[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 98 (Tuesday, July 21, 1998)]
[House]
[Pages H5967-H5968]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  DEMOCRATIC PATIENTS' BILL OF RIGHTS

  (Mr. ALLEN asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. ALLEN. Mr. Speaker, in view of those last comments, I would point 
out that although we have investigations in this House galore, we have 
not had one hearing on the subject of managed care reform.
  Health care financing is in transition and the shift to managed care 
has raised concerns about implications for

[[Page H5968]]

health care quality. Managed care must be more than managed cost. Every 
American deserves quality health care. Managed care reforms are 
necessary at the Federal level to ensure that managed care is quality 
care. Even in my home State of Maine where strong patient protections 
have been enacted at the State level, my constituents know that we need 
a national solution to a national problem.
  The Republican legislation only applies to Americans in self-insured 
plans. They ignore two-thirds of Americans with private health 
insurance. One hundred thirteen million Americans are left out in the 
cold by the Republican bill.
  The Republicans have a patchwork approach to dealing with the real 
problems such as access to specialty care and the choice of physicians. 
Furthermore, the Republican bill is laced with poison pills such as 
health marts and malpractice limits.
  My constituents want real protections. They do not want a watered 
down bill. They want the Democratic Patients' Bill of Rights Act.

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