[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 91 (Wednesday, June 19, 1996)]
[House]
[Page H6517]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      DOING BETTER ON HEALTH CARE

  (Mrs. CLAYTON asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Mrs. CLAYTON. Mr. Speaker, we should indeed ask ourselves what are 
the implications of this Medicare discussion. Are they the realities my 
colleagues on the other side say? Well, the realities of cutting $168 
million from rural America in the State I come from will mean that many 
of my senior citizens will have to pay more for their premium. The 
reality will mean that they will be forced into health care plans where 
they have no option.
  The reality will mean in many instances the hospitals that depend 
heavily on Medicare and Medicaid may have to close. So the reality of 
cutting so severely does not protect for the future. It denies 
opportunity. Also, what should be the expectation for us as we look for 
Medicare and the security in the future? It means we need to come 
together as bipartisan and to understand there are ways to protect but 
not necessarily cut and be extreme.
  Mr. Speaker, there are ways in which we can help the citizens who 
need help now and to protect in the future. It requires us not to be 
extreme. It requires us to think about the poor as we think about the 
rich. Mr. Speaker, we can do better than this.

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