109 HCON 410 IH: Expressing the sense of Congress regarding U.S. House of Representatives 2006-05-19 text/xml EN Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.

IV 109th CONGRESS 2d Session H. CON. RES. 410 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES May 19, 2006 Ms. Schakowsky (for herself, Mr. Conyers, Mr. Stark, Ms. Lee, Ms. Woolsey, Mr. Kucinich, Ms. Baldwin, Mr. Berman, Mr. Brady of Pennsylvania, Mr. Brown of Ohio, Mrs. Christensen, Mr. Clay, Mr. Crowley, Mr. Cummings, Mr. Davis of Illinois, Mr. DeFazio, Mr. Delahunt, Mr. Emanuel, Mr. Engel, Mr. Evans, Mr. Farr, Mr. Fattah, Mr. Frank of Massachusetts, Mr. Grijalva, Mr. Hinchey, Ms. Norton, Ms. Kaptur, Ms. Jackson-Lee of Texas, Mr. Jefferson, Mr. Kennedy of Rhode Island, Ms. Kilpatrick of Michigan, Mr. Langevin, Mr. Lewis of Georgia, Mrs. Maloney, Mr. Markey, Ms. McCollum of Minnesota, Mr. McDermott, Mr. McGovern, Mr. George Miller of California, Mr. Nadler, Mr. Olver, Mr. Owens, Mr. Pallone, Mr. Payne, Mr. Rangel, Mr. Rush, Mr. Sanders, Mr. Serrano, Ms. Solis, Mr. Thompson of Mississippi, Mr. Tierney, Mr. Towns, Ms. Wasserman Schultz, Ms. Waters, Mr. Waxman, Mr. Wexler, and Mr. Wynn) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce CONCURRENT RESOLUTION Expressing the sense of Congress regarding the enactment of legislation that provides access to comprehensive health care for all Americans.

Whereas the United States has the most expensive health care system in the world in terms of absolute costs, per capita costs, and percentage of gross domestic product (GDP); Whereas despite being first in spending, the World Health Organization has ranked the United States 37th among all nations in terms of meeting the health care needs of its people; Whereas nearly 46 million Americans, including 8,000,000 children, are uninsured; Whereas tens of millions more Americans are inadequately insured, including Medicare beneficiaries who lack access to meaningful prescription drug coverage and affordable long term care coverage; Whereas racial, income, and ethnic disparities in access to care threaten communities across the country, particularly communities of color; Whereas health care costs continue to increase, jeopardizing the financial and health security of working families and small businesses; Whereas dollars that could be spent on health care are being used for administrative costs instead of patient needs; Whereas the current health care system too often puts the bottom line ahead of patient care and threatens safety net providers who treat the uninsured and poorly insured; and Whereas any health care reform must ensure that health care providers and practitioners are able to provide patients with the quality care they need: Now, therefore, be it

That it is the sense of the Congress that legislation should be enacted by October 1, 2008, to guarantee that every person in the United States, regardless of income, age, or employment or health status, is entitled to receive all medically necessary care under a system of care that meets the following requirements: (1)The system provides a single universal standard of excellence in care applied to all patients. (2)Under the system, care is affordable to all individuals and families, businesses, and taxpayers and there are no financial barriers to needed care. (3)The system is as cost efficient as possible, spending the maximum amount of dollars on direct patient care. (4)The system provides comprehensive benefits, including benefits for mental health and long term care services. (5)The system promotes prevention and early intervention. (6)The system includes parity for mental health and other services. (7)The system eliminates disparities in access to quality health care. (8)The system addresses the needs of people with special health care needs and underserved populations in rural and urban areas. (9)The system promotes quality and better health outcomes. (10)The system addresses the need to have adequate numbers of qualified health care caregivers, practitioners, and providers to guarantee timely access to quality care. (11)The system provides adequate and timely payments in order to guarantee access to providers. (12)The system fosters a strong network of health care facilities, including safety-net providers. (13)The system ensures continuity of coverage and continuity of care. (14)The system maximizes consumer choice of health care providers and practitioners. (15)The system is easy for patients, providers, and practitioners to use and reduces paperwork. (16)The system provides patients with sufficient information to make informed decisions when selecting their health care providers.