[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 21]
[Senate]
[Page 28795]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                           HEALTH CARE REFORM

  Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, when we start the debate on the 
health bill, I will be exceptionally eager to take the floor and to 
address some of the points the Republican leader has just addressed.
  Most of us went home. As the minority leader said, most of us heard 
from our constituents who were not bashful about expressing their 
opinions. It is interesting that a lot of those opinions I heard were 
from the people who are just reeling in agony because they are in the 
middle of some medical procedure such as chemotherapy and suddenly they 
get a notice from their insurance company that they are canceled or 
they are desperate to get health insurance coverage and have been 
terminated from their job where they had it, and then an insurance 
company tells them they will will not insure them because they have a 
preexisting condition.
  I do not believe there is anybody in America who is satisfied with 
the way the overall health care and health insurance industry delivery 
system is giving us our health care. Whenever it is said this bill that 
is before the Senate now is going to increase the cost, let's remember 
our costs are already increased by the people who do not have insurance 
who end up at the most expensive place, which is the emergency room, 
since they have not had any preventive care when they are in an 
emergency. All of the rest of us pay for it. On average that is $900 to 
$1,000 that is tacked on to our insurance policies we are paying as a 
hidden tax to pay for all those whom, if brought into the health 
insurance system, we would not be paying for.
  I will save the rest of my remarks until we get on the health bill.

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