[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 8]
[House]
[Page 10951]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                    SUPPORT THE AFFORDABLE CARE ACT

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
California (Ms. Richardson) for 5 minutes.
  Ms. RICHARDSON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in opposition to the latest 
Republican attempt to repeal the Affordable Care Act and to block 
meaningful health care reform. The Affordable Care Act has been upheld 
by the highest court, the United States Supreme Court, who found that 
this legislation was constitutional.
  I rise today to stress my support of the Affordable Care Act and my 
opposition to the legislation brought before us today.
  This legislation addresses the Affordable Health Care Act, millions 
of uninsured Americans, and it strengthens the Medicare system. It 
relieves all Americans of the growing financial burden and medical 
costs of insurance that many find tough to bear.
  Let me talk a little bit about my district in California. In the 37th 
Congressional District, the benefits of this bill are already 
undisputable. There are now 23,000 children and 90,000 adults who have 
health care insurance that covers preventive services with no copays, 
co-insurance, or deductible. There will be 501 small businesses that 
will receive tax credits that will help them maintain or expand their 
health care coverage for their employees. Health care providers in my 
district have received $3.4 million in affordable care grants since 
2010 to support community health centers, to develop innovative and 
cost-saving health care delivery systems, and to train new health care 
professionals. These statistics are not unique to my district. There 
are similar success stories emerging all over the country.
  Let me speak a little bit about some of those general things that are 
happening. If you're a senior, based upon the Affordable Care Act now, 
you are receiving a 50 percent discount on brand-name drugs when you 
are in Medicare and you experience the doughnut hole coverage gap. You 
have free key preventive services such as mammograms, colonoscopies, 
and a free annual well-visit with your physician. If you're a woman, 
you now have free coverage of lifesaving preventive services such as 
mammograms. Beginning in August, free coverage will also include 
additional comprehensive women-preventive services, including breast 
feeding support, contraception, and domestic violence screening.
  If you're a parent and you have a child who is under the age of 19, 
they can't be denied coverage by an insurance company because of a 
preexisting condition. If you're an adult, you can now join or stay on 
your parents' health plan until you're 26 years old. Those are for our 
young adults. If you're a small business owner, you will be one of the 
millions who will be eligible as a small business owner to receive tax 
credits if you choose to offer coverage to your employees.
  Mr. Speaker, the Affordable Care Act was a long-overdue bill that 
corrects deep injustices and access to health care. The Affordable Care 
Act should be an act that is respected and upheld by this House. It has 
gone through the proper channels of legislation and now has been 
validated by the United States Supreme Court.
  Mr. Speaker, all Americans--young, old, rich, and poor--have an 
inalienable right to health care and to be able to prosper. To be able 
to prosper, you need to be healthy.
  I ask my colleagues to support the Affordable Care Act and to join me 
in fierce opposition to repealing the advances in health care that we 
already won. When we look forward, we must focus on implementing the 
affordable health care bill and focus on getting Americans back to 
work.

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