[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 44 (Wednesday, March 27, 1996)]
[House]
[Page H2876]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       PASS A CLEAN BILL TOMORROW

  (Mrs. KENNELLY asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute.)
  Mrs. KENNELLY. Madam Speaker, the Kennedy-Kassebaum bill has a simple 
premise: If you leave or lose your job, you should not lose your health 
insurance because of a preexisting health condition. As introduced in 
the House, the bill is only 65 pages long. Here is a copy of it.
  However, the bill that will come to the House floor tomorrow is more 
than 220 pages long. Here is a copy of it. The bill adds 10 separate 
provisions to the health insurance portion of the bill.
  Some of these additions are good ideas, but several are very 
controversial, such as tax breaks for medical savings accounts and 
exempting certain health plans from State insurance regulation. I am 
worried these additions could kill a bill that guarantees Americans the 
right to have portable health insurance.
  Madam Speaker, Republicans in the Senate say they want a clean bill. 
Democrats in the House say they want a clean bill. And the President 
says he wants a clean bill. I hope the majority in the House will now 
join us in an effort to pass a bill without any special interest 
addons. Let us not load on so much baggage that we bring the whole 
plane down.

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