[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 116 (Tuesday, July 18, 1995)]
[House]
[Pages H7078-H7079]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                    THE 30TH ANNIVERSARY OF MEDICARE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from Connecticut [Mrs. Kennelly] is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Mrs. KENNELLY. Mr. Speaker, at the end of the month our Nation will 
celebrate the 30th anniversary of Medicare. This occasion should remind 
all of us that nearly every single one of us is touched by Medicare. If 
you are an individual over 65, that is where you look to for your 
health care. If you are under 65 you certainly think about Medicare 
when you are planning for your retirement.
  We also know that those who have mothers and fathers alive or other 
relatives that they care about or are concerned about, they know 
Medicare is there for them. But most of all, this anniversary should 
make us all think about what Medicare has done for America's older 
citizens across the board.
  Before Medicare, more than half of all senior citizens did not have 
any health care coverage. Many seniors faced financial ruin when they 
had to go to the hospital for any length of time, and all too often 
they were forced to turn to others to help them, sometimes threatening 
those that they turned to, their financial future. But most of all, 
Medicare's anniversary should inspire us to know that we have to make 
sure Medicare is there for all of us.
  Eventually, what happened in the past was elderly people had nowhere 
to turn. Today, 97 percent of all Americans over the age of 65 have 
health care coverage; 97 percent. And while we must still work to 
address the problem of long-term care, which is still very much there, 
Medicare has saved seniors from going untreated or bankrupt when they 
needed to have health care.
  Before Medicare, 35 percent of American senior citizens lived below 
the poverty line. I think some of us can remember this, in part because 
a single trip of any length to the hospital destroyed somebody's life 
earnings. Today, 30 years after Medicare was signed into law, the 
number of elderly in poverty has declined to 12 percent. Much of this 
has to do with the Medicare system. 

[[Page H 7079]]

  Before Medicare, many of us can remember relatives, friends and 
neighbors that struggled to pay medical bills in our retirement. I 
remember a family down the street that was a mother and father and a 
very young boy, and there was a grandmother and aunt that lived in the 
same house. The grandmother got sick. I well remember it, because it 
was the talk of the neighborhood. What were they going to do. They only 
had limited savings. Eventually what happened was they lost their home.
  So it is fitting that our Nation should remember and honor Medicare's 
past as we in Congress prepare to determine Medicare's future. It is 
important that we remember what Medicare means to every American as we 
bring changes to the program.
  The budget recently passed by Congress calls for cutting Medicare 
$270 billion. This reduction will be three times larger than any other 
cut or any other change in the Medicare system. Thus far my concerns 
are twofold: First, how much of the $270 billion in Medicare cuts could 
be averted if Congress was not going to do the change of $245 billion 
in tax changes in the IRS Code? Second, are advocates being less than 
forthright when they say the plan will save Medicare?
  Everything I have heard to date suggests that we are talking about 
pushing the solvency date back a couple of years. This is very, very 
important. But I think we should look at the whole situation. We know 
that there are Medicare changes that have to be made. Let us make sure 
we do not have Medicare changes that do not have to be made because the 
money is going to be used in another way.
  Of course, we are still waiting for specific legislation that will 
implement these massive changes. Unfortunately, it is becoming 
increasingly clear that we will not see a real proposal until well into 
September, leaving us little chance to truly consider the large 
overhaul we should do in Medicare to make sure it is protected into the 
future.
  While it took years to enact the Medicare system, and that history 
has been written and rewritten, some now seem to want to radically 
change the program in a matter of weeks. It seems unwise at best to 
consider fundamental changes in a program that provides health care for 
37 million people, with little real opportunity to study and look at 
what the changes that are being advanced will do. If proposed changes 
to Medicare make sense, then they can stand the scrutiny of Congress 
and the American public. But the American people do not want to have a 
stealth system come in and not know what is going to happen until it 
has happened.
  In keeping with the 30th anniversary of Medicare, let us remember 
President Johnson's words 30 years ago when he signed that Medicare 
bill and declared no longer will older Americans be denied the healing 
miracle of modern medicine, and no longer will this Nation refuse the 
hand of justice to those who have given a lifetime of service, wisdom 
and labor to the progress of this progressive country.
  We have to remember those words because what all of us want to be 
sure of is that the Medicare system is there for those people over 65. 
It has been there, it has been a good program, it should remain there. 
Let us be very careful what we do.


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