[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 109 (Tuesday, September 14, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Pages S9160-S9163]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         HEALTH CARE IN AMERICA

  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, yesterday President Bush went to Battle 
Creek, MI. The purpose of his visit, of course, was in preparation for 
the election but also to raise a critical issue, and the issue is the 
same one we have discussed this morning: health care in America. 
President Bush was outspoken in attacking Senator John Kerry for having 
the nerve to suggest we need to change health care in America.
  In criticizing John Kerry, President Bush, quoting from the morning 
newspaper, said John Kerry's proposal would be ultimately a Government 
takeover of medicine. It would be a massive, complicated blueprint to 
have our Government take over decisionmaking in health care. 
Bureaucrats would become the decisionmakers.
  Once again, the Republican Party and President Bush wave the bloody 
shirt that if anyone suggests a change in the health care system in 
America today that they are calling for socialism and more bureaucracy.
  What the President refuses to acknowledge and what the leadership on 
the Republican side of the Senate refuses to acknowledge is the health 
care system in America is in crisis. Since this President took office, 
census figures show 3.8 million more Americans are uninsured. In 
addition, the Kaiser Family Foundation study released last week said 
families are paying on average $1,000 more out of pocket for health 
coverage this year than in the year before the President was elected.
  It tells us that health care is becoming more expensive, more 
exclusive, and, frankly, that the average working family doesn't have a 
fighting chance under this system. What is the response on the 
Republican side of the aisle? What is the response from President Bush? 
More of the same. Don't rock the boat. We cannot say anything negative 
when it comes to the enormous profits that are being garnered by the 
drug companies and the HMOs.
  But families and businesses across America understand the reality of 
health care today. When the Republican leader comes to the floor of the 
Senate and announces that we don't have time in the remaining weeks of 
the session to consider the issue of reimporting drugs from Canada or 
other countries, what he has basically said to thousands of seniors and 
families across America is that we are going to protect American drug 
companies and their profits at any cost. That is what has happened with 
our own prescription drug plan for seniors, and it is what is happening 
for the agenda for the Senate.
  Look at what happened to premiums across America. On this chart is a 
trendline. I don't have to go year by year. Ask any employer in America 
what has happened to health insurance premiums and they will tell you 
that every year it is more expensive. I go around Illinois and meet 
with good, solid, God-fearing Republican businessmen who tell me: 
Senator, we cannot take it anymore. There is no way we can deal with 
these annual increases in health insurance. What are you doing in 
Washington about this? The honest answer is, under the Bush 
administration and the Republican-controlled Congress, absolutely 
nothing. So what do these businesses do? They will tell you over and 
over again they have no choice. How big an obstacle is health care cost 
in hiring new employees? And 78 percent say it is an obstacle. They 
cannot hire a new person because the cost of health insurance is so 
high.
  What about the health insurance companies, the HMOs? How are they 
faring as these health insurance premiums go up? Do the premium 
increases just reflect the fact that it costs more to provide health 
care? Look at their profit margins. HMO profits from 2002 to 2003 went 
from $5.5 billion to almost double that amount, $10.2 billion.
  You ask yourself, why is the President criticizing John Kerry for 
bringing up meaningful health care reform

[[Page S9161]]

to help working families and help small businesses and large businesses 
as well? Because the HMOs don't want anybody to rock the boat. The Bush 
administration, whether they are dealing with the drug companies or 
HMOs, is going to protect their profit margins, even at the expense of 
adequate health care for Americans.
  When you take a look at what John Kerry proposed, I don't believe it 
is radical. Would you be in favor of reducing the tax cuts for people 
making over $200,000 a year and taking that money and expanding the 
coverage of health insurance in America? Is that a radical idea? No, 
that is a commonsense idea. People making over $200,000 a year are not 
going to miss that tiny tax cut as a percentage of their income. But 
when you put that money together, you are able to address some of the 
serious problems facing us.
  I believe President Bush forgot the obvious. Average working people 
cannot keep up with the cost of health insurance and health care in 
America. His administration has done nothing, absolutely nothing, to 
deal with it. What do they do when John Kerry comes forward and says it 
is time for us to have a bipartisan discussion on bringing the costs of 
health care under control and expanding coverage? President Bush goes 
to Battle Creek, MI, and accuses him of socialized medicine, huge 
bureaucracies. He says, ``A Government takeover of medicine.'' Those 
days have passed.

  It has been over 10 years since the Congress and the Government in 
Washington have had a serious conversation about the cost of health 
insurance. In that period of time, the private sector has been in 
charge. The private sector has done to health care what you would 
expect them to do. They have raised the cost and reduced the risk. So 
every year you find your health care premiums going up and coverage 
going down while their profits go through the roof. If you want 4 more 
years of the same, you will have a chance to vote for it on November 2.
  Also, consider that Congress--this Chamber, the Senate, and across 
the rotunda in the House--has failed to meet our responsibilities under 
Republican leadership. When we have the Republican leader come before 
us today and say we don't have time to deal with the reimportation of 
drugs before we adjourn for a recess this year, trust me, if the 
Republicans continue in control of this Chamber, there will be another 
excuse next year.
  Despite the best efforts of Senator Daschle, Senator Dorgan, Senator 
Kennedy, and so many others, we are not going to have an opportunity to 
help people across America deal with the soaring costs of health care 
until there is a change in leadership and attitude. It is time for 
business and labor, Republicans and Democrats, to come together to face 
this health care issue and to do it in a bipartisan fashion. We can do 
it, but we need a change of leadership to achieve it.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor.
  Mr. REID. Will the Senator from Massachusetts allow the Senator from 
Michigan 2 minutes?
  Mr. KENNEDY. I am delighted to.
  Mr. REID. Senator Kennedy still has 15 minutes. The Senator from 
Michigan has 2 minutes.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Michigan is recognized.
  Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I thank my colleagues very much. I thank 
the Senator from Massachusetts for allowing me to take 2 minutes to 
follow up on the comments of the distinguished Senator from Illinois 
concerning what is happening on health care and reimportation.
  I just came from a gathering with colleagues on both sides of the 
aisle and the House of Representatives, speaking out again on why we 
need to pass that bill immediately. We want to lower prices. We need to 
allow pharmacists to do business with pharmacists across the border in 
Canada or other countries where it is safe, and we can drop prices in 
half.
  I also raise one more time this issue of the Medicare premium 
increase that was announced by the administration over a week ago at 
the end of the day, on a Friday, in the middle of a hurricane, 
unfortunately, right after the Republican convention, when the 
President indicated he was going to lower pricing for seniors for 
health care, and then we saw an announcement of the largest premium 
increase in the history of the country--17.5-percent premium increase. 
Social Security is only going up by approximately 3 percent this year, 
which means seniors will be moving backward, being put in a real hole 
as a result of what is happening.
  I am pleased to have introduced legislation along with my colleague 
from Massachusetts and other Members. We welcome everyone's support and 
cosponsorship, and I hope we can get this taken up as quickly as 
possible. There will be a 17.5-percent increase in Medicare premiums, 
and a piece of that, as a result of policy changes to privatize 
Medicare, is not acceptable. As I indicated before, Social Security is 
going to go up about 3 percent. Yet, we are going to see the highest 
increase in Medicare's history in premiums.
  The majority of seniors have not asked to privatize Medicare. They 
have not chosen that option. They should not be paying for it. I urge 
my colleagues to join us to fix that before we leave this fall.
  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I yield our additional 5 minutes to Senator 
Kennedy, for a total of 20 minutes.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Massachusetts is recognized.
  Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. President, first, I commend our leader, Senator 
Daschle, for his presentation this morning and for his constancy and 
leadership in attempting to bring reimportation legislation before the 
Senate. He has supported the bipartisan legislation. He reminds us 
about the importance of it. I am a strong supporter of that 
legislation. I am disappointed, as Senator Dorgan is, that we have not 
been able to address it.
  This legislation would have an important impact in terms of grabbing 
a hold of the problem of the escalation of prescription drug prices. 
The issues on safety have been addressed. I commend our leader for 
recognizing this and bringing it to the Senate, and I thank Senator 
Dorgan for his persistence and leadership. Once again, I commend as 
well my friend and colleague from Michigan, Debbie Stabenow, who has 
been a leader in pursuing a legitimate prescription drug program for 
years--certainly since she has been in the Senate. I thank again 
Senator Durbin from Illinois for his very eloquent summation about 
where we are in terms of our health care challenges in this country.

  I was somewhat surprised, although I should not have been, reading 
through the President's statement yesterday.
  I ask the Chair if he would let me know when I have 3 minutes left, 
please.
  I was surprised, listening to the President talk about the health 
care challenges we are facing in this Nation. What troubled me about 
the presentation is that the President went on to misrepresent what my 
friend and colleague stands for, and basically what I stand for, in the 
health care choices that are before this Nation. Then, in a technique 
which some of us have gotten used to here in the Senate--but certainly 
I think it is unworthy in the Presidential debate--to misrepresent, 
distort the position of the opposition, and then to differ with it. 
That is a debate technique which is used here frequently, but is 
certainly not, I think, fitting in terms of the office of the 
Presidency of the United States.
  In his comments he mentioned that today we are going to hear a lot of 
talk about a difference of opinion. It starts with: You know what you 
expect from a Senator from Massachusetts.
  I imagine he was, in all respect, making a reference to the 
longstanding position I have held which I think is still absolutely 
essential for this country; that we have a universal, comprehensive 
program that is affordable, dependable, and reliable, at a price that 
working families, middle-income families can afford. That has been my 
position. I have offered legislation for more than 35 years to try to 
be able to do it. We have been unable to do it and I think the American 
people have suffered.
  When I was reading through the comments of the President, they had a 
wisp of the kind of comments made 35 years ago when a comprehensive, 
universal program was proposed. At that time the opponents said, Can 
you imagine, this bill to have a universal, comprehensive program will 
cost $100 billion?
  Let me remind America, this year we are going to spend $1.8 trillion, 
and $500

[[Page S9162]]

billion of that $1.8 trillion has been the increase of the cost of 
health care for American families since this President assumed office. 
Hello? Hello, Mr. President? Five hundred billion dollars, half a 
trillion dollars in increases, and what do you get for it? I will come 
back to that.
  The basic point, so all of us know what John Kerry is fighting for, 
is to let the American people buy the same kind of insurance policy we 
have. Who are we? We are Members of the Congress of the United States. 
We are Senators of the United States. We are executive members of the 
U.S. Government. We have a very good program. John Kerry believes that 
same program ought to be made available to the American people. But 
President Bush does not, nor does the Republican leadership. That is 
the basic difference.
  We know we have a very good program. There is not a Member of this 
body, not a single Member of this body who doesn't have the Federal 
Employees Insurance Program. It is an excellent one. We pay 25 percent 
of the premium and the taxpayers pay 75 percent. That is true with 
regard to the President of the United States. I wonder, for all those 
people who were out in that crowd yesterday listening, what percent are 
they paying for their premiums? I doubt if 2 percent or 3 percent or 4 
percent of the crowd he was talking to have the same quality of health 
insurance we have in the Senate.
  It bothers me when we have statements which misrepresent what my 
friend and colleague is fighting for, which I believe in very deeply. 
That the American people are entitled to and should have the same kind 
of health insurance everyone in this body has. That is the issue.

  This President says no to that. The Republican leadership says no to 
that. In the meantime, what they do reminds me very much of what they 
did with regard to the Iraqi policy. They misrepresent, they distort, 
and they basically deceive the American people with regard to the facts 
of the opposition. That is what they have done with regard to Senator 
Kerry's position.
  We have a campaign on. I was here during the debates on the Medicare 
program. We had legitimate debates on it. It is true the Republicans 
overwhelmingly opposed Medicare, as they opposed Social Security. So 
when you listen to a lot of our colleagues--including this 
administration--talk about how they are for comprehensive universal 
health care, we ought to say: Hello? When did that come about? We 
haven't heard that for the last 4 years.
  I challenge any Republican to identify the legislation that has been 
advanced, put before the Senate, that would provide the kind of 
comprehensive, universal health care coverage at the cost people can 
afford. It is not there. This administration has not fought for it, 
doesn't believe in it, and is distorting and misrepresenting the 
program John Kerry has offered.
  There has been reference today to ``Medical Costs Eat At Social 
Security.'' I wonder if the President mentioned that yesterday. When 
the actual publication of the Medicare actuaries came out, they 
designated these increases, not by dollars, but by lines. That is 
because this administration has been hiding the costs of their various 
programs. It even says here at the bottom of the article which Senator 
Daschle has had printed, that Foster, who is one of the principal 
spokespersons for the administration ``is at the center of another 
dispute over missing data. He said he withheld from Congress higher 
cost estimates for the Medicare law last year. . . .''
  Hello? Here it is, the administration trying to hide the costs of 
Medicare, and complaining, out in Michigan, about the costs of Senator 
Kerry's health care program. The article says Foster ``withheld from 
Congress higher cost estimates last year at the direction of a Bush 
appointee.''
  A Bush appointee? Hello, Mr. President, why haven't you mentioned 
this in your comments about Senator Kerry?
  That would be sad enough, if it weren't for the real results of these 
increases and in particular the failure of this administration to get a 
handle on health care costs and on prescription drugs. With the passage 
of what I call the good-for-nothing Medicare bill the President 
referred to as--well, he talks about:

       I was sent to Washington to do something, so we modernized 
     Medicare . . . [Listen to this, so we modernized Medicare] 
     with the Medicare bill that was passed just this last year.

  We will come to that in a moment. But let's look at what is happening 
to the increased costs on Social Security. I draw your attention to 
this chart entitled ``The Bush Medicare Program, Health Costs 
Impoverish Senior Citizens.''
  These are not the figures of the Senator from Massachusetts. These 
are the figures of the Office of the Actuary, Department of Health and 
Human Services. The chart they used in the article, ``Medical Costs Eat 
At Social Security,'' is for a 65-year-old. This is for an 85-year-old. 
These are the members of the ``greatest generation.'' These are the men 
and women who fought in World War II, the great generation that lifted 
the Nation out of the Depression, fought in World War II.
  By 2006, 43 percent of their Social Security benefit is going to be 
used to pay for the premium and the copayments under Medicare. In 2016 
it will be 52 percent. By 2026, it will be 65 percent. That is 43 
percent by 2006. How are our seniors going to do it? Well, Senator 
Kennedy, we have had an increase in the cost of health care, and this 
has been terrible but this administration has tried to do something 
about it. Baloney. This administration has done nothing about the 
health care costs that are out of control.

  This chart shows that health care costs are out of control. This 
chart indicates the increase in the premiums that we have seen during 
the period of 2001 cumulatively to 2004. The blue indicates the CPI 
during that period of time. What we have seen cumulatively is the CPI 
has gone up 9.2 percent, and health care costs, 59 percent.
  Costs are out of control. Where is the administration's answer to the 
cost of the control? Why aren't we debating that on floor of the Senate 
after we do homeland security? Why aren't we doing it? We have an 
opportunity to do something about it with the reimportation. You just 
heard the majority leader say we were not going to consider it at this 
time.
  The President says costs are out of control. We say OK. Let us do 
something. Let us make a downpayment and try to get a handle on 
prescription drugs. The majority leader and the President say: No. You 
can't do that. We are not going to let you do that. We are going to 
block you here in the U.S. Senate.
  Here it is with regard to the general costs being out of control in 
relation to the CPI.
  Let us look at health care costs. Family coverage costs have 
increased in 2004. It was $6,348; now it is $9,050. For single coverage 
in 2000 it was $2,400; now it is $3,600.
  That is what has been happening over the period of the last 3 years 
under this administration. What is their answer? No. The one thing we 
can do about getting a handle on costs and we are not going to let you 
do it; we are not going to do reimportation.
  Look at the Bush record with regard to the price of prescription 
drugs. This chart, based on data from HHS, CPI and the Bureau of Labor 
Statistics shows the cumulative changes in the CPI and the cost of 
prescription drugs from 2001 to 2003. The CPI grew at 6.8 percent over 
the period of 2001, 2002, and 2003, and the cost of prescription drugs 
at 51.5 percent. How are our seniors going to do it? They can't do it. 
They make the choice between nutrition and prescription drugs, between 
heating their homes and prescription drugs, between food and 
prescription drugs, in my part of the country, in walling off part of 
their houses in the wintertime because they can't afford heating oil 
and prescription drugs. It is happening every single day. Can't we do 
something about it? Sure we can, as we have pointed out.
  The costs of these prescription drugs are a half or even a third of 
that in other places around the world.
  We have ways to deal with both the costs as well as the safety. But 
no, the administration won't do it. We see that the administration has 
basically abandoned any effort to do something about getting a handle 
on costs. We have seen the total amount that has been expended in this 
country increase by $500 billion, from $1.3 trillion to $1.8 trillion.

[[Page S9163]]

  We have seen the President talking about the opposition while John 
Kerry is trying to get a universal comprehensive program. It ought to 
be a matter of right in this country. The President says no. And we 
have denial on the floor of the Senate on the day after the President 
has spoken of doing something about getting a handle on costs, and this 
administration wants 4 more years? Talk about irresponsibility. They 
mislead us in going into Iraq. They mislead us in the use of 
intelligence. They mislead the people of Iraq, and they have done the 
same thing on health care. How long are we going to take it? What do 
the American people need?
  Here it is with the number of the uninsured--large and rising by 1 
million a year in the increase of the uninsured. Look at this. That is 
the census figure. Look at this. Seventy-three million of our fellow 
citizens are without health insurance coverage at some point in this 
year--for at least 1 to 4 months. This is why the Americans who have 
health insurance know that they are a pink-slip away from losing it.

  We have seen an explosion of part-time workers. Do you think they get 
health insurance coverage? Absolutely not; a fraction of them maybe, 
but a great majority don't. We see the whole movement away from the 
employer-based system to part-time work. That is what is happening out 
here across this country.
  Under the Medicare bill, 3 million American retirees are going to be 
dropped and low-income seniors will pay under newer financial 
provisions. Premiums are going to be affected and 15 million seniors 
are going to be disadvantaged under current Medicare. That is the 
situation. This is the Medicare bill that was passed.
  Look at what has happened. Here we have excess payment to HMOs of $46 
billion and a $139 billion windfall profit to the drug companies. If 
you want to know where expenditures are, if you want to know what is 
costing more for the average taxpayers, we have given $139 billion over 
the next 8 years as windfall profits to the prescription drug industry, 
and we have given the HMOs $46 billion.
  My fellow citizens, if you want to go out and invest in something, go 
out today and invest in HMOs and prescription drugs because we have 
guaranteed it.
  Talk about small business--I wish small business had that kind of 
guarantees and Government payouts. Talk about competition, it doesn't 
exist in that Medicare bill. That is what the problem is. The drug 
industry is doing well and the HMOs are doing well but the average 
workers are not doing well.
  Let us level with the American people about what the real debate is 
about in this Congress. Let us not distort and misrepresent the 
position of the opposition. I know the Republicans were against Social 
Security, I know they were against Medicare, and I know they were 
against a comprehensive prescription drug program that would have made 
a difference. We had a good one which actually got 76 votes. It was 
bipartisan. It was not this program.
  But then the hand of the White House ruled and we have massive 
giveaways to the drug industry and to HMOs. That is why we see the 
increase--a failure of leadership on health care in the last 4 years, 
and the denial on the floor of the Senate to our Democratic leaders and 
to this party to do something about it.
  We want to do something about it. We have a bipartisan bill to do 
something about it. Why, Mr. President, when you make those speeches 
out there in Michigan, why don't you call up the Republican leadership 
and do something about it?
  I yield the remainder of my time.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Utah.

                          ____________________