[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 117 (Thursday, August 18, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: August 18, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
               A CALL FOR UNIVERSAL HEALTH CARE COVERAGE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from Georgia [Mr. McKinney] is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Ms. McKinney. Madam Speaker, health care reform without universal 
coverage is no reform at all.
  I am pleased to join with my colleagues as we underscore the need for 
health care coverage for everyone.
  I would like to remind my colleagues of the six principles of health 
care reform: First, security; second, simplicity; third, savings; 
fourth, quality, fifth, choice; and sixth, responsibility. They are 
included in the Gephardt bill and must be a part of any reform that is 
meaningful.
  After waiting for so long, hard-working families from Georgia's 11th 
District and throughout America can no longer wait for health 
security--their interests will not be served by tinkering at the 
margins.
  Mr. Speaker, we were sent here to Washington with a mandate from the 
people--to change the business as usual politics into a government that 
looks after the needs of its people. We anticipated resistance from the 
obstructionist, divisive Republican Gridlock Gang, and we have been 
fighting them with full force every step of the way.
  Politics, gridlock, and partisan positioning can no longer keep us 
from accomplishing what is within our grasp: Health care reform that 
guarantees that health care will be there when we need it.
  Without universal coverage, ``health care reform'' is a meaningless 
phrase. We must not fall short of our promise. Health care reform, 
after all, is for the people.
  I applaud the Senate on putting people first by passing the Dodd 
amendment this week. The amendment will put children and pregnant women 
at the top of the list to be covered under health care reform. Nothing 
should be of greater importance than the health and well being of our 
children. Unfortunately, the Gridlock Gang does not care about 
America's children and pregnant women.
  About 6 years ago, I took my 2-year-old son to Scottish Rite 
Children's Hospital in Atlanta for a procedure. As expected, health 
care providers ran their standard tests for a child that age.
  What I did not expect, however, were the results to come back saying 
that my son carried the gene for sickle-cell anemia.
  I was shocked. This disease that predominately strikes African-
Americans and wiped out so many--how could it have found its way into 
my son's little body?
  After more tests, it was determined that he only carried the trait 
and he does not have the disease. He is a happy healthy boy who plays 
soccer and baseball and does well in school. But in the back of my 
mind, every time he has stomach pains or his arms and legs ache, I 
worry of what it might be. And I get angry that still today there is 
not enough research on sickle cell anemia.
  At the National Institutes of Health, researchers are working to find 
effective treatment for sickle cell. However, without access to health 
care, hundreds of thousands of uninsured African-American children will 
not reap the benefits of this research. We need to pass health care 
reform now. Our kids must not be forgotten.
  The Gephardt bill does not forget the importance of research in 
meaningful health care reform. Mr. Gephardt's bill will put a 1 percent 
tax on health insurance premiums, which will go into a trust. A portion 
of that trust will go to NIH research that will find new cures and 
treatments, giving hope to those who battle diseases such as sickle 
cell and breast cancer. The funding from this trust for NIH will begin 
at one-half billion dollars and will grow to three-quarters of a 
billion over 10 years.
  I urge all Members of this House to do the right thing for the people 
of America. Passage of the Gephardt bill assures health care reform 
that puts people first. And health care reform without universal 
coverage is no reform at all.

                              {time}  1910

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mrs. Thurman). Under a previous order of the 
House, the gentleman from Connecticut [Mr. Shays] is recognized for 5 
minutes.

  [Mr. SHAYS addressed the House. His remarks will appear hereafter in 
the Extensions of Remarks.]

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