[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 19]
[House]
[Page 26530]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                              HEALTH CARE

  (Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas asked and was given permission to address 
the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of 
national health care reform. The 29th District in Texas, which I 
represent, has one of the highest numbers of uninsured individuals in 
our country, where nearly 40 percent of the residents are uninsured.
  Last week, the melded House version of the health care bill was 
reintroduced as H.R. 3962, the Affordable Health Care for America Act. 
H.R. 3962 creates a national health care exchange in which individuals 
and small businesses can purchase health insurance plans for themselves 
and employees. Our goal is to build on the system of employer-based 
health care coverage that 60 percent of Americans currently enjoy and 
allow those who have employer-based insurance to keep that coverage.
  If enacted, H.R. 3962 will provide insurance coverage to 230,000 
currently uninsured residents in our district and improve the employer-
based coverage for 217,000 residents. Under this legislation, 177,000 
households would qualify for affordability credits to purchase health 
insurance.
  In our district, 16,600 small businesses would be able to obtain 
health insurance for their employees, and 14,600 small businesses will 
qualify for tax credits to help them offset the cost of obtaining 
health care. That's why we need national health care reform.

                          ____________________