[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 1 (Wednesday, January 23, 2002)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3-S4]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                             THE UNINSURED

  Mr. SMITH of Oregon. Mr. President, we all come back having 
experienced different things and having heard different messages in our 
States. But as the Budget Committee took up its duties this morning and 
began hearing economic reports, it was clear to me on the committee 
that there is overwhelming bipartisan support for winning the war 
abroad and for better homeland defense here. Then differences begin to 
emerge as to how best to strengthen America's economic security. 
Clearly, the economic stimulus package is a priority for many, and 
certainly for the State of Oregon which I am privileged to represent. 
When we list all of those priorities, we wonder what is left to help 
with the other priorities this Nation has.
  I rise to speak of a priority I have, that I began working on in the 
last session of this Congress, with my colleague, Ron Wyden, the issue 
of the burgeoning ranks of the uninsured. I rise to talk about that 
subject.
  I stand to say that health insurance is something about which we 
should all be concerned. Living without health insurance can result in 
bankruptcy, unnecessary delays in treatment, and, in some tragic 
circumstances, even death itself. We need to be concerned about it, not 
just because we all may at some point in our lives become uninsured. We 
need to be concerned about the uninsured because it is a moral outrage 
that so many Americans have no health coverage even as they live and 
work in the wealthiest nation on Earth.
  We have heard the statistics: Over 40 million Americans do not have 
health insurance. We have heard the number so many times that it seems 
to have lost its impact, in this place at least. Let's look at the 
number more closely: 40 million Americans is one in six people in our 
country who do not qualify for Medicare. That number includes citizens 
from every conceivable walk of life: children, pregnant women, parents, 
single adults, full-time workers, self-employed individuals, and 
students. The 40 million people include those who have lost their jobs 
as the economy has worsened. It includes people who have worked hard 
for small companies that cannot afford to offer health benefits to 
employees. It includes people who work for companies that offer health 
benefits, but who cannot afford their share of the premium. Most 
Americans would be surprised to know more than 80 percent of all 
uninsured children and adults live in families who have at least one 
adult working.

  This week the country celebrated the life and work of Dr. Martin 
Luther King, Jr. More than 30 years after his death, it seems 
incredible that the racial disparity in health care is still so 
evident. More than any other group, the people who are living without 
health insurance in the United States are Hispanic and African 
American. Thirty-two percent of all Hispanics in this country had no 
health insurance coverage last year; the number is even worse for low-
income Hispanics, 43 percent of whom live without insurance. This 
situation should no longer be tolerated.
  As the Senate convenes for the second session of the 107th Congress, 
there has never been a better time to address the issues of the 
uninsured. Americans are losing their jobs as the recession continues, 
without the benefit of any economic stimulus legislation from this 
Congress.
  In addition, the brief era of stability in health insurance premiums 
seem to have ended. In 2001, the average cost of employer-sponsored 
health insurance coverage rose 11 percent. Those who work in small 
firms saw increases substantially higher than that.
  There can be no doubt what will happen this year. It has already 
begun. Through no fault of their own, many employers will have to raise 
copayments and premiums, while reducing

[[Page S4]]

benefits, if they are able to continue to offer insurance to their 
employees at all. The bottom line is that more people than ever will 
lose their health insurance.
  These numbers are truly startling. But behind every one of those, 
every single case of those 40 million people, there is an American face 
and a human story.
  As I travel around Oregon visiting community health centers, I meet 
more and more people who live without health insurance. I hear their 
stories. There are many ways we can help shrink that gap between the 
insured and the uninsured. We should pursue that goal with the policy 
we begin formulating in the Budget Committee.
  While the stories of all of the people I meet are different, they 
are, in most cases, quite tragic, and the circumstances that have 
brought them to these places are often similar. The loss of a job. An 
increase in insurance premiums. A serious illness. These are 
unavoidable circumstances that could happen to any American.
  While I understand the looming budget deficit this year will make new 
initiatives difficult, the current economic climate is all the more 
reason to focus attention and resources on covering the uninsured this 
year. In the immortal word of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: ``The time 
is always right to do what is right.''
  I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the order for the 
quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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