[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 146 (Tuesday, September 19, 1995)]
[House]
[Page H9142]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            SAVING MEDICARE

  (Mr. PACKARD asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. PACKARD. Mr. Speaker, Medicare is going broke. The Medicare 
trustees recently reported that the money dries up in only a few short 
years. Seniors need to understand that once this happens the program 
they depend on to pay for doctors, hospitals and vital medications will 
cease to exist.
  My Republican colleagues and I recognize that the time to defuse this 
ticking time bomb is now. This week, we plan to introduce our proposal 
to save and strengthen Medicare.
  We plan to overhaul this 30-year-old program to root out waste and 
inefficiency. Furthermore, our plan offer's today's seniors the 
flexibility they need to navigate a fast changing modern medical 
landscape.
  Mr. Speaker, our plan is about choices and freedom and the right to 
have the same types of health care plans as found in the private 
sector. Our bill expands options for seniors, combats fraud and abuse, 
and ensures that the program will be there when seniors need it.

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