[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 145 (Friday, October 7, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: October 7, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
AMENDING THE SOCIAL SECURITY ACT AND RELATED ACTS TO MAKE MISCELLANEOUS 
                        AND TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS

  Mr. STARK. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on 
Ways and Means and the Committee on Energy and Commerce be discharged 
from further consideration of the bill (H.R. 5252) to amend the Social 
Security Act and related acts to make miscellaneous and technical 
amendments, and for other purposes, and ask for its immediate 
consideration.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from California?
  Mrs. JOHNSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, reserving the right to 
object, I yields to the gentleman from California [Mr. Stark].
  Mr. STARK. Mr. Speaker, I will be glad to explain the bill. This bill 
is a combination of two bills which we have been waiting for from the 
other body. With the concurrence of the majority and the minority from 
the Committee on Ways and Means and the Committee on Energy and 
Commerce, we have taken a portion of H.R. 11, the Social Security Act 
technical amendments, which have twice passed the House and once passed 
the Senate, and embodied them in this bill, which, if the gentlewoman 
will not object, will go to the Senate and await further consideration. 
We have added to that a provision that is there because of the 
perception and perseverance and persistence of the gentlewoman from 
Connecticut [Mrs. Johnson].

                              {time}  2200

  This is an extension of a Medicare select demonstration that is 
working in 15 States. We are extending that demonstration for 6 months 
from the first of the year and it is the intention of the Committee on 
Ways and Means and the Committee on Energy and Commerce to immediately 
begin to work on a permanent bill for this plan.
  I would further state that there were other provisions in H.R. 11 
which are not in this bill because of serious objections from the other 
body and that no new provisions have been added. I would like to take 
this opportunity as the year ends, if the gentlewoman would further 
yield, to thank certainly on behalf of the Committee on Ways and Means 
and more specifically the House subcommittee, the ranking minority 
member of the House subcommittee, the gentlewoman; the distinguished 
staff of the subcommittee and the staff of the full committee for their 
work through the year as we have dealt with many issues dealing with 
Medicare and health reform.
  Mrs. JOHNSON of Connecticut. I thank the gentleman from California 
for her explanation and I thank my chairman as well of his hard work in 
bringing these Medicare technical amendments to passage and for his 
willingness to extend the Medicare select program for a few months 
while our subcommittee does the appropriate oversight work necessary to 
reauthorization. These technical amendments do represent many, many 
hours of hard work by the subcommittee and do merit our attention and 
passage.
  Further reserving my right to object, I yield to the gentleman from 
California [Mr. Thomas].
  Mr. THOMAS of California. I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to very briefly commend both of you. It is 
getting to be kind of tiresome to have technical corrections that were 
simply followups to bills that have been passed sitting around for 2 
years because the other body is not willing to do its job. I commend 
the chairman for putting the Medicare select provisions in, even though 
it is for just 6 months, so that we do not diminish Medicare benefits. 
But I also want to at this time acknowledge the kind of work that the 
gentlewoman from Connecticut has done, not just on this one particular 
measure which frankly was moribund until she was willing to make sure 
that the House did what it was supposed to do. But for the long, long 
hours that she put in on health care so that the subcommittee, the full 
committee, and the House could be better informed about what we need to 
do in making difficult choices in front of us. I just want to 
compliment her not just for her perseverance but for the knowledge that 
she has acquired and the contribution that she has made in this and 
previous Congresses and I look forward to the contributions she makes 
in the next Congress.
  Mrs. JOHNSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from 
California.
  Mrs. JOHNSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, I withdraw my reservation 
of objection and state my support for H.R. 5252.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. de la Garza). Is there objection to the 
request of the gentleman from California?
  There was no objection.
  The Clerk read the bill, as follows:
  (The bill will be printed in a subsequent issue of the Congressional 
Record.)
  The bill was ordered to be ingrossed and read a third time, was read 
the third time, and passed, and a motion to reconsider was laid on the 
table.

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