[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 86 (Friday, June 30, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1159]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          MEDICARE RX 2000 ACT

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                               speech of

                       HON. ERNEST J. ISTOOK, JR.

                              of oklahoma

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 28, 2000

  Mr. ISTOOK. Mr. Speaker, I want prescription drugs to be available 
and affordable, but this is not the way to do it. If something is 
overpriced, it's nonsense to have government step in and agree to pay 
that inflated price. That is not good stewardship of public money.
  Congress should be holding hearings about price-fixing allegations, 
and about whether there is price-gouging of American patients, to 
subsidize overseas sales of prescription drugs. But if costs are 
exorbitant, it's wrong-headed to use tax dollars to pay those inflated 
prices. That will not bring the prices down.
  Instead, there is a stampede to buy the votes of senior citizens, by 
spending enormous amounts of taxpayers' money on a new entitlement. I'm 
not joining that stampede to buy votes with taxpayers' money. I'm 
disappointed that fellow Republicans would abandon principles to buy 
votes with promises of a huge new government program. Yet the Democrat 
plan is worse; its cost is about double. Both sides are in a bidding 
war, and both are bidding with taxpayers' money.
  The cost of the GOP plan is not ``only'' $8 billion a year. The 
official projection says it soon will be $28 billion a year and 
probably it will be even higher. It would be automatic spending, which 
would go on forever. This is how our national debt was created, and why 
it's so tough to balance the budget and pay down the debt.
  Medicare is already in major financial trouble. You don't fix it by 
adding more spending, when it's already costing too much and delivering 
too little.
  For example, if the foundation of your house is crumbling, you don't 
build a new third story. Instead, you fix the foundation before you 
consider adding on. That's what we should do with Medicare.
  Medicare's government bureaucracy doesn't even pay hospitals 
(especially rural hospitals) the cost of the care they provide. That 
drives up medical costs for everyone who is not on Medicare. This is 
part of what we should fix first, before promising an new expensive 
benefit.

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