[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 197 (Tuesday, December 10, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Page S6913]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                               Healthcare

  Mr. President, now I would like to turn to a different topic. I come 
to the floor today as the Democrats in the House and in the Senate are 
obsessed with obstruction because they are obsessed over impeachment 
and are obstructing everything else.
  We have only a week left to fund the government, to pass ``America 
First'' trade deals, and to support our military. Still, there is 
another priority issue that we need to address. We must provide relief, 
in my opinion, from costly ObamaCare taxes. There are several of those 
that are impacting our citizens around the country.
  Last week, the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare released a report on 
healthcare spending. The report finds that health insurance costs grew 
in 2018 by a larger number than they had the year before.
  Why does CMS believe that the rates of insurance actually have gone 
up additionally? Well, it is because of a couple of taxes.
  One is the health insurance tax, or the HIT tax. It is in the Obama 
healthcare law. It is an unfair tax that has increased insurance 
premiums for small business owners and for seniors. That is why I have 
been a longtime opponent of this health insurance tax. Democrats need 
to help us get rid of the tax. They need to end it.
  The second ObamaCare tax we must repeal is the so-called Cadillac 
health plan tax. The Cadillac tax affects millions of Americans who are 
covered through work, especially union workers. On December 5, a broad 
group of unions and employers wrote the Senate leaders urging a repeal.
  This is what they said. The union leaders and supporters urged the 
repeal, and this is what they wrote to the Senate leaders:

       The consequences of inaction are serious. Many millions of 
     working Americans will pay more out of pocket . . . or face 
     reduced health coverage.

  We need to end this Cadillac tax now.
  The third tax we need to repeal is the medical device tax. Really, it 
is a tax on innovation. The medical device tax is going to restrict 
patients' access to new lifesaving technologies.
  Without congressional action, the health insurance tax and the 
medical device tax are going to take effect again in 2020 and the 
Cadillac tax in 2022. It is time to repeal these punishing taxes. We 
need to do this to protect patients and working families all across the 
country.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. GARDNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.