[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 148 (2002), Part 8]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 10988]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       COLORADO GENERAL ASSEMBLY

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. BOB SCHAFFER

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, June 20, 2002

  Mr. SCHAFFER. Mr. Speaker, it is an honor to rise today to express 
appreciation to the Colorado General Assembly. The respective members 
of the Colorado House of Representatives have made a commitment to 
improving the healthcare needs of the people of Colorado as expressed 
in their House Joint Resolution, which was adopted by the Second 
Regular Session of the 63rd General Assembly of the State of Colorado.
  This joint resolution states support for the extension of health 
credits, the modernization of Medicare and the support of the 
``Immediate Helping Hand Prescription Drug Assistance Act.'' I commend 
the efforts of the Colorado House of Representatives and respectfully 
submit the following Colorado Joint Resolution for the Record.
  House Resolution 02-1007, by Representatives Clapp, Crane, Fairbank, 
Johnson, Mace, Miller, Mitchell, Paschall, Rhodes, Snook, Spradley, 
Stafford, Stengel, Williams S., Williams T., Witwer, Alexander, Boyd, 
Daniel, Fritz, Hefley, Hoppe, Kester, King, Larson, Lawrence, Sanchez, 
Scott, Swenson, Tochtrop, and Young.

       Concerning the Health Care Needs of the People of Colorado

       Whereas, President George W. Bush has proposed an 
     innovative and comprehensive plan to improve access to health 
     care as part of his proposed budget for 2003; and
       Whereas, President Bush's proposed budget contains an 
     allocation of eighty-nine billion dollars for new tax credits 
     for health care expenses (health credits) to be available for 
     working individuals and families; and
       Whereas, These health credits could mean up to three 
     thousand dollars in tax relief for eligible families and up 
     to one thousand dollars for eligible individuals; and
       Whereas, To enhance the effect of these health credits, 
     President Bush has proposed that states could provide the 
     power of group purchasing for the health credits through 
     state-sponsored purchasing pools for certain individuals; and
       Whereas, These health credits will make private health 
     insurance more affordable for many Coloradans who do not 
     currently have employer-subsidized insurance; and
       Whereas, President Bush's proposed budget will also loosen 
     the restrictions on medical savings accounts (MSAs) and 
     flexible spending accounts (FSAs); and
       Whereas, Employees who purchase a high-deductible health 
     care plan will be permitted to make contributions to MSAs in 
     an amount equal to the amount of the deductible; and
       Whereas, MSAs will be made available to all employers, and 
     they will be made permanent; and
       Whereas, Employees will be permitted to rollover up to five 
     hundred dollars in unspent health care contributions to an 
     FSA to use the following year or to contribute to a 401(k) 
     plan; and
       Whereas, These changes will make MSAs and FSAs more 
     attractive to employees and employers and therefore improve 
     the quality of health care for working individuals and 
     families from Colorado; and
       Whereas, President Bush has also worked with a bipartisan 
     group of legislators to establish the framework for 
     legislation to improve Medicare and keep its benefits secure 
     based on the following principles:
       (1) Promoting the option of a subsidized prescription drug 
     benefit as part of a modernized Medicare;
       (2) Providing better coverage for preventive care and 
     serious illnesses;
       (3) Allowing current and future beneficiaries to have the 
     option of keeping the traditional Medicare plan with no 
     charges;
       (4) Providing better health insurance options;
       (5) Strengthening the long-term financial security of 
     Medicare;
       (6) Updating and streamlining Medicare's regulations and 
     administrative procedures, while reducing its fraud and 
     abuse;
       (7) Encouraging high quality health care for all seniors; 
     and
       Whereas, President Bush's framework for bipartisan 
     legislation will help modernize Medicare and help fulfill its 
     promise of health care security for Colorado's seniors and 
     people with disabilities; and
       Whereas, Proposed legislation entitled the ``Immediate 
     Helping Hand Prescription Drug Assistance Act'' would give 
     states block grants to provide a drug benefit for low-income 
     Medicare beneficiaries; and
       Whereas, The ``Immediate Helping Hand Prescription Drug 
     Assistance Act'' would provide forty-eight billion dollars to 
     states over seven years, including over eighty-five million 
     dollars to Colorado; and
       Whereas, This federal assistance would help Colorado's 
     seniors afford prescription drugs; and
       Whereas, President Bush's plans for extending health 
     credits, increasing the flexibility of MSAs and FSAs, and 
     modernizing Medicare, as well as the ``Immediate Helping Hand 
     Prescription Drug Assistance Act'' will vastly improve the 
     quality of health care for the citizens of Colorado; now, 
     therefore,
       Be It Resolved by the House of Representatives of the 
     Sixty-third General Assembly of the State of Colorado:
       That we, the members of the House of Representatives of the 
     State of Colorado, encourage the Colorado congressional 
     delegation to support and work to pass legislation related to 
     extending health credits, increasing the flexibility of MSAs 
     and FSAs, and modernizing Medicare, and also support and work 
     to pass the ``Immediate Helping Hand Prescription Drug 
     Assistance Act''.
       Be It Further Resolved, That copies of this Resolution be 
     sent to the President of the United States, the Secretary of 
     the United States Department of Health and Human Services, 
     and each member of Colorado's delegation to the United States 
     Congress.
     Judith Rodrigue,
       Chief Clerk of the House of Representatives.
     Doug Dean,
       Speaker of the House of Representatives.

       

                          ____________________