[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 51 (Thursday, March 23, 2017)]
[House]
[Page H2353]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   CONCERNS ABOUT THE HEALTHCARE BILL

  (Ms. PLASKETT asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. PLASKETT. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong opposition to the 
Republican healthcare bill.
  There is concern with the would-be effects of this legislation, and 
rightfully so. But if anyone wants to see a real-life example of the 
detrimental impact of block granting Medicaid, look no further than 
across the water to the U.S. Virgin Islands, or any of the territories. 
It is a grim outlook because we experience it every day.
  Caps on Medicaid have proven to be a fiscal disaster for our budget. 
Unlike States in the mainland, where Federal Medicaid spending is open-
ended, to Virgin Islanders, we can only access Federal dollars up to an 
annual ceiling because we were not included in the ACA mandate.
  Cuts to Medicaid affect all of you, every individual.
  As a result of what has happened in the Virgin Islands, 30 percent of 
our population is uninsured and hospitals have been left to pick up the 
bill. If you or your child is ill, you go to the hospital, whether you 
can take care of the bill or not. This situation places a tremendous 
burden on our hospitals, creating uncompensated care costs in the tens 
of millions of dollars.
  We have to make tough choices of removing people from Medicaid, which 
means loss to elderly and individuals. We ask that you reject this 
bill.

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