[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 202 (Tuesday, December 12, 2017)]
[House]
[Page H9796]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            OPEN ENROLLMENT

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
Ohio (Ms. Kaptur) for 5 minutes.
  Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, I rise to urge Americans to sign up for 
their health insurance by this Friday, at midnight, if they haven't 
already done so for the 2018 year. This Friday, December 15, is the 
deadline to sign up for open enrollment for them and for their family.

                              {time}  1045

  If you don't do that, you won't have a chance, really, to buy that 
health insurance next year. If you haven't already bought your health 
insurance for 2018, to get details about available plans, please visit 
the website, healthcare.gov, or call 1-800-318-2596--that is 
healthcare.gov, or 1-800-318-2596. You will actually get to talk to a 
real person.
  In order to get in touch with someone local who can help you sign up 
for insurance in your own area, you call that same number, 1-800-318-
2596, or you can go to the website that is called 
localhelp.healthcare.gov--localhelp.healthcare.gov.
  Health insurance is vital. It can protect us from astronomical cost 
when a serious accident or illness occurs, because the average cost of 
a 3-day hospital stay is $30,000. A broken leg, on average, costs 
$7,500. Having a baby, on average, in States like Ohio, costs $6,000.
  Health insurance is your lifeline. It helps protect you and your 
family from unexpected costs and, frankly, possible bankruptcy, because 
over two-thirds of people in our country that go bankrupt do so because 
of health bills they can't pay.
  What happens is, if they have a house, they lose the house. It is 
confiscated to pay the medical bills. They lose their credit rating. It 
is a terrible thing that happens to people when they get sick, and it 
is just a roll of the dice on who is going to get cancer, who is going 
to get appendicitis, who is going to become ill, who is going to be hit 
in a hit-and-run accident around this country.
  Coverage choices are affordable on these exchanges, and, in many 
cases, financial help is available. During last year's enrollment 
period, believe it or not, 8 in 10 people qualified for financial help. 
For most people, that meant they could find insurance premiums for as 
little as $100 a month or less.
  For example, CareNet, a provider network in Ohio, recently helped to 
enroll a gentleman who has cancer and was previously uninsured. Can you 
imagine that? Who can afford these infusions? This man spent an entire 
year without oncology treatment and certainly needs multiple surgeries 
now. Because of the Affordable Care Act and through the help of 
CareNet, he found a plan that costs $100 a month. He thought he would 
have to pay much more, but he will now be able to begin treatment at 
the beginning of 2018. Thank God he got coverage.
  Actually, many working people can qualify for Medicaid. For example, 
a family of four earning $33,000 in Ohio can get coverage through 
Medicaid. Please know you can apply for and enroll in Medicaid at any 
time of the year. Even if you don't have health insurance, you should 
definitely look into that if you do not have health insurance.
  Every American is required to have health insurance through their 
employer--but a lot of employers don't provide it--through Medicare, 
Medicaid, or through purchase of plans on the individual marketplace. 
Health insurance provides you and your family with health security and 
piece of mind, paying costs when you need medical care.
  The marketplace provides access to quality and affordable health 
coverage, which requires insurers to cover certain benefits such as 
prescriptions, emergency care, mental healthcare, and preventive 
services. It is important to highlight that more than 68 million people 
rely on Medicaid, and 9 million children rely on the Children's Health 
Insurance Program.
  Now, Republicans in Congress have let the children's program lapse. 
Unfortunately, Federal funding for that program helps over 220,000 
children in Ohio, and 73 days ago, the Republican Congress said: Sorry, 
America's children, we are going to put you on hold for the moment.
  Whether that program will be funded or not is all caught up in these 
end-of-year discussions that are occurring here at a very high level. 
America's children should be covered with insurance.
  The Republican-led Congress has also let Federal funding for 
community health centers, a resource critical to millions of our 
families, lapse also since September 30. They best restore that. Why 
hurt the American people? Why would you do that?
  Once again, please visit healthcare.gov or call 1-800-318-2596 to 
sign up for your health insurance for 2018. Do what is responsible, and 
do what is lifegiving.

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