[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 18]
[Senate]
[Page 24927]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                           HEALTH CARE REFORM

  Mr. BURRIS. Mr. President, earlier this week I came to the Senate 
floor to discuss some of the misinformation we have seen about the 
issue of health care reform. Just this morning, I joined my freshmen 
colleagues to knock down some of the persistent myths about reform and 
particularly about the need for a public option.
  As we prepare to consider a health bill before the full Senate, I 
would like to discuss the way forward from here. I believe our path is 
very clear. The only way to achieve meaningful health care reform and 
bring costs down is through a public option that will bring real 
competition into the system. That is why I will not vote for any health 
care bill that does not include the public option.
  Insurance companies should have to compete for your business just 
like any other company. This principle has always been at the heart of 
America's economy, and it does not make sense for insurance companies 
to get a free pass. As competition shrinks, profits soar. A public 
option is the only way to restore choice to the marketplace. It is the 
key to freedom, accountability, and fair play. That is why I will not 
compromise on this point.
  On Tuesday, our colleagues in the Finance Committee reached a new 
milestone on the long road to reform. They became the last of five 
committees in both the House and the Senate to take up this 
legislation. When they passed their version of the bill, it was the 
furthest any health reform measure has ever come. Now let us make it a 
reality.
  I congratulate my distinguished colleagues on their significant 
achievement. I applaud their leadership on this difficult issue. But it 
was disappointing this legislation did not include a public option. As 
we move forward and merge the Finance Committee bill with the HELP 
Committee's version, I will work with my friends to make sure the 
combined measure does include a public option. In a very short time, 
every Member will have the opportunity to shape this important 
legislation. When this bill comes before the Chamber, we will have the 
chance to make good on the promise Teddy Roosevelt made almost 100 
years ago when he first called for sweeping health care reform.
  This pivotal debate is nearly at an end. The time for action is upon 
us. That means it is time to separate fact from fiction. It is time to 
discuss the facts and drown out the noise. The public option will 
restore choice and competition to an insurance market currently 
dominated by only a few companies. The public option will spur fresh 
accountability and a return to fair practices. Premiums will come down. 
Relative health outcomes will go up. For the first time in years, 
insurance corporations will need to compete for business. They will 
need to be accountable to customers and not only to shareholders. That 
is what reform with a public option will mean to the American health 
care system.
  When opponents of reform talk about death panels, a government 
takeover, and socialism, they are trying to distract us from the issue 
at hand. When they claim the Finance Committee bill will make premiums 
go up instead of down, it is the same sleight of hand we have seen from 
the big corporations many times before.
  They know they cannot win the argument on the merits so they are 
trying to change the subject. Instead of talking about American 
families and rising costs, real health outcomes, they need to rely on 
scare tactics to maintain their monopoly over the insurance market. 
That is why it is time to draw a line in the sand. It is time to reject 
these distractions and stand on the side of the American people.
  That is what this debate is about. It is about individuals who send 
us to Washington to fight for their rights and defend their interests. 
It is about families who sit around the kitchen table in Illinois and 
across America. They open their pocketbooks and write larger and larger 
checks every month. They are wondering when we will have the courage to 
act on our convictions.
  We must not delay another moment. If we fail to act, health care 
coverage will continue to increase in price and decline in quality. Let 
us rise to the challenge. Let us seize this moment. There is no doubt 
the Senate is the greatest deliberative body on the face of the planet. 
Throughout our history, contentious arguments such as this one have 
played out on the floor of this Chamber and the old Senate Chamber down 
the hall. The world knows this Senate can debate. But let it now show 
them we can also act. Let it show them we can take action.
  I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. REID. I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call 
be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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