[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 76 (Thursday, June 16, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: June 16, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
             A CHOICE FOR THE STATES IN HEALTH CARE REFORM

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Michigan [Mr. Hoekstra] is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. HOEKSTRA. Mr. Speaker, tonight I return to address the issue that 
I talked about briefly last night. That question was, why does not 
Hawaii have to participate in health care reform?
  Yesterday in the Committee on Education and Labor markup of H.R. 
3600, the health care reform bill, members of that committee voted to 
allow the State of Hawaii to be exempted from having to participate in 
the health care reform plan. I found this an intriguing idea, but I 
could not understand why the committee stopped at just exempting 
Hawaii.
  Mr. Speaker, I know that people in my district in western Michigan 
believe they receive superior health care for a reasonable cost. They 
have developed a system that works for them. Studies have shown that 
the average cost per hospital stay is much lower in western Michigan 
than many of the models used by the administration to develop its plan.
  In essence, I agree and believe that different areas of the country 
should be allowed to be exempted from this health care reform plan if 
those areas do not believe that this plan will be beneficial to them. 
Statistics show that there are at least five or six other States that 
are delivering the same kinds of results that Hawaii is delivering, but 
are delivering them in methods that the people in those States have 
identified as being appropriate for that State.
  Mr. Speaker, I believe that when we are talking about health care 
reform, each State should be given the opportunity to opt into the 
plan, but should not be required to do so. I did not feel that way at 
the beginning of the week. I only started feeling that way after we 
decided that we were going to start making some exemptions.
  It is for that reason that today I proposed an amendment to H.R. 3600 
in committee. That amendment would allow a State to hold a referendum 
vote if it wants to participate in the plan. If the voters in that 
State cast a majority of ballots in favor of joining the plan, very 
simply, they are in. If less than a majority choose to belong, then 
very simply, the State is not in the plan.
  No State would be required to hold a referendum. Only those States 
that believe joining the plan is in their best interest would have to 
go to the voters to ask them if they could join.

  Mr. Speaker, what happened in committee today when that amendment 
came to the floor? What happened when the request was made that said, 
``Since Hawaii has now been exempted, how about letting the other 49 
States have an option?'' It was voted down. The argument was made, that 
is not very Jeffersonian, and it was not what the founders of the 
country intended.
  I go back to some statistics and why polls around the country are 
saying the people want more accountability from those of us in 
Congress, and one of those ways is by implementing a referendum 
process.
  Thomas Jefferson never believed that he would see a day where 45 
percent of the American people have hardly any confidence in Congress. 
Thomas Jefferson never envisioned the day where 82 percent of the 
American people would agree with this statement: Generally speaking, 
those we elect to Congress in Washington lose touch with the people 
pretty quickly.
  Thomas Jefferson never envisioned he day where the greatest 
deliberative body in the world would have 79 percent of the bills that 
come to the floor come under a restrictive rule, which means there is 
no opportunity for amendments. Thomas Jefferson never envisioned the 
day where there would be over 4,000 PAC's trying to buy their influence 
in this institution, and Thomas Jefferson never envisioned the day 
where Federal spending is approximately 22 percent of GDP.
  We need change. We need to have the people involved in the process. 
People do not trust Congress to make good decisions. The health care 
reform movement is, I think, the first place and an excellent place to 
let the American people back into the process. If choice is good enough 
for the people of Hawaii, why can not choice be good enough for the 
Americans in the 49 other States around this country?

                              {time}  2030

  They know what is good for their State. Let us develop a plan here in 
Washington. Let us bring it to the American people, and then let us let 
people in each of the 49 States determine what works for them.

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