[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 147 (Tuesday, November 29, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: November 29, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                   THE AFFORDABLE HEALTH CARE NOW ACT

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Illinois [Mr. Michel] is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. MICHEL. Mr. Speaker, I am today introducing a bill that will be 
given the number H.R. 5300, a revised version of the Affordable Health 
Care Now Act.
  This version was developed this past summer to serve as the House 
Republican health reform amendment during Floor consideration of health 
reform legislation. It was submitted to the Rules Committee and was 
printed in its entirety in the Congressional Record of August 10.
  Since the House did not in the end take up this subject, I felt that 
this proposal should be introduced in bill form so that the various 
ideas and specific legislative language contained therein will be 
available to the Members next year for whatever use they may deem 
appropriate.
  The core of the proposal remains H.R. 3080, with some additions and 
modifications. I wish to commend our working group, Co-Chaired by Tom 
Bliley and Nancy Johnson, and including Dick Armey, Marge Roukema, Jim 
McCrery and Jim Greenwood, for their many hours of labor in developing 
these changes.
  Finally, I should point out that this proposal was developed to fit 
the legislative context within which health care was being considered 
this past year. The situation has changed, the American people have 
spoken, and they have expressed a preference for what I believe should 
have been our approach all along--that health reform should take place 
incrementally, step-by-step, so that we make sure we do it right and 
that we preserve the many benefits of our system while gradually 
correcting the areas where problems exist. I fully believe that this is 
the direction our new Republican Congress will take us in next year.

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