[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 116 (Wednesday, July 29, 2009)]
[House]
[Page H9040]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 RECOGNIZING THE ANNIVERSARY OF THE ENACTMENT OF MEDICAID AND MEDICARE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Schauer). Under a previous order of the 
House, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis) is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, as we continue with the debate 
surrounding health reform, I wish to take a moment to recognize the 
anniversary of the enactment of Medicare and Medicaid into law. Since 
July 30, 1965, when Lyndon Johnson signed the bill creating these 
fundamental health initiatives, these two programs have evolved 
together to reliably meet the demands of aging and medically vulnerable 
Americans who may not have had access to medical attention otherwise. 
Medicare and Medicaid currently provide a lifeline to over 100 million 
Americans. In my district, I can attest that Medicare and Medicaid 
serve as an indispensable safety net for many constituents. The Seventh 
Congressional District of Illinois includes some of the most medically 
underserved communities in America. Census data show that 24 percent of 
families and 44 percent of children under 18 live below the poverty 
line. In fact, some communities on Chicago's west side experience 
infant mortality rates comparable with third-world countries. In the 
State of Illinois, 14 percent of all residents are enrolled in Medicare 
and 19 percent in Medicaid. Clearly these government health programs 
provide vital health care coverage to Illinoisians when almost one-
fifth of the State is covered by Medicaid and one-sixth by Medicare. 
Indeed, Illinois' mothers and children are the biggest beneficiaries of 
Medicaid. This Federal program finances 40 percent of total births in 
Illinois and helps ensure that over 1 million children in Illinois 
receive access to affordable health care. It is this commitment to our 
citizens that drives Congress to work actively for comprehensive health 
reform. We must provide a public option within that reform. Further, we 
must continue to support and expand community health centers as 
outstanding deliverers of primary care. These providers are proven to 
reap solid benefits to our patients, communities, and State and local 
governments in terms of efficiency. For example, Medicaid beneficiaries 
relying on health centers for usual care were 19 percent less likely to 
use the emergency department than Medicaid beneficiaries using 
outpatient and office-based physicians for usual care. Overall, health 
centers save the health care system between $9.9 billion and $17.6 
billion annually, a figure that will grow.
  I acknowledge the tremendous step that Lyndon B. Johnson took 44 
years ago when he signed the Medicare and Medicaid bills into law as 
titles XVIII and XIX of the Social Security Act. We must continue to 
make use of these programs because they have served us well and will 
continue to do so.

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