[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 4]
[House]
[Page 5872]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                             SAVE MEDICARE

  (Mr. POLIS asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. POLIS. Madam Speaker, Medicare is a guarantee that senior 
citizens, regardless of their economic circumstances, will have the 
medical care that they need in their twilight years. Medicare plays a 
critical role in removing doubt from people's minds that if they have 
an ailment and are otherwise uninsurable in the marketplace, as many 
are, that their needs will be met. Not to say that the program doesn't 
have its problems. We periodically need to do a ``doc fix,'' and we 
have to find a way to pay that in the long term. There are real issues 
with regards to the reimbursement rates and making sure they are 
adequate so seniors can get their care.
  But the answer, Madam Speaker, is not phasing out Medicare. There is 
a need to mend it, not end it. I think by improving the quality of care 
for seniors and ensuring that seniors have access to preventative care, 
we can help decrease overall health care costs without abolishing and 
phasing out Medicare, as is contained in the Republican budget 
proposal.

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