are receiving money now. when people have no more lifetime caps. when young people can be on their parents insurance because of the issue of being 26 years old. Then there is this legal argumentand this is the conclusion. I carry this book around. The commerce clause has covered our health bills or a number of Federal provisions that we have used. and we have not seen them overturned. and we havent seen Medicare overturned. Yet there is another element that. I think. raises a question for my colleagues. and I hope that those who are now in the courts on this billand it is the courts that make the determination of the constitutionality. not this Congress. not people who are responding to a campaign or to promises they made. I think theyd have to look at the question of the 14th Amendment and the equal protection of the law. Does that mean that those who can only pay a certain amount and get lowcaliber insurance should be taken advantage of. or does it mean that small businesses that would like to provide insurance for their employees dont have a right to some form of equal protection of the law? We thought about that. Thats what this bill does. It helps to equalize access to quality health care. and the Fifth Amendment clearly states that no one can deprive you of life or liberty or property. So there are a lot of provisions that. I think. are meritorious in any argument to suggest that this is an unconstitutional act that we did. We equalized the playing field as opposed to depriving people of the equal playing field. I thank the gentleman for having this. There are a whole bunch of items that we can comment on. Every State is benefiting. Every district is benefiting. I dont know how my friends could vote against actual direct benefits when the people in their States are jumping for joy. This bill is in place. and it is the law of the land. Let it be very clear: it is the law of the land.