[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 19]
[House]
[Pages 25793-25794]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




GOVERNMENTAL TAKEOVER OF HEALTH CARE AND THE DETRIMENTAL EFFECT IT WILL 
                          HAVE ON OUR SENIORS

  (Mr. BROWN of South Carolina asked and was given permission to 
address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. BROWN of South Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to highlight 
the Democrats' plan to pay for their government takeover of health care 
by cutting nearly $162 billion of Medicare at the expense of our 
seniors.
  Across the Nation, nearly 11 million seniors chose Medicare Advantage 
plans as their preferred coverage. Of those 11 million, over 11,000 
seniors in the First District of South Carolina, an area with many 
retirees, may have their coverage dropped or benefits cut if the 
Democrats have it their way.
  Despite the President's promise that if you like your current plan 
you can keep it, it is clear that some seniors will eventually be 
forced into a government-run plan. Additionally, the CBO has said that 
the Democrats' plan will increase seniors' Medicare prescription drug 
costs by 20 percent over the next decade.
  As Medicare dangerously approaches bankruptcy, Democrats must open 
the process up to Republicans to work to repair this rapidly failing 
program and

[[Page 25794]]

protect our seniors from rising drug costs, limited coverage, and 
reduced quality of care. Republicans vow to honor our seniors by 
blocking Washington's bureaucrats from overregulating their health care 
and by providing options and the best quality coverage for all 
Americans.

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