[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 19]
[House]
[Page 25801]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]


    THE HEALTH CARE PLAN SHOULD NOT BE FINANCED BY RAIDING MEDICARE

  (Mr. LATHAM asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. LATHAM. Mr. Speaker, as millions go without health insurance and 
costs skyrocket, I strongly believe we need commonsense reforms so that 
all American families can have access to affordable health coverage.
  But the plan should not be financed by raiding the Medicare program 
and shifting costs onto the backs of our seniors. Seniors are being 
asked to shoulder the burden while getting virtually none of the 
benefits.
  H.R. 3200 cuts Medicare by a total of $500 billion over the next 10 
years. This includes cuts to hospitals, nursing homes, life-saving 
imaging services, and home health care services. The bill cuts payments 
to Medicare Advantage plans by $172 billion, which, according to the 
CBO, will force more than 3 million seniors out of plans that could no 
longer operate.
  More than 61,000 Iowa seniors and nearly 20 percent of Medicare 
beneficiaries nationwide are enrolled in that type of plan, which 
lowers premium costs by rolling health and drug coverage into one plan 
and negotiating with the health care providers.

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