[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 17]
[House]
[Page 22466]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       MORE GOVERNMENT WON'T HELP

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Paul) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. PAUL. Mr. Speaker, our Government has been mismanaging medical 
care for more than 45 years. For every problem it has created, it has 
responded by exponentially expanding the role of government.
  Here are some points I'd like to have my colleagues consider. Number 
one, no one has a right to medical care. If one assumes such a right, 
it endorses the notion that some individuals have a right to someone 
else's life and property. This totally contradicts the principles of 
liberty.
  Number two, if medical care is provided by Government, this can only 
be achieved by an authoritarian government unconcerned about the rights 
of the individual.
  Number three, economic fallacies accepted for more than 100 years in 
the United States have deceived policymakers into believing that 
quality care can only be achieved by Government force, taxation, 
regulations, and bowing to a system of special interests that creates a 
system of corporatism.
  Number four, more dollars into any monopoly run by Government never 
increases quality, but it always results in higher costs and prices.
  Number five, Government does have an important role to play in 
facilitating the delivery of all goods and services in an ethical and 
efficient manner.
  Number six, first, Government should do no harm. It should get out of 
the way and repeal all of the laws that have contributed to the mess we 
have.
  Number seven, the costs are obviously too high, but in solving this 
problem one cannot ignore the debasement of the currency as a major 
factor.
  Number eight, bureaucrats and other third parties must never be 
allowed to interfere in the doctor-patient relationship.

                              {time}  1930

  Number 9, the Tax Code, including the ERISA laws, must be changed to 
give everyone equal treatment by allowing a 100 percent tax credit for 
all medical expenses.
  Laws dealing with bad outcomes and prohibiting doctors from entering 
into voluntary agreements with their patients must be repealed. Tort 
laws play a significant role in pushing costs higher, prompting 
unnecessary treatment and excessive testing. Patients deserve the 
compensation; the attorneys do not.
  Number 10, insurance sales should be legalized nationally across 
State lines to increase competition among the insurance companies.
  Number 11, long-term insurance policies should be available to young 
people similar to term life insurances that offer fixed prices for long 
periods of time.
  Number 12, the principle of insurance should be remembered. Its 
purpose in a free market is to measure risk, not to be used 
synonymously with social welfare programs. Any program that provides 
for first-dollar payment is no longer insurance. This would be similar 
to giving coverage for gasoline and repair bills to those who buy car 
insurance or providing food insurance for people who go to the grocery 
store. Obviously, that would not work.
  Number 13, the cozy relationship between organized medicine and 
government must be reversed.
  Early on medical insurance was promoted by the medical community in 
order to boost reimbursements to doctors and hospitals. That 
partnership has morphed into the government/insurance industry still 
being promoted by the current administration.
  Number 14, threatening individuals with huge fines by forcing them to 
buy insurance is a boon to the insurance companies.
  Number 15, there must be more competition for individuals entering 
into the medical field. Licensing strictly limits the number of 
individuals who can provide patient care. A lot of problems were 
created in the 20th century as a consequence of the Flexner Report in 
1910, which was financed by the Carnegie Foundation and strongly 
supported by the AMA. Many medical schools were closed, and the number 
of doctors was drastically reduced. The motivation was to close down 
medical schools that catered to women, minorities, and especially 
homeopathy. We continue to suffer from these changes, which were 
designed to protect physicians' income and promote allopathic medicine 
over the natural cures and prevention of homeopathic medicine.
  Number 16, we must remove any obstacle for people seeking holistic 
and nutritional alternatives to current medical care. We must remove 
the threat of further regulations pushed by the drug companies now 
working worldwide to limit these alternatives.
  True competition in the delivery of medical care is what is needed, 
not more government meddling.

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