[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 113 (Thursday, July 13, 1995)]
[House]
[Page H6918]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 REPUBLICANS ARE CUTTING MEDICARE TO PAY FOR TAX BREAKS FOR THE WEALTHY

  (Mr. OLVER asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. OLVER. Mr. Speaker, every senior citizen in this country needs to 
understand what is going on here. The Republicans are going to cut $270 
billion out of Medicare. To make these huge cuts the Republicans will 
demand more copayments, raise deductibles, and hike premiums. I say to 
my colleagues, ``You will wake up in the year 2000 and your $46-a-month 
premium will be at least doubled. Your $100 deductible will be more 
than double. You will have to pay 20 percent of any home care or 
rehabilitation care that you need out of your own pocket even if your 
only income is Social Security.''
  Why are the Republicans making these huge cuts? To give $245 billion 
in tax cuts, yet more than half of these cuts will go to people earning 
more than $100,000 a year. I say to my colleagues, ``That's easily 10 
times your income on Social Security.''
  Mr. Speaker, I say to my colleagues, ``The Republicans think Medicare 
is the bank of the budget. They'll pull up to the bank window, withdraw 
your money, and put it right into the pockets of the richest Americans 
who simply don't care whether you get needed health care or not.''


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