[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 53 (Thursday, April 15, 2010)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E573]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          HEALTH CARE AND EDUCATION RECONCILIATION ACT OF 2010

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                        HON. CAROLYN B. MALONEY

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 25, 2010

  Mrs. MALONEY. Mr. Speaker, this is a historic vote. With passage of 
health care reform, 32 million people without insurance will now be 
covered and 94 percent of Americans will now be guaranteed health care 
coverage. In New York State, close to 2.5 million people who are 
currently uninsured will have health care coverage once this bill is 
passed. The reforms we are considering today will help improve the 
lives of millions of Americans--starting immediately, and continuing 
over the course of their implementation in the next ten years.
  Starting immediately: No insurance company can deny coverage for pre-
existing conditions or gender; Young people can stay on their parents' 
coverage until age 26; If you're self-employed or a small-business 
owner you'll be able to buy health coverage on competitive exchanges; 
If you've taken early retirement over age 55 but before you're eligible 
for Medicare, you'll be able to continue your employers' coverage until 
age 65; And if you're over 65 and have Medicare's Part D drug coverage, 
the ``donut hole'' has been eliminated.
  The reconciliation bill we are voting on vastly improves the Senate 
bill's impact for states like New York who will not be penalized for 
having served New Yorkers and having an expansive Medicaid program. 
This provision will give more federal Medicaid funding support for New 
York State, which would have suffered a loss under the Senate-passed 
bill. Instead of costing millions, New York State will now save 
hundreds of millions in the first full year of implementation.
  New York's public hospital system is the leading provider of 
uncompensated care to the uninsured and underinsured. Though this bill 
lowers the ten-year reduction in Medicaid and Medicare Disproportionate 
Share Hospital (DSH) payments by $3 billion, I remain concerned these 
cuts will weaken our health care safety net in New York. After all, 
while significant coverage expansions will be achieved through health 
care reform, there will still be populations that will remain uncovered 
or underinsured, and our hospitals will continue to bear the burden and 
cost of their health care. It seems like the best approach would have 
been that DSH cuts would be made contingent upon reductions in the 
uninsured. Instead of expansion triggers in the Senate bill, the 
reconciliation bill is improved with set levels of reductions per year 
and require the Secretary of Health and Human Service to develop a 
methodology to reduce states' Medicaid DSH allotments to achieve 
mandated savings.
  More broadly, I support this bill because of the positive impact it 
will have on women's lives. As Chair of the Joint Economic Committee, I 
prepared a report that looked at the specific health care challenges 
facing women and how women would benefit from comprehensive health care 
reform. More than two million women have lost their health insurance 
since the recession began due to their own job loss or their spouse's 
job loss. 1.3 million women lost their health coverage when their 
spouse lost his job and an additional 800,000 women lost their health 
care as a result of their own job loss. More than two million women 
have faced the brutal double-whammy of a lost job and lost health care. 
While job losses during this recession were much greater for men than 
women, women have fared worse than men in recent months. And this has 
had real consequences for women's health care coverage: in the last six 
months, the number of women losing health insurance benefits due to 
their own job losses has increased by nearly 50 percent. Over one 
quarter (28%) of women ages 19-24 have no health insurance at all. Part 
of that number is likely explained by the economic challenges facing 
young women. Young women have been hit hard in the recession, facing an 
unemployment rate of 13.1 percent, significantly higher than the 
national rate of 9.7 percent, and making it less likely that they will 
have job-based coverage. Health care reform will help us to overcome 
inequities at the center of the current system--where women pay more 
than men for the same coverage, or even, where women who are not 
smokers pay more for coverage than men who are smokers. My report and 
the reality is that the health care system is serving women poorly, the 
recession has made the situation worse, and now more than ever, we need 
health care reform.
  While I am speaking of women's health care, I must mention my 
opposition to the restrictive language on abortion included in the 
Senate bill which remains in reconciliation. While not as onerous as 
the Stupak language that was part of the final House bill, this 
language will directly impact a woman's right to legal reproductive 
health services and I oppose it. But the value to women and American 
families of finally achieving health care reform is far too important 
to risk losing it.
  Mr. Speaker, a great deal of the discussion today focuses on the 
moral reasons for extending health care coverage. While I agree with 
the moral imperative, the fiscal necessity is clear. This bill cuts the 
deficit by $143 billion in the first ten years and then cuts the 
deficit by $1.2 trillion in the second ten years. The bill is fully 
paid for and will not add a dime to the deficit. While it will cost 
$938 billion over a decade, it is critical to note that Americans spend 
nearly $2.5 trillion every single year on health care now and nearly 
two-thirds of the bill is paid for by reducing health care costs.
  We must not let this moment pass without recognizing its historic 
nature. Today, millions of Americans will win basic rights--the right 
to health care, the right to live without the fear of chronic disease, 
and the right to never having to worry about losing insurance coverage 
because of a pre-existing condition or exceeding a lifetime cap. While 
not perfect, this bill will hold insurance companies accountable; 
provide billions of dollars in tax breaks for small businesses to help 
them insure their employees; and, above all, expand access to quality, 
secure, affordable health care coverage for millions of Americans.
  I'd like to thank and commend the leadership of Speaker Pelosi, 
Majority Leader Hoyer, Chairmen Waxman, Miller and Rangel and of 
course, Chairman Emeritus Dingell who has been working on health care 
reform since he first came to Congress.
  The time is now. Our current system is broken. Costs continue to 
increase at unsustainable rates and too many families and businesses 
are feeling the debilitating burdens brought on by these expenses. Too 
many Americans have inadequate coverage or lack coverage entirely and 
are suffering or dying as a result.
  I am grateful for the opportunity to be a part of this momentous 
reform. I urge my colleagues to reach beyond the rhetoric and the 
politics. Instead, recognize that today we will make a lasting 
difference in people's lives. Today we change the health of our nation 
for ourselves, for our children, and for our grandchildren.

                          ____________________