[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 26 (Thursday, February 16, 2012)]
[House]
[Page H817]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     EFFECTS OF HEALTH CARE REFORM

  (Ms. TSONGAS asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Ms. TSONGAS. Mr. Speaker, the health care reform effort signed into 
law by President Obama in 2010 contains important new benefits for our 
seniors and Medicare recipients that have already started to take 
effect.
  Nearly 3.6 million seniors in the doughnut hole have already saved 
$2.1 billion on their prescription drugs. Twenty-four million people 
with Medicare have already taken advantage of free preventive services.
  Additional reforms such as a prohibition of lifetime caps on 
insurance expenditures will soon be made available to our seniors, 
thanks to health care reform. Nothing in health reform reduces Medicare 
benefits for seniors.
  Health care reform achieves Medicare savings by cracking down on 
inefficiency, fraud, and waste in Medicare, targeted at private health 
insurance companies and providers, not beneficiaries. This is how 
government should operate: by demanding efficiency, accountability, and 
protecting taxpayer dollars.

                          ____________________