[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 38 (Thursday, March 6, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E323]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          PERSONAL EXPLANATION

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. ELIZABETH H. ESTY

                             of connecticut

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 6, 2014

  Ms. ESTY. Mr. Speaker, I want to state for the record that on 
Wednesday, March 5, 2014, I unfortunately missed rollcall votes as I 
traveled to New Britain, CT, with President Barack Obama on official 
business.
  Had I been present I would have voted:
  ``No'' on the Previous Question (roll #93). Had a majority of the 
House voted no, this bill would have allowed a vote to renew the 
emergency unemployment insurance to help over 35,000 jobseekers in 
Connecticut;
  ``No'' on H. Res. 497 (roll #94), which prevented any amendments to 
H.R. 4118 from being considered;
  ``Aye'' on H.R. 938, the U.S.-Israel Strategic Partnership Act (roll 
#95), which I proudly cosponsored;
  ``Aye'' on the Motion to Recommit H.R. 4118 (roll #96) to prevent 
H.R. 4118 from altering, weakening, or delaying the ACA's prohibition 
of discrimination based on pre-existing conditions or gender and tax 
credits and rebates;
  ``No'' on H.R. 4118 (roll #97). Back in July of last year, I was 
concerned that the federal marketplace would not be ready for the 
October 1, 2013, start date for enrollment under the Affordable Care 
Act. And, in fact, as we saw last fall, the federal website was not 
ready to handle the volume from states that didn't set up their own 
exchange. The website problems were unacceptable. Based on the 
situation that I saw eight months ago, I believed that giving folks an 
extra year to learn about the benefits and responsibilities under the 
new law without penalty was a reasonable modification, particularly 
with misinformation spread about the Affordable Care Act and the 
uncertainty about the readiness of the marketplace.
  I believe that my job is to solve problems and vote based on actual 
facts in my state and district, not ideology. And the facts in 
Connecticut in March 2014 are quite different than they were in July 
2013. The exchanges have been up and running for five full months, and 
Connecticut is leading the way. With less than one month left in the 
enrollment period, over 130,000 people in Connecticut have signed up 
for health coverage through Access Health CT, exceeding the state and 
federal government's goals. Now is not the time to retroactively delay 
the individual mandate. As I've previously stated, the individual 
mandate, upheld by the Supreme Court, is a critical part of the 
Affordable Care Act. Since July 2013, I've held workshops for small 
businesses and individuals to learn more about the Affordable Care Act 
and how to sign up for health insurance. I've heard stories from 
constituents about how the Affordable Care Act has helped them access 
affordable, quality health care. A woman from Canaan, a breast cancer 
survivor, is now saving over $1,500 on her monthly premium; a former 
small business owner in New Britain can afford health insurance for the 
first time in 12 years.
  The law is not perfect, and improvements can, should, and have been 
made. I will continue to raise concerns I've heard from folks in my 
district and to work with the Obama Administration to fix problems as 
they arise. But there is no question that the responsible course of 
action is to continue to move forward;
  ``Aye'' on H.R. 2126, the Energy Efficiency Improvement Act (roll 
#98), which was a bipartisan bill to expand energy efficiency 
standards.

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