[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 8 (Thursday, January 20, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E92-E93]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             REPEALING THE JOB-KILLING HEALTH CARE LAW ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                          HON. BETTY McCOLLUM

                              of minnesota

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, January 19, 2011

  Ms. McCOLLUM. Mr. Speaker, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care 
Act that passed in 2010 is the law of the land. It extends historic 
protections to millions of Americans, ensuring access to quality health 
care. I voted for this law and I am grateful for the support I received 
from my constituents in Minnesota's fourth district for my work on 
reforming our nation's broken health care system.
  Access to quality health care is essential for all Americans. I 
firmly believe health care should be a right for our citizens, not a 
privilege or a luxury only for the most fortunate who can afford it. I 
am committed to working

[[Page E93]]

to ensure all Americans have the health protections they need and 
access to the quality health care they deserve. The health reform law 
we have in place does this.
  Today the U.S. House is debating the repeal of the Affordable Care 
Act. The Republican-Tea Party majority officially titled the bill 
before us, H.R. 2, the ``Repealing the Job-Killing Health Care Law 
Act.'' They use the word ``killing'' five times in a bill that isn't 
even two pages long. Not only is the bill's title offensive and 
disrespectful, it is untrue. The fact is the health reform law does not 
kill jobs, its patient protections save lives and create jobs. More 
than 200,000 health care related jobs have been created since the law 
passed in March of last year.
  This Tea Party Republican bill strips away patient protections for 
children, seniors, and adults with pre-existing medical conditions. It 
replaces tough legal protections for patients with a uniquely 
Republican solution--nothing. Republicans strip away protections for 
millions of Americans, add $230 billion to the federal budget deficit 
according to the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office, and restore 
a broken health care system which empowers insurance companies, not 
patients.
  I want Minnesotans to know exactly what repealing the existing health 
reform law would do. If this Republican bill were to become law it 
would mean:
  Stripping 32 millions of Americans of health insurance and new 
consumer protections;
  Allowing insurers to deny coverage to children with pre-existing 
conditions, apply restrictive lifetime coverage limits, impose cost 
sharing on preventative care, and retroactively cancel a policy when an 
individual gets sick;
  Eliminating tax credits for as many as 99,000 Minnesota small 
businesses providing their employees health insurance;
  Refusing 11,400 young adults in Minnesota the option to remain on 
their parents' health insurance until they turn 26;
  Maintaining a perverse payment system that rewards providers for the 
volume of services delivered, rather than the quality of those 
services;
  Jeopardizing the early retiree health coverage provided by 210 
Minnesota employers and unions currently receiving financial assistance 
through the ``The Early Retiree Reinsurance Program''; and
  Risking the Medicare benefits and prescription drug coverage seniors 
and people with disabilities depend on to meet their health needs.
  H.R. 2 is more than political posturing. It is legislation that sends 
a clear message to the American people: Republicans care more about 
protecting insurance company profits than protecting the rights of 
patients. I will oppose this bill and I will oppose and battle against 
every effort made in the 112th Congress to defund, sidetrack, or stall 
the full implementation of the Affordable Care Act.
  I am not alone is opposing H.R. 2. Hundreds of national organizations 
and dozens of Minnesota groups oppose this blatantly partisan effort to 
repeal health reform. Here are a few excerpts from letters I received 
over the past few days.
  The Minnesota Medical Association: ``the MMA opposes efforts to 
repeal the ACA (Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act) and urges 
you to vote against it.''
  Catholic Hospital Association of Minnesota: ``I strongly urge you to 
maintain support for efforts to improve and strengthen our nation's 
health care system by opposing the legislation before the House to 
repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA).''
  Epilepsy Foundation of Minnesota: ``We strongly encourage you to vote 
against repeal of the ACA and work toward ensuring that implementation 
includes the needs of people with epilepsy and other chronic health 
conditions.''
  Minnesota Hospital Association: ``On behalf of the 148 hospital and 
17 health system members of the Minnesota Hospital Association, I am 
writing to express our opposition to legislation that would repeal the 
Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA).''
  Today, as the debate on this ill conceived and mean-spirited bill is 
taking place, I received the following message from a consortium of 
small business leaders from across the country:
  The House of Representative's introduction of a bill to repeal the 
Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is an affront to our 
nation's small business community.
  The country's 28 million small businesses stand to benefit greatly 
from many provisions of the new healthcare law, particularly the tax 
credits and health insurance exchanges. These two provisions will help 
drive down costs and offer small business owners more choices when 
purchasing insurance. These critical provisions and many others would 
be abolished if the Affordable Care Act is repealed.
  This would be a huge setback to entrepreneurs who need solutions to 
the broken healthcare system, not a continuation of it. America's 22 
million self-employed would also suffer, as a repeal of the ACA would 
deny them the opportunity to pool together and purchase insurance at an 
affordable price through state exchanges.
  It is important to remember that the Republican's dangerous and 
destructive health repeal agenda can only work if Americans are silent 
and passive, allowing live-saving rights and protections to be stripped 
away. Repeal will not happen today, even if this bill is passed, but 
over the course of the next two years Republicans and their corporate 
benefactors will use every legal and political channel available to 
deny citizens their health care rights. They will not stop.
  But I will not stop either. I will not stop fighting for the health 
care rights for all Americans.
  I urge all Minnesotans and all Americans to stand up and join me in 
the fight to protect the historic patient rights all citizens have 
gained through the Affordable Care Act and that starts with a vote 
against H.R. 2.

                          ____________________