[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 200 (Wednesday, December 19, 2018)]
[House]
[Page H10324]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            PUERTO RICO INTEGRITY IN MEDICARE ADVANTAGE ACT

  (Miss GONZALEZ-COLON of Puerto Rico asked and was given permission to 
address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Miss GONZALEZ-COLON of Puerto Rico. Mr. Speaker, healthcare 
infrastructure in Puerto Rico remains dangerously unstable. Unlike the 
mainland, most Medicare beneficiaries with part A and part B coverage 
receive their care through local Medicare Advantage plans.
  In 2011, Puerto Rico's per patient, per month was $595, and now it is 
$511. The national average was $787, and now it is $826. That is a 
negative impact of $315 for Puerto Rico. That means that, next year, 
the average Medicare Advantage rate for Puerto Rico is even 25 percent 
below the other territories and 43 percent below the national rates.
  This is the reason why physicians and medical providers are leaving 
the island. That is the reason we filed H.R. 6809, which will rectify 
this disparity with Medicare Advantage rates. That is the reason I ask 
my colleagues to support this bill

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