[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 130 (Friday, September 25, 1998)]
[House]
[Page H8842]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




COMMENDING THE HOUSE FOR OUTSTANDING WORK ON SAVING SOCIAL SECURITY AND 
           IMPROVING THE LIVES AND HEALTH OF SENIOR CITIZENS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Fox) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. FOX of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I rise to address the House 
this evening to commend the House for its outstanding work. I 
appreciate the time to address the House, because I think it is very 
important. With the passage today of the Save Social Security Act, it 
is one more way to make sure that our senior citizens are protected. 
This new legislation will make sure that with any budget surplus, and 
with the $1.4 trillion, the first money from that surplus will go to 
the social security trust fund for our senior citizens.
  Mr. Speaker, with senior citizens living longer we want to make sure 
they live better. We wanted to make sure we strengthen the social 
security system. We also at the same time want to look to improving 
health care for our seniors and others. That is why the House is to be 
congratulated for leading the way here in Congress and in Washington on 
FDA reform, to make sure we speed up the approval of lifesaving drugs 
and medical devices.
  That legislation, while we are waiting for a cure or vaccine for many 
illnesses, will help us be able to make sure that we are helping with 
clinical trials and with third-party review, and be able to make sure 
that we help our citizens live longer and better.
  I am interested in also pointing out that here in Congress and the 
House we have worked to double the NIH funding, the National Institutes 
of Health. That is very important when it comes to increasing the 
research monies that are allocated for breast cancer research, uterine 
cancer, ovarian cancer, prostate cancer. It is coming at a very 
important time.
  Tomorrow, Mr. Speaker, we are having the first ever march of its 
kind, a march to fight against cancer, to find a cure in our lifetime 
for all the cancers. This is an important march where very important 
health care providers, health care practitioners, researchers, and 
entertainers will be here on the Washington Mall, together with elected 
officials, to make sure we stand arm in arm to make sure the kind of 
dollars, resources, and emphasis is placed on cures for cancer.
  That dovetails with legislation that I have introduced, Mr. Speaker, 
to protect our senior citizens, the Senior Citizen Bill of Rights. In 
that legislation we are going to roll back the 1993 tax on Social 
Security. We are going to keep social security off-budget, so it is not 
used for other purposes, but used for seniors and their security.
  It will also address the notch baby problem, those babies born 
between 1917 and 1926 who are in their golden years and should be able 
to have the full benefits that other Social Security recipients have. 
Our notch baby provision will be addressed in that legislation.
  We also, in the Senior Citizen Bill of Rights, increase the penalties 
for those who would commit fraud against senior citizens, such as 
telemarketing fraud and others who would prey upon our senior citizens 
and take away their life savings.
  Also our legislation calls for elimination of the inheritance taxes. 
Many people have a family business, a family farm, and they take the 
money and have to give it to Uncle Sam, instead of making sure the next 
generation of the family can enjoy the fruits of labor that many of our 
families and friends have built up over a lifetime.
  Finally, we have patient protection. We have legislation this House 
has adopted to make sure, Mr. Speaker, that doctors have the final say 
in making sure our patients get the medical advice they need, get the 
referrals to specialists they need, get the admissions to hospitals 
that they need, and as well, have the right to appeal a wrongful denial 
of health care on behalf of their patients and our constituents.
  I think we have done a great deal to move forward in health care as 
far as senior citizens, on their rights, on their security, and making 
sure, above all, that Social Security and Medicare are protected and 
saved and strengthened.
  The final item which I think we will embark on is the fact that we 
make sure with Medicare we have those new prevention programs on an 
annual basis, the mammograms that are annual, we have the pap smears, 
we also have the colorectal cancer screening, the diabetes screening, 
and osteoporosis.
  Those kinds of prevention programs we fought for are making a 
difference, and the fact that those who would now defraud Medicare are 
eligible for jail terms and loss of rights to be a provider are 
strengthening Medicare the way citizens want.
  We need to move forward, together with much other legislation, but we 
certainly have to take this time to look at what we have done for our 
seniors, and to make sure we redouble our efforts to do even more.

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