[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 120 (Wednesday, July 17, 2019)]
[House]
[Page H5982]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 THE AMERICAN PEOPLE NEED HEALTHCARE SOLUTIONS THAT WILL WORK FOR THEM

  (Mr. TONKO asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. TONKO. Mr. Speaker, for years Republicans in Congress and the 
White House have made it a top priority to end healthcare protections 
for millions of Americans. They voted more than 60 times to repeal the 
Affordable Care Act, but when the time came, they had no replacement to 
offer.
  Since President Trump took office, more than 3 million fewer 
Americans have health insurance. They have removed healthcare 
information from government websites and arbitrarily shut down the 
Federal marketplace website at peak times to drive down enrollment.
  Now the Trump administration is at it again, pushing the extreme 
Texas v. U.S. lawsuit that would repeal the entire ACA and throw 
America's healthcare system into total disarray. More than 130 million 
Americans with preexisting conditions would lose their healthcare 
protections, out-of-pocket costs would jump for millions of America's 
seniors and families, and some 53 million more Americans would lose 
access to quality, affordable health coverage before 2024.

  My Democratic colleagues and I are fighting back to improve coverage 
and lower more Americans' health premiums, bring down prescription drug 
costs, and strengthen Medicare and Medicaid for this generation and the 
next.
  The American people are right not to trust this Republican Congress 
or President with their healthcare. Let's stop this endless repeal 
without replace effort and get back to solutions that will work for the 
people.

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