[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 145 (Thursday, October 8, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Pages S10258-S10259]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     HEALTH CARE: WEEK XII, DAY II

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, yesterday morning, our friends across 
the aisle came to the floor to defend the health care plan that they 
and their colleagues are pushing through Congress--a plan that has as 
its foundation a trillion dollars in spending, half a trillion dollars 
in cuts to Medicare, higher premiums, higher taxes on just about 
everyone at a time of near double-digit unemployment, and limits on the 
health care choices that millions of Americans now enjoy. Later in the 
day, we got a cost estimate. It is irrelevant. The bill it is referring 
to will never see the light of day.
  What matters is that the final bill will cost about a trillion 
dollars, vastly expand the role of government in people's health care 
decisions, increase premiums, and limit choice.
  For months, Republicans have taken every opportunity to talk about 
the kinds of commonsense reforms we need and that Americans actually 
want. Personally, I have spoken just about every day we have been on 
the floor since June about step-by-step reforms to lower costs, 
commonsense ideas that we should all agree on like malpractice reform, 
equalizing the tax treatment for businesses and individuals, and 
prevention and wellness programs--all of which would get right at the 
heart of our health care problems.
  We have talked about these things because they address the problems 
we have, problems of cost and access, without limiting the choices 
Americans now enjoy. We have talked about these things because these 
are the reforms Americans want.
  I have spoken about reform 43 times on the Senate floor. Yet some 
don't seem to be listening. And this is precisely the problem Americans 
have identified with some of the advocates of the Democrats' health 
care plans.

[[Page S10259]]

They are not listening to our commonsense proposals any more than they 
are listening to the concerns of the American people.
  In fact, listening to the proponents of these plans, one gets the 
sense they are more concerned about their legacies than what the 
American people actually want. ``This is the moment'' . . . ``Be a part 
of history . . .'' These are the kinds of things they say to each other 
about health care reform. Here is an idea: How about asking the 
American people what they want instead?
  Everyone wants reform. I have said so almost every day on the floor 
for months. But a 1,000-page, trillion-dollar bill that cuts Medicare 
by half a trillion dollars, raises taxes on virtually everyone, raises 
premiums, and limits the health care choices Americans now enjoy is not 
the kind of reform Americans want. And what matters more than that?
  The views of the American people are relevant in a debate about 
legislation that will have a profound and lasting effect on their 
lives. And these same Americans overwhelmingly oppose the 1,000-page, 
trillion-dollar plans they have seen from the administration and 
Congress. They have been saying so for months.
  Take the issue of cost. One of the things Americans are concerned 
about is how much this legislation will cost. They are asking the 
question. They are not getting a straight answer.
  We have seen a lot of numbers thrown around. As I have already noted, 
yesterday we got another one from the CBO. It doesn't tell the whole 
story. The fact is, the bill it is referring to will never see the 
light of day. That is because the real bill will soon be cobbled 
together in a secret conference room somewhere in the Capitol by a 
handful of Democratic Senators and White House officials.
  The other numbers we have seen are intended to explain how much this 
bill will cost over 10 years. What most people do not realize is that 
the new plans would not go into effect for another 4\1/2\ years. So 
what is being sold as a 10-year cost is really a 5\1/2\ year cost. That 
means you can take the numbers you are getting and nearly double them.
  Here is what we know about the true cost of the three bills we have 
seen so far: The Budget Committee has determined that the Finance 
Committee Bill, as introduced, will cost $1.8 trillion over 10 years, 
and we do not expect it to get any better from here on out. The HELP 
Committee bill will cost $2.2 trillion over 10 years. And the House 
bill will cost $2.4 trillion over 10 years. So the average cost of 
these bills, when fully implemented, is more than $2 trillion.
  Americans are concerned about all this spending. They want straight 
answers. Advocates of the administration's health care proposal seem to 
think that the bigger the proposal, the more complicated, the more 
expensive, the better. That is not what the American people think. They 
are making it clear. It is about time we listen.
  I yield the floor.

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