[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 66 (Thursday, April 24, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E730]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             PROTECTING THE MEDICAID SAFETY NET ACT OF 2008

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                         HON. MICHELE BACHMANN

                              of minnesota

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 22, 2008

  Mrs. BACHMANN. Mr. Speaker, today, the House is considering H.R. 
5613, Protecting the Medicaid Safety Net Act of 2008. This legislation 
would place a moratorium on certain rules promulgated by the Centers 
for Medicare and Medicaid Services, CMS. While I applaud CMS for 
looking for ways to reduce the burden on taxpayers and to root out 
fraud which is regrettably rampant in the Medicaid program, some of 
these proposed rules simply go too far. They shift too great a cost to 
the States and leave many vulnerable Americans more vulnerable still. 
And so I will support this temporary stay to give the administration 
time to consider ways to meet its goals in a less draconian manner.
  To be sure, the Medicaid program has been abused. For instance, a CMS 
Inspector General report found $3.8 million in undocumented services in 
the targeted case management program, one which is impacted by these 
very rules. And CMS's regulations would certainly combat instances of 
waste and fraud. However, implementing a 1-year moratorium will give 
CMS an opportunity to review the regulations and give States and local 
providers an opportunity to prepare for pending implementation, each 
knowing that real reform is on the horizon. While I believe it is 
important to rein in entitlement spending, these rules, as currently 
formulated and immediately imposed, would jeopardize needed care for 
some of the most vulnerable populations of Americans.
  That being said, I am pleased that to address abuses of the Medicaid 
program, H.R. 5613 provides for anti-fraud enforcement activity in the 
interim. The bill also provides for the Department of Health and Human 
Services to hire an independent contractor to produce a report by March 
1, 2009, on the proposed regulations and their impact on States. 
Moreover, all of these costs, as well as the foregone savings resulting 
from this moratorium are fully offset, meaning H.R. 5613 will not 
increase the national debt.
  The Medicaid program has helped millions of America's neediest 
individuals, including seniors, foster kids and the disabled, gain 
access to quality care, and while there have indeed been instances of 
misallocated funds, H.R. 5613 finds balance between regulatory 
restraint and financial flexibility, and it maintains a strong 
partnership with the States.

                          ____________________