[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 138 (Wednesday, September 28, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: September 28, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                           HEALTH CARE REFORM

  (Mr. LAZIO asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. LAZIO. Mr. Speaker, according to Senator Mitchell and the House 
Democrat leadership, the 103d Congress will not pursue even a modest 
health care reform proposal any further before adjournment.
  My constituents tell me that they want health care reform. They, as 
I, recognize that we have the best health care in the world, but the 
system is far from perfect and can certainly be fixed. They also tell 
me that they want reform done right and not to do more harm than good 
in the name of political expediency.
  Reforming our Nation's health care system is arguably the most 
complicated issue that Congress will ever address. For a wide variety 
of reasons, moving a comprehensive reform package through the 
legislative process has proven politically infeasible.
  However, a number of reforms have been identified during the debate 
that many of us on both sides of the aisle do, in fact, agree on. To 
me, it makes sense that we constructively use the time left before 
adjournment to focus on that common ground. We must brush aside 
partisan bickering and work together on the elements of health care 
reform where we agree. A stalemate simply does not serve the American 
people well.

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