[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 51 (Friday, April 19, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3736-S3737]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              HEALTH CARE

 Mr. GORTON. Mr. President, yesterday the U.S. Senate moved in 
a positive direction in reforming our Nation's health care system. S. 
1028, a bill narrow in scope that builds upon and strengthens the 
current private market system, moved one step closer to becoming law.
  During yesterday's debate, the merits of including medical savings 
accounts in the legislation were discussed at great length. I believe 
MSA's are a good idea. MSA's give people control over their health care 
dollars and encourage them to make their own decisions about health 
care benefits. They preserve medical freedom and provide plenty of 
incentives for cost control.

[[Page S3737]]

  Choice is the keystone of MSA's. As many of my colleagues have 
pointed out, with MSA's people can choose their physician, their 
hospital, their health care plan. Additionally, MSA's will bring about 
lower health care spending. Consumers will become more savvy about 
their health care options, and certainly the system will benefit as a 
result.
  The problem, Mr. President, is that it was absolutely clear that 
including an MSA provision would derail the entire bill and a real 
opportunity to enact meaningful health care reform would be lost. If 
the legislation had included that provision, my Democratic colleagues 
indicated they would filibuster the bill and the President indicated he 
would veto the entire measure. In short, this targeted, commonsense 
bill would have been killed.
  I am dedicated to the passage of health care reform and I do not want 
a good bill to be sacrificed for one provision, however worthy that 
provision may be. It was for this reason that I did not support the 
inclusion of MSA's in the final bill, and it's also the reason this MSA 
effort failed.
  Yes, Mr. President, medical savings accounts are a good idea. 
Although S. 1028 was not the right vehicle, I will look for other 
opportunities to promote and encourage them.

                          ____________________