[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 8]
[House]
[Page 10876]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                           TAXING OUR SENIORS

  (Mrs. MALONEY asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mrs. MALONEY. Madam Speaker, I respectfully suggest a small 
correction to the Republicans' statement that their position on the 
deficit negotiations is no new taxes. It would be far more accurate for 
them to state their position is no new taxes except for seniors, 
because sharp increases to participate in the costs of Medicare and 
Medicaid or decreases in the benefits of Social Security would act just 
like a tax on income targeted right at the elderly.
  The Republican proposal for Medicare would hit retired seniors 
immediately by reopening the doughnut hole. And according to a report 
from the Joint Economic Committee, for my home State of New York it 
would cost future retirees an additional $6,500 out of pocket. You can 
call that some sort of adjustment if you like, but I call it a tax, and 
I call it wrong. Grover Norquist agrees. He says changes to the CPI is 
a stealth tax increase: wrong for our seniors, wrong for the economy, 
and wrong for the country.

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