[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 13]
[House]
[Page 17232]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                           HEALTH CARE REFORM

  (Mrs. McMORRIS RODGERS asked and was given permission to address the 
House for 1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Mrs. McMORRIS RODGERS. Mr. Speaker, as a mother of a young 2-year-old 
son, like millions of moms in America, health care is very important to 
me. And I want to know that I have the freedom to go to whatever doctor 
I choose and have the medical treatment that is best for my son, Cole.
  We are facing a serious health care crisis, and we must do everything 
we can to fix the problem. Last week, I was back home in eastern 
Washington. Everywhere I went I heard about the lack of doctors and 
nurses, the high cost of health insurance, and the limited access to 
quality health care, especially in the rural areas. I also heard fears 
that the government may take over our health care, parents who are 
worried their child won't be able to see the pediatrician of their 
choice, or seniors who worry that the doctor they trusted for decades 
may drop his or her coverage because the government doesn't pay them 
enough to keep practicing.
  During this debate, let us not forget that doctors are the true 
experts. We can reform our system and cover the uninsured without the 
Federal Government setting up shop as a health insurance company and a 
health care gatekeeper, and without sacrificing that important doctor-
patient relationship.

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