[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 13]
[House]
[Pages 17229-17230]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       HELP WITH HEALTH INSURANCE

  (Ms. HIRONO asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Ms. HIRONO. Mr. Speaker, over 45 million people in America have no 
health insurance, and over 8 million of them are children. Millions 
more don't have enough health insurance; that is dramatic, but 
abstract.
  Let me make it more real and tell you about two of these people I met 
in

[[Page 17230]]

Hawaii last week. One woman told me that she is self-employed and pays 
all of her taxes. She works hard, but for her entire life she has taken 
care of herself because she can't afford health care. For years she 
self-treated a busted knee. It finally got to the point she had to see 
a doctor, but she couldn't afford it. She did something nobody should 
ever have to do: she used a friend's insurance card to get the care she 
needed.
  Another man bravely told me he was homeless. He doesn't fit the 
stereotype. He has a college degree and works two jobs. One of his job 
provides him with health insurance, but he cannot afford the 20 percent 
copay. He needs that money to buy food for his wife and children, and 
to buy gasoline to drive his car to work. So he goes without regular 
doctor visits and hopes for the best.
  These people aren't asking for a handout. They are asking for a 
little bit of help. It is time we provided it.

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