[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 12]
[Senate]
[Pages 17091-17102]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                               OBAMACARE

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, by now I am sure every Member in this 
Chamber has received literally countless letters, emails, and phone 
calls from the millions of Americans who have been hurt by ObamaCare.
  I recently saw a press release from the senior Senator from 
California saying that she has heard from more than 30,000 constituents 
who are facing skyrocketing costs or canceled plans.
  Each story is unique. Each story is important. That is why this 
morning Senate Republicans will share some of those stories to put a 
human face to those who have suffered as a result of the Democrats' 
decision to force this law on our country.
  I will start off with James Dodson, who is a constituent of mine from 
Owensboro. James has type 2 diabetes. He recently got a letter 
informing him that his high-risk pool coverage would expire next month. 
He says a replacement plan on the ObamaCare exchange will cause his 
premiums to spike from $676 to more than $1,000 a month.
  Here is the question he asked me: ``Where [are] the savings the 
Democrats . . . promised 3 years ago?''
  James' story is another reminder of why it is time for Democrats to 
work with us to repeal this law and start over with bipartisan reform. 
My constituent James is counting on them, and so are millions of others 
across the country who are suffering under this law.
  I understand my friend from Texas has something he would like to 
share.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Texas.
  Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, earlier this month I launched a Web site 
where my constituents in Texas could describe their experiences with 
ObamaCare. As of this morning that

[[Page 17092]]

site has received more than 500 submissions and the stories are simply 
maddening.
  For example, Barry Linden of Brenham, TX, is currently waiting for an 
organ transplant, but because of ObamaCare his health insurance policy 
is being canceled, which could jeopardize his ability to access that 
transplant.
  As Mr. Linden writes, losing his health care plan ``is a potential 
life-ending tragedy for me and my family. The forced dropping of my 
plan creates a variety of complications involving my transplant team 
[and] my medications.''
  The ``most troubling'' thing, he adds, ``is that insurance will have 
to recertify my transplant.'' In other words, he will have to start all 
over.
  Meanwhile, I also heard from another constituent in Lubbock, TX, 
whose 13-year-old daughter has type 1 diabetes. She has had it since 
age 4. Her family had a health insurance policy when she was first 
diagnosed and they have been happy with that policy. However, because 
of ObamaCare, they were recently notified that their daughter's health 
insurance is being canceled in December.
  Stories such as this are simply infuriating and unnecessary, but they 
should strengthen our resolve to dismantle ObamaCare entirely and 
replace it with patient-centered alternatives.
  I yield the floor.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from South Dakota.
  Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, the news out of South Dakota is like it is 
everywhere else--it is all bad. It is cancellation notices and sticker 
shock that families, individuals, and small businesses are 
experiencing.
  This is a letter from a couple I received from my State. It says:

       We got the letter. We just received a cancellation letter 
     from our health care provider . . . I am a self employed 
     plumber . . . We have had the same kind of health insurance 
     for years . . . It works for us, we are happy with it.
       When our current plan expires in 2014 it will no longer be 
     available. We will have to get a new plan. We will be forced 
     to lower our deductible, carry insurance for pregnancy, 
     pediatric eye and dental care, etc. My wife is 50 years old, 
     I'm almost there. WE DON'T NEED COVERAGE FOR PREGNANCY OR 
     PEDIATRIC CARE!
       We were told that our new policy will most likely cost us 
     over 100% more than what we pay now. WE WILL NOT BE ABLE TO 
     AFFORD IT. We will be without insurance and I guess we'll 
     have to pay the Obama tax and take our chances.
       Obama said we could keep our plan . . . PERIOD!

  This is another example from my State of cancellations and sticker 
shock, and that is the experience Americans are having today with 
ObamaCare.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Tennessee.
  Mr. ALEXANDER. Mr. President, The Tennessean reported on Tuesday 
morning in its headline that the State's largest underwriter is 
notifying 66,000 clients that their policies don't meet ACA coverage 
requirements. In other words, they are losing those policies.
  I have a letter from a woman, Emilie, who lives in Middle Tennessee 
who was 1 of 16,000 Tennesseans who are part of another plan called 
CoverTN. She is losing her policy.
  She says:

       I am a 39 year old single woman with a chronic illness, 
     Lupus. I worked my way through college.
       As a person with a chronic illness that was deemed 
     ``uninsurable,'' the only way I was able to obtain health 
     insurance was through an employer based program called 
     CoverTN . . . Although some call it a minimal coverage plan, 
     it has been stellar AND affordable . . . I was excited to 
     hear about the Affordable Health Care Act. I was glad to hear 
     that ``uninsurables'' could no longer be denied coverage . . 
     . unfortunately [that] is NOT TRUE.
       I cannot keep my current plan because it does not meet the 
     standards of coverage. This alone is a travesty. CoverTN has 
     been a lifeline.
       With the discontinuation of CoverTN, I am being forced to 
     purchase a plan . . . that will increase [my costs] by a 
     staggering 410%. My out of pocket expense will increase by 
     more than $6,000.00 a year. Please help me understand how 
     this is ``affordable.''
       I beg of you to continue the fight for those, like me, who 
     would only ask to be allowed to continue to have what we 
     already enjoy. A fair health insurance plan at a fair price.

  That is from Emilie, who is a 39-year-old woman from Tennessee.
  I yield the floor.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Iowa.
  Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, if you like your health plan, you can 
keep it. It is a nice sound bite, isn't it? It is also not true. My 
constituents have learned that the very hard way.
  A constituent from Perry, IA, wrote:

       My husband and I are farmers. For nine years now we have 
     bought our own policy. We recently received our letter that 
     our plan was going away and effective Jan 1, 2014 it will be 
     updated to comply with the mandates of ObamaCare.
       We did not get to keep our current policy. We did not get 
     to keep our lower rates. I now have to pay for coverage that 
     I do not want or will never use.
       We are the small business owner that is trying to live the 
     American dream. I do not believe in large government that 
     wants to run my life.

  This failed promise is hitting home but, more importantly, when the 
President promises something and doesn't keep that promise, it goes way 
beyond a promise to hurt an individual. It goes to the lack of 
credibility of all government. What we need to be doing in this country 
is building up credibility of government to strengthen our institutions 
of government.
  I yield the floor.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Idaho.
  Mr. CRAPO. Mr. President, I join my colleagues on the floor today 
because, like many of them, my constituents are upset. Idahoans are 
finding out that America's promise to the American people that ``if you 
liked your health care plan you could keep it'' simply was not true.
  Over 100,000 Idahoans will find out that they cannot keep their 
current plans. Idahoans such as Jennifer from Salmon, ID, are finding 
this out the hard way. Jennifer is a working self-employed mother of 
three whose current health care costs her family $375 a month. Now 
Jennifer is being told that her current plan is no longer available 
under the President's health care law and that the next available plan 
to her family will cost $900 per month with a $10,000 deductible. That 
plan will require Jennifer to spend $20,000 a year between premiums and 
deductibles before she has benefit coverage.
  This is Kelly, another hard-working mother who was promised 
affordable and successful health care coverage under ObamaCare.
  Optimistic to enroll, Kelly and her husband looked to sign up, only 
to find the plans available to their family were unaffordable and thus 
inaccessible.
  The health care law was sold on the premise that it would help 
families such as Kelly's--those struggling to get by month-to-month in 
our stifled economy--to obtain affordable, quality health insurance. 
Instead, Kelly and her husband are now considering taking the penalty 
fine for being uninsured under the new law as it is a more feasible 
option for their family at this time.
  There are many more just like Kelly and Jennifer in Idaho and across 
the country dealing with new hardships as a result of this law. The 
President needs to work with Congress to find reasonable solutions to 
amend the many broken promises made about this law.
  Thank you, Mr. President. I yield the floor.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Kansas.
  Mr. ROBERTS. Mr. President, Beth from Tribune, KS, is a single mother 
of a 3-year-old son with significant physical disabilities. Her son's 
insurance is being canceled. To replace this policy with a similar 
plan, it is going to cost far more than the $750 monthly premium Beth 
pays now.
  She writes:

       How can this be? My little boy needs health insurance. . . 
     . Now our insurance company is telling us this policy no 
     longer exists because it doesn't meet the government's 
     requirements and if we'd like to get another plan it's going 
     to cost even more for the same child . . .
       We didn't change children . . . it's the same child!! This 
     doesn't make sense. We frequently visit multiple specialists. 
     We need this insurance. It baffles me as to why this is

[[Page 17093]]

     happening. It's not rocket science . . . it's healthcare. 
     ObamaCare is affecting those that need it the most and NOT in 
     a good way . . . It's very stressful raising a child with 
     significant needs . . . I'd like to be concentrating on the 
     health and well-being of my son and not on stressing out over 
     health insurance.

  For Beth and her son, we must repeal this law.
  I yield the floor.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Mississippi.
  Mr. WICKER. Mr. President, according to the U.S. Department of Health 
and Human Services, my State of Mississippi will have the third highest 
premiums in the Nation as a result of the so-called Affordable Care 
Act. This is unacceptable for my State, and my colleagues can be sure I 
am hearing from my constituents about this.
  For example, I heard from a married couple in Long Beach who own a 
small business. The private insurance plan they have offered to their 
employees for over 20 years will suffer a 33-percent premium increase 
on December 1. Their insurance specifically cited the ACA's mandated 
coverage, fees, and taxes for the increased premiums. The couple will 
continue to insure their employees because if they were to discontinue 
the coverage, their employees and families would suffer because they 
would not be able to afford individual plans.
  I also heard from a 58-year-old graphic designer from Madison, MS, 
stating that his insurance premiums will double at the beginning of the 
year from $355 to $755. This gentleman is understandably angry about 
this premium increase. He understands that his insurance will now cover 
mandated benefits such as maternity care and birth control--something 
he will never use as a 58-year-old male.
  I also heard from a 51-year-old disabled retired doctor and the 
father of two high school students. Earlier this week, he was informed 
by his insurance provider that his family's premiums will skyrocket in 
January. He says he discovered that the least expensive coverage for 
his family will result in a 112-percent increase in his premiums.
  After hours on healthcare.gov trying to enroll his family, a 
firefighter, a father, and a husband discovered that the cheapest plan, 
a bronze plan, will be too exorbitant a cost for him to pay. He will 
opt to pay the penalty, and he and his family will remain uninsured.
  These are real Americans who are learning that the Affordable Care 
Act is less affordable and less accessible.
  I yield the floor.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Georgia.
  Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, we all know that over 5 million Americans 
have lost their health care and can't keep the health care they wanted. 
The untold tragedy is the millions and millions more who are being 
priced out of the market because of the increases in costs caused by 
ObamaCare.
  I will read an email from Rob and Jessica in Georgia that I think 
depicts exactly what that tragedy is.

       My husband lost a job in the recession. He could not find 
     work, so we started our own business and have grown it over 
     the last 3 years so that we are supporting ourselves with a 
     modest income. We lost all of our savings, in the process of 
     the recession, but we are proud from where we've come.
       We are in our 40's, healthy and self-insured. We just 
     received a letter from our insurance company that our 
     insurance will be going up 244 percent, from $203 a month to 
     $495 a month. We can't believe that our government has made a 
     decision that is costing us, and everyone we talk to, 
     thousands of dollars. It is truly unbelievable. We have 
     worked so hard to get where we are. We cannot afford this 
     increase.

  ObamaCare is pricing the average American out of health care.
  I yield the floor.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Georgia.
  Mr. CHAMBLISS. Mr. President, I rise to discuss the impact ObamaCare 
is already having on my constituents, likewise, as my colleague said, 
in my home State of Georgia.
  One of my constituents, Jeanie from Twin City, GA, is a registered 
nurse in a small hospital. Her husband is a retired Navy officer who 
served this country honorably for 20 years. They are on TRICARE, so 
Jeanie didn't need her employer to pay for her health care. However, 
because of ObamaCare, Jeanie's employer is cutting her hours to less 
than 30 hours a week, which means a drastic pay cut for her and her 
family. I fear this health care law will continue to force employers to 
reduce employee hours in order to avoid the unaffordable health care 
costs.
  Another constituent, Thomas from Columbus, told me about the problem 
he is facing with his son. His son graduated from college, but as is 
the case with so many his age, he has been unable to find a job in this 
tough economy. His son works hard to make ends meet and was lucky to 
find a bartending position that would allow him to work full-time.
  Service industry professionals, normally, as in the case of Thomas's 
son, do not receive benefits, so Thomas bought his son a catastrophic 
insurance plan they could afford. Now it looks certain that this plan 
is not going to be acceptable under ObamaCare. His son will not qualify 
for Medicaid, but will not be able to afford the premiums he will now 
have to pay for this catastrophic policy.
  Our economy is still recovering and Americans are still struggling. 
Thomas and Jeanie are exactly the type of hardworking Americans that 
health care reform should be making life easier for and not harder.
  It is time for the President and Democrats to join us in scrapping 
this law and starting anew.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Nebraska.
  Mr. JOHANNS. Mr. President, a few weeks ago we opened our Web site to 
Nebraskans so they could tell us what they were dealing with regarding 
ObamaCare. I heard from a family in Grand Island, NE, and this is what 
they said:

       ObamaCare has made the prospect of getting sick very scary 
     at our house. Our monthly premium is set to go up from $578 
     to $714. If that's not bad enough, our maximum out-of-pocket 
     will go from $5,000 to $12,700.

  This family is facing a 24-percent increase in premiums and a 
whopping 154-percent increase in their out-of-pocket maximum.
  The letter goes on to say:

       That's not affordable; in fact, if a member of my family 
     were to get sick and need hospitalization, we'd be in major 
     financial trouble. Not only that, but we only qualify for a 
     $6 tax credit. It really feels as if those of us who work 
     hard, do the right thing, and set good examples for our 
     children are now being punished.

  It is time to stand with the American people and actually fulfill our 
promises and repeal this law.
  I yield the floor.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Maine.
  Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, thousands of Mainers are receiving 
notices that their health insurance is being canceled due to ObamaCare.
  This past weekend I talked with Mark Pendergast, the owner of a small 
landscaping company, who just found out that the premiums for his small 
business plan will jump by 54 percent next year due to ObamaCare. He 
can't pay that and stay competitive, and his workers can't afford it 
either. Their share of the premium will go up by $740 next year. Mark 
is worried they will simply drop their coverage and pay the fine 
instead.
  Mark and his workers are not the only Mainers hurt by ObamaCare. Mrs. 
Beatrice Logan of Cape Elizabeth, ME, emailed me to express her deep 
concern that her family is facing an increase in their deductible from 
$4,500 to $12,000. Moreover, she is being told that they may not be 
able to continue with the health care team at Boston's Children's 
Hospital that has provided a lifetime of excellent care to her 19-year-
old son who has cystic fibrosis.
  Dave Eshelman of Falmouth told me that he and his wife are facing a 
more than 90-percent increase in their premiums. Having to spend an 
additional $5,000 a year for health insurance is no small matter to 
them at a time when they are struggling to start a small business.
  One of the major reasons I strongly opposed the Affordable Care Act 
was that there was nothing ``affordable'' about it. I predicted it 
would lead to fewer choices and higher insurance costs for middle 
income families and small businesses.

[[Page 17094]]

  Congress must work together to address the very real health care 
concerns of the American people and the budget realities we face. 
Repealing ObamaCare's poorly crafted and misguided mandates and 
replacing the law with a fiscally responsible reform bill that contains 
costs and provides more choices is the best path forward.
  Thank you, Mr. President.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Wisconsin.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Wisconsin. Mr. President, Gina Sell is a 29-year-old 
registered nurse, a wife, a mother of two girls, and a lifelong 
Wisconsin native. She and her husband Joe, a heating and air-
conditioning technician, currently purchase health insurance on the 
individual market.
  Their best option under ObamaCare increases their monthly premium by 
$700 and their deductible by $12,000 per year. This is after an annual 
ObamaCare subsidy of $48. Because they both work, Gina and Joe make too 
much money to obtain an adequate subsidy but not enough to afford 
health insurance.
  So what can they do? Gina has looked for a full-time job that 
provides health benefits, but those jobs are pretty scarce. Her only 
option may be to quit working altogether so they qualify for a larger 
subsidy. Because of ObamaCare, Gina might lose a career she loves and 
America might lose a much needed nurse.
  In Gina's words: ``This scenario is life altering . . . My husband 
and I are at a loss for what we can do.''
  I yield the floor.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Wyoming.
  Mr. ENZI. Mr. President, many people supported President Obama's 
health care law based on his promises. Those words don't mean much now 
for millions of people receiving cancellation notices from insurers for 
their current plans, paying prices higher than promised and losing work 
hours, wages, and in some cases jobs.
  In Wyoming alone, there are over 2,600 people who are losing health 
care coverage they like. I have received numerous letters from my 
constituents illustrating the scope of this problem. Greta from Laramie 
is one of them. Greta is in graduate school and paying for tuition out-
of-pocket. She had the university's student BlueCross BlueShield 
insurance plan. In September, her husband and two daughters received 
notice that their family insurance policy was gone. They were happy 
with their coverage. Greta said their plan had very good coverage of 
maternity and well-child visits, low deductibles, and an affordable 
monthly premium. Her family can't afford a new health insurance plan 
which, according to her, ``costs more and gives me less.'' That is what 
we are facing as a Nation: Health care plans we can no longer keep and 
broken promises from the White House.
  The President misinformed the American people when he said, ``If you 
like your health care plan, you can keep it.'' Just last week, he said 
the Democrats didn't do a good enough job crafting the law. To me, that 
sounds like a law that should have never been passed. We must continue 
to push for repeal of this law of broken promises and work on 
alternative solutions that really do what the people were promised.
  I yield the floor.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Missouri.
  Mr. BLUNT. Mr. President, Sonya and Jake, her husband, are from Troy, 
MO. She contacted us to tell me that when her husband quit his job a 
few years ago to start his own business they, of course, when that 
happened, lost their employer coverage, but they were able to check on 
health care coverage for the self-employed. They found what they 
thought was a really doable policy for them. They are young and they 
are healthy. They have six kids, but they are all pretty healthy. They 
were paying $400 a month, with a $5,000 deductible and 100-percent 
coverage after the $5,000. Their preventive care was already covered. 
But, of course, their policy just got canceled because it did not meet 
the ObamaCare guidelines. Their insurance company tells them that to 
get the same kind of coverage with the new guidelines, they are going 
to pay 125 percent more than they have been paying. Their insurance 
more than doubled. Their plan may not have been good enough for the new 
guidelines, but it was good enough for them. When the government begins 
to tell people what they have to have, it almost always costs people 
more.
  Also, we are seeing the high-risk pool in our State and every State 
go away. I am having all kinds of people saying their insurance is 
going to cost more, their deductible is higher, and many times the 
doctor who has been part of their health care challenge right up until 
now is no longer available to them. So much for ``if you like your 
doctor, you can keep your doctor.''
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Ohio.
  Mr. PORTMAN. Mr. President, I think it is great that we have the 
opportunity to come to the floor today to talk about what our 
constituents are telling us. We do not do that enough.
  Last night I had a tele-townhall meeting. We had about 25,000 
Ohioans. At every one of these tele-townhalls, we do a poll asking what 
the most important issue is. And of the tele-townhalls we have done, 
which is one a month, every single time it has been jobs and the 
economy--until last night. Last night it was health care. That is 
because most of the questions I got were about health care coverage and 
people concerned about losing it.
  Let me read a letter from one of my constituents. It is indicative of 
what I am hearing all around the State. This is from Dean. He lives in 
Sandusky, OH. He writes:

       Ever since I lost my job in 2009 I have been purchasing my 
     own health care insurance. Last month I received a letter in 
     the mail stating that my plan is being cancelled due to the 
     ACA. I was told to look at plans on the exchange, which I did 
     and I found a comparable plan that is over twice the cost of 
     what I now have.
       In addition, this is over half of my monthly pension. I 
     simply can't afford this. I have always been a responsible, 
     hard-working, self-dependent person. Now, due to the actions 
     of our government, for the first time in my life I will not 
     have any health insurance coverage. I am 59 years old and I 
     need this coverage. I am outraged to say the least. How can 
     our government do this to us? I will remember this come 
     election time. Please get rid of this insane law. This is 
     unacceptable.

  Well, to Dean and to my other constituents, I agree with you. It is 
unacceptable. We should repeal the law--it does not make sense--and 
then replace it with one that actually reduces the cost of health care 
and keep the promise the President made, which is that people can keep 
the health care they have.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Indiana.
  Mr. COATS. Mr. President, the President has publicly promised all 
Americans: If you like your plan, you can keep it. If you like your 
doctor, you can keep that doctor. The only change, he said, you will 
see is falling costs.
  Well, Donna, a senior citizen from New Albany--senior citizens are 
not supposed to be affected by this ObamaCare--received a letter 
telling her that she and her husband could no longer keep their 
Medicare Advantage plan. It was terminated. So they found another 
plan--much higher cost, much higher premium, much higher deductible.
  Cynthia from Lafayette, IN: I am self-employed and purchase health 
care privately. I am a single parent with a mortgage payment and a 
child in high school. My plan was canceled, and I was given an estimate 
for a replacement plan that is almost double what I am paying today.
  Mr. President, you have not kept your promise to seniors. You have 
not kept your promise to single working mothers. You have not kept your 
promise to families. You have not kept your promise to the people whom 
I represent. How can Americans trust that this government takeover will 
work if you cannot keep your promises to the American people?
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from North Dakota.
  Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, in North Dakota we have a lot of farmers 
and we have a lot of ranchers. They are small businesspeople. They run 
small businesses. They are being hit very

[[Page 17095]]

hard by ObamaCare like other small businesses across this country.
  A rancher from Rhame contacted us. His name is Wayne. He ranches 
there. Rhame is an area where we have a lot of cowboys, a tremendous 
rodeo. They compete nationally. They have great livestock herds there. 
He writes and he says:

       I'm not one to get too upset about things, but this deal 
     really has me mad. We got a letter a few weeks ago that said 
     they were dropping our policy. I paid my own insurance for 
     years and years. When I got that letter, it just hit me--
     because somebody in Washington decided I was too stupid to 
     figure out if my policy was right for me or not.
       I don't pay a lot of attention to politics, but usually 
     what gets decided in Washington doesn't slap you in the face 
     like this law has with me. I have gone on HealthCare.gov and 
     used the estimators they direct you to. I could be going from 
     a $2,500 deductible to something between $10,000 and $12,000, 
     the way it looks to me. This is going to cost me a lot more 
     for something I don't even want.

  If I could, I would like to read another short story from a couple in 
Grand Folks who got ahold of us on the marriage penalty that ObamaCare 
creates. She wrote:

       My husband and I met with the primary health insurance 
     carrier in North Dakota and were told that our current 
     coverage under the guidelines of the Affordable Care Act will 
     cost us at least another $400 more a month, and our 
     deductible will increase from $2,000 to $12,000. Because we 
     are married, we cannot choose individual plans, which would 
     be a lower deductible. In essence, we are being punished for 
     being married. We are looking at paying more than $1,500 a 
     month in health care because we are only 61 years old and not 
     eligible for Medicare for another 4 years--$18,000 a year for 
     health care!
       We were told that part of the problem is the provisions in 
     the law which require us to choose a plan that has maternity 
     benefits. How does this make sense for seniors to be forced 
     to buy coverage that does not apply to them? We agree that 
     benefits shouldn't be denied to people, but it is not fair to 
     be forced to buy coverage that does not even apply.

  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Nebraska.
  Mrs. FISCHER. Mr. President, I rise today to speak on behalf of 
nearly 3,000 Nebraskans who have contacted my office with their 
concerns about ObamaCare. Their stories are, unfortunately, not unique: 
skyrocketing premiums and cancellation of plans they were promised they 
could keep.
  Curt from Lincoln, NE, wrote to tell me he has seen his Blue Cross 
Blue Shield premiums rise a shocking 300 percent. David, a father 
living in Omaha, is facing a potential total increase of $16,000 a year 
for his family's coverage--$16,000. Another constituent from Bertrand, 
NE, will see his family's deductible more than double next year. He 
asked: ``How is this the Affordable Care Act?'' An apology now will not 
help the hard-working Nebraskans who have lost or who will soon lose 
their current coverage. One constituent wrote, ``Folks shouldn't need a 
second mortgage to pay for ObamaCare.'' I agree.
  I yield the floor.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Wyoming.
  Mr. BARRASSO. Mr. President, I go home every weekend to talk to 
people. I was home last weekend for Veterans Day and was in the Target 
store in Casper and ran into a small business owner of a small electric 
company he runs. He has about four people who work with him. He is 
somebody on whom I have operated. He is a former patient of mine. He 
told me he was one of those 4 million Americans who had gotten that 
letter that they had lost their insurance.
  He said: The President promised this would be easier to use than 
amazon.com. I can't get on. He said it would be cheaper than your cell 
phone bill. Well, that has not been the case. He said that the 
President said: If you like what you have, you can keep it. Clearly, 
that is not the case. He said: What is wrong? What is wrong with this? 
How can we fix it?
  I got another letter from a rancher that I need to read. She is from 
New Castle, WY. She says:

       We are ranchers who buy our own health insurance. 
     Currently, we pay $650 a month for an 80/20 policy with a 
     $3,500 deductible. Our maximum family out-of-pocket is 
     $10,000 a year. We do not carry maternity insurance because 
     we have completed our family. I am 45 years old. I have had a 
     hysterectomy.
       I recently called my insurance agent out of fear our policy 
     could be canceled. Well, he said it would be canceled at the 
     renewal time.

  She said that he told her that their policy did not meet ObamaCare's 
requirement because of maternity coverage and they would have to choose 
a policy from the exchanges. Now, remember, she has had a hysterectomy. 
She does not need or want or will ever use maternity coverage.
  She said the insurance agent quoted her rates for a comparable policy 
at $1,300 to $1,600 per month. Remember, they are now paying $650. She 
said the insurance agent also told her they could take a bronze 
policy--much less coverage than they currently have--for $900, which is 
still $250 a month higher than they would have to pay, but the out-of-
pocket cost then was much higher, much more difficult for the family.
  She said:

       We are being forced out of a good policy, which we pay for 
     with hard-earned money and which we choose, into a dangerous 
     financial and health care situation with less coverage and 
     which puts my husband and I, who are proud of our 
     sustainability, onto what we consider the welfare rolls by 
     needing a government subsidy to afford a plan that we do not 
     want or need.

  She said:

       To say that we are angry is an understatement. Why is this 
     happening? Why can Obama force me into this? We feel 
     helpless. What are we supposed to do, just follow like sheep 
     until we are either bankrupt or welfare recipients?

  This is not what President of the United States promised the American 
people. It is not what every Democrat in this body who voted for this 
health care law promised the American people. The American people 
deserve better. They deserve to be able to get the care they need from 
a doctor they choose at lower costs. None of that has come true under 
this health care law.
  I yield the floor.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Mississippi.
  Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, the more my constituents learn about the 
administration's so-called Affordable Care Act, the more it becomes 
clear that major changes should be considered.
  I recently heard from a constituent who had learned from accessing 
the Obama administration's enrollment Web site that the plan with the 
lowest cost available to him has a $7,000 yearly deductible, with a 
$12,000 out-of-pocket maximum and a premium of a little over $2,400 a 
month--nearly twice as much as he and his wife currently pay.
  This family is just one example of millions of Americans who are 
suffering from sticker shock because of the cost of insurance plans on 
the President's new health insurance exchanges. The shock is made worse 
for those who are being rejected by the plans they were told they could 
keep but now cannot.
  It is clear we need to urge the administration to consider going back 
to the drawing board. We should get together, too, here in the Senate 
and find common ground that makes better sense for the American people.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from South Carolina.
  Mr. SCOTT. Mr. President, for the last 3 years we have heard 
President Obama and our friends on the left promise--no, guarantee--
that ObamaCare will help make health insurance more affordable. But day 
after day we see costs going up for hard-working families all across 
our country--not merely the rich families, not only the 1 percent, but 
middle-class Americans.
  Last week I heard from Natalie Geiger, a wife and a mother of three 
in Charleston, SC, whose health insurance costs are seeing double-digit 
increases.
  These are the faces of real people impacted by ObamaCare. They are 
not stats; they are not numbers; they don't get waivers. They are 
taxpayers, middle-income taxpayers, and ObamaCare is forcing many to 
choose between saving for college for these three little kids and 
paying for health care. They shouldn't have to choose.
  ``ObamaCare'' and ``healthcare.gov'' are words that we now know are 
synonymous with ``failure.''
  I yield the floor.

[[Page 17096]]

  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Arkansas.
  Mr. BOOZMAN. Mr. President, I would like to tell the story of a 
constituent who emailed and is so representative of what thousands are 
going through in Arkansas.
  Mark from Little Rock wrote to me after receiving his cancellation 
notice. This is what he had to say:

       I recently received a notice from Blue Cross-Blue Shield 
     that my individual health insurance policy will not be 
     renewed after 2014 due to ObamaCare. Although I am very happy 
     with this policy, I'm being forced out of it after 2014.
       The alternative options under the Affordable Care Act are 
     not very affordable. The closest alternative plan will 
     increase my deductible 25% and increase my monthly premiums 
     300%. . . . from $285 a month to $850 a month.

  Mark notes that his current plan is Blue Cross, which he describes as 
not a ``bad apple'' provider, and that he will be required to pay for 
the entire cost of this new plan out-of-pocket. These are all very 
serious problems with the program, and certainly Mark is not alone.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from North Carolina.
  Mr. BURR. Mr. President, I recently received a letter from Kathleen 
Stephan of Fletcher, NC, who wrote to describe her experience with the 
Affordable Care Act and the impact on her health care. I wish to read 
her letter versus paraphrasing it.

       Dear Senator Burr: I recently received a notice from Blue 
     Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina that my health insurance 
     policy will be cancelled effective January 1, 2014 because it 
     does not meet all of the mandates under ObamaCare.
       My current premium is $418 per month. The replacement 
     policy being recommended to me will cost $928 per month--a 
     122 percent increase, and I do not qualify for subsidies.
       I have had continuous coverage with Blue Cross Blue Shield 
     for many years, and I like the plan I currently have.
       I'm a 62 year old woman, and will not benefit from the 
     mandatory additions to my plan, such as maternity coverage, 
     newborn and pediatric care.
       In the past, having continuous coverage provided a sense of 
     security that my rates could not be raised based on a change 
     in my health status.
       I experienced such a change in 2012 when I was diagnosed 
     with breast cancer and underwent seven months of treatment.
       Now my rates are more than doubling, and the security is 
     gone, not because of the change in my health, but because of 
     ObamaCare.
       When President Obama was selling the Affordable Care Act to 
     the American people, he repeatedly promised that if you like 
     your health care plan, you can keep your health care plan. 
     Period.
       I'm writing to you today to tell you that I do like my plan 
     and I want to keep it. I'm asking for fairness for myself and 
     the estimated millions of other Americans who will have their 
     plans taken away by ObamaCare.
       Sincerely,
                                                 Kathleen Stephan.

  How do I answer Kathleen's letter?
  I yield the floor.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Idaho.
  Mr. RISCH. Mr. President, every one of us can stand here and tell 
thousands of stories. Mine will come from a gentleman by the name of 
Clint W., who is a small business owner. He received notice that he 
wasn't grandfathered, was being cancelled as of the first of the year. 
His premiums went from $320 to $1,200. His deductible went from $5,000 
to $12,700. He says he can't afford it, and he canceled the policy so 
that he could save money for future medical expenses, and he is going 
to stay canceled for as long as he possibly can.
  What struck me about this--I didn't get a lot of letters from poor 
people. I didn't get a lot of letters or contacts from rich people. My 
contacts came from middle-class America, which is what this country is. 
We are a middle-class country, by and large, with a small sliver of 
rich people at one end and some people who are deserving of our help at 
the other end, but those who are primarily affected by this are the 
middle class of America.
  My good friends on the other side tried to claim they are the party 
that represents the middle class of America. I don't know whether they 
are getting the same letters we are, but if they are, they realize they 
have done something horrible. They didn't do a plan to help the 
disadvantaged, whom the Republican Party has always helped. What they 
have done is a social experiment that is collectivism or socialism at 
its worst. It is obvious it is a failure. These things don't work.
  The American people, over 200 years, built a very successful 
insurance system and health care system in America. In 3 years this has 
been destroyed. There are 44 days left to make this work. If this isn't 
done right, there is going to be a collapse on January 1 and the 
American people are going to know exactly who caused it.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Florida.
  Mr. RUBIO. One of the things I have discussed is the impact ObamaCare 
is having on Medicare and Medicare beneficiaries. Obviously, being from 
Florida, we have a significant number of Medicare beneficiaries and, in 
particular, people who are under something called Medicare Advantage. 
This is the only program in Medicare where seniors get to choose the 
type of coverage they want and things of that nature. My mom is a 
Medicare Advantage patient.
  I wish to read a letter I received from a constituent of mine named 
Michelle Hatley, who lives in Destin, FL, which is in northwest 
Florida. This is a letter she received regarding her existing doctors. 
She also received a letter from one of her providers that talks about 
the changes that are happening. She sent this document attached to it. 
She states:

       Here is a copy of the letter that I received from White 
     Wilson Medical Group. As I indicated in our conversation, 
     Sacred Heart might also be affected. My Medicare Advantage 
     plan was the Medicare Completer through AARP and United 
     Health Care. I have multiple chronic conditions which require 
     treatment and consultation through several doctors. Three of 
     my doctors are with White Wilson and 3 are with Sacred Heart. 
     My rheumatologist, who directs my care for treatment of 2 
     autoimmune conditions, including rheumatoid arthritis, is 
     with Sacred Heart and the only Rheumatologist in Destin. I am 
     also legally blind, so transport to another doctor out of 
     town is both difficult to arrange and expensive.
       Of the plans that are available that will allow me to keep 
     my doctors, the annual out of pocket is significantly higher 
     as well as the co-payments and deductibles for patient 
     visits, prescription drugs, and inpatient care. My choice has 
     been reduced to finding ALL new doctors or enrolling in a 
     different Medicare Advantage plan, which will cost more.
       I wanted the Senator to be aware that Medicare clients are 
     experiencing negative consequences from the ACA as well.

  Since that time, after this experience, she has been able to find a 
plan that will help her avoid losing all six of her doctors, including 
her five specialists and the primary care physician. This is the catch: 
The new plan's out-of-pocket costs are now going from the $4,000-to-
$4,500 range up to an expected $5,900. It was a tough decision for her 
to make, but she ultimately decided to pay more money in order to keep 
seeing all of her doctors who have been treating her for the past 4 to 
6 years.
  This is a real-life story of a Medicare Advantage recipient in this 
country whose out-of-pocket costs are going up because of ObamaCare. It 
is wrong. It is unfair. It should not stand.
  I yield the floor.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from New Hampshire.
  Ms. AYOTTE. Mr. President, I came to the floor yesterday to share 
many stories I am receiving from my constituents about them receiving 
cancellations of policies they wanted to keep and higher premiums under 
this law. Each story is very sad, and I feel badly for the people of my 
State and across this country who are suffering under this law. My 
constituents are pleading for relief. This is only one example.
  A small business owner from Peterborough, NH, who voted for President 
Obama twice, told me that her family has a household income of $50,000 
and their total health insurance will now cost over $19,000 for the 
year, which is more than their mortgage. Their local hospital isn't 
even on the exchange. In New Hampshire we only have one insurer on the 
exchange and 10 of our 26 hospitals have been excluded from that 
exchange.
  This constituent from Peterborough wrote:

       We are frustrated, afraid, and angry beyond words. . . . I 
     urge a postponement of

[[Page 17097]]

     implementation of the Affordable Care Act while those with 
     the power look harder at the average American and come up 
     with a better plan. Life shouldn't be this hard.

  Citizens from across New Hampshire and this country are crying out 
for relief. I hope the President will listen to them and call a timeout 
on this law so that we can come together and, rather than what was done 
in this Chamber--passing a partisan law--come together for bipartisan 
health care solutions.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Kansas.
  Mr. MORAN. Mr. President, it is hard to narrow down the best story to 
tell. In fact, they are all bad stories. They are all terrible stories. 
Kansans are also struggling under the consequences of the passage of 
the Affordable Care Act. It bothers me so many times it is suggested 
that this is only a problem with implementation. The problem that 
Americans and Kansans are facing today really is the crux, the 
underlying basis for the provisions of the Affordable Care Act. This is 
not only an implementation problem; it is not only a computer problem; 
it is the theory on which the Affordable Care Act was based.
  An example I would like to describe to my colleagues in the Senate is 
from a constituent from Newton, KS, which is a city in the center of 
the State. He writes:

       We were notified by our health insurance carrier that our 
     premiums on our small business plan were to increase 24% on 
     our renewal date because of the coverage mandated by the ACA 
     starting in 2014.
       As small business owners in our late 50s we have struggled 
     to find affordable health insurance for years. About 2 years 
     ago we were able to sign up for a plan offered to small 
     businesses through a well known carrier. It was not a 
     ``Cadillac'' plan since we each had a $5,000 deductible and 
     no coverage for maternity (didn't need), contraception 
     (didn't need), but it covered the things we wanted and 
     needed. Unfortunately, the premium increase is going to put 
     this plan in the unaffordable range again.
       I have not yet been able to get on healthcare.gov. The few 
     times I've tried it has either been down or locked up during 
     access. As a business owner with employees and a lot of 
     responsibilities, the time I have to spend messing around 
     with a slow or non-responsive web site is limited and 
     personally expensive.

  Our constituents need help, and the Affordable Care Act is why they 
need help.
  I yield the floor.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Kentucky.
  Mr. PAUL. The President promised the American people that if you like 
your doctor, you can keep him or her. He promised that if you like your 
insurance, you can keep it. But he needs to tell Andy Mangione and his 
family why they can't keep their insurance. They had an individual 
policy they were happy with. They paid $333 per month, and they are now 
going to be asked to pay $965 per month for things they don't want and 
didn't choose to have. This isn't only about health care; this is about 
freedom of choice. This is about whether one can choose what type of 
insurance they want. The next question is, What is next? What choices 
will be taken from us?
  I am going to be signing up for ObamaCare. Yesterday I tried 15 
times. I wasn't able to get beyond ``create an account'' because every 
time I pushed ``create an account,'' nothing happened.
  This is a real problem--5 million people without insurance. The 
President said: If you can keep your insurance, you should be allowed 
to. You can keep your doctor.
  Something has to be done because the Mangione family is going to have 
to pay three times as much for an insurance policy they don't want. We 
are taking their freedom of choice away. I, for one, say enough is 
enough. Let's get rid of this. Let's give back freedom to the consumer. 
Give back freedom to Kentucky families. In Kentucky, 10 times more 
families have been canceled than have actually accessed the Web site. 
Something has to give.
  Mr. President, if you said ``you can keep your doctor,'' come forward 
and tell us why we can't keep our doctor.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Texas.
  Mr. CRUZ. Mr. President, millions across this country are losing 
their health care, are losing their doctors because of ObamaCare. In 
Texas this past week the Austin American-Statesman reported that 
Austin's largest provider of cancer treatment won't participate in the 
health insurance plans offered through the marketplace set up by the 
Affordable Care Act. Indeed, they went on: ``ObamaCare looked like the 
sunshine on the horizon. And now it's a tornado,'' said one Austinite 
who has breast cancer and is being treated at Texas Oncology.
  In its upcoming issue, Texas Medicine, a publication from the Texas 
Medical Association, references a survey by the Medical Group 
Management Association that says uncertainty has 40 percent of 
physician practices across the country pondering their participation in 
marketplace-based insurance plans.
  But by reducing their risk, Texas Oncology is passing the burden on 
to some already stressed families, said Seth Winick, whose wife is 
being treated by Texas Oncology for breast cancer. Winick also said: 
``It's an unwelcome burden and could seriously affect thousands of 
families who deal with cancer in our communities.''
  If Winick's family is forced to pay out-of-network rates to treat his 
wife, the family will have to make some tough decisions. He says: ``We 
will make the financial sacrifice necessary to purchase the best care 
we can afford and we hope that it is enough.''
  But Mr. Winick had nothing positive to say about the people and the 
care provided at Texas Oncology. He also said:

       Expanding health insurance coverage to people who don't 
     have it is a noble goal, but the impact that has on those of 
     us who do have it remains to be seen. Folks in the individual 
     market don't really know what is in store.

  President Obama promised the American people: If you like your health 
care plan, you can keep it. We now know that promise wasn't true. 
ObamaCare isn't working and it is time to start over.
  I thank the Chair.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Booker). The Senator from Arizona.
  Mr. FLAKE. As my colleagues have said, I think all of us have heard 
from hundreds of our constituents in the past week who have had their 
insurance policies canceled or their insurance policies have been made 
unaffordable by the Affordable Care Act.
  I wish to talk a minute about Greg and Linda. They live a couple 
doors down from me. I heard from Greg earlier this week. Greg and Linda 
are in their late fifties, early sixties. They know at this stage in 
life what kind of policy they need. They know what they do not need. 
They had a premium of about $400 under their old policy. They paid 
$440, to be exact. The new plan they have been able to find that 
matches most closely with what they had, after their other policy was 
canceled, would cost them just over $1,000--$1,055 to be exact. How is 
that affordable?
  The President promised: If you like your plan, you can keep it. If 
you like your doctor, you can keep him or her. Period. That has not 
been the case. The President needs to explain to Greg and Linda and to 
hundreds and thousands of other Arizonans who are losing their health 
coverage how it is he said they could keep their coverage and now they 
can't.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Utah.
  Mr. LEE. Mr. President, the President of the United States promised: 
If you like your plan, you can keep it. We all know now that simply 
wasn't true. Though many of us have been saying this for years, many 
Americans, including many in my State, are realizing the pain of the 
President's false statement.
  Dave from Utah says: My company just dropped the good insurance plan 
we have had for years due to ObamaCare. The Affordable Care Act is 
costing me more money. I am barely able to keep my family out of 
poverty, and now health care is going to cost me even more. Please do 
something to change this.
  Marcy from Utah says: We own a small business in Utah and we will be

[[Page 17098]]

forced to cancel our insurance and ourselves go on ObamaCare.
  We can start over with a new way to fix our health care system, but 
starting over doesn't necessarily have to mean starting from scratch. 
We should take those lessons we have learned and we should build around 
the concept of a market-driven, patient-centered health care system, 
one that empowers individual Americans to choose their own health 
insurance based on their own personal needs and based on their own 
preferences.
  I thank the Chair.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from South Carolina.
  Mr. GRAHAM. Mr. President, I have two stories from South Carolina I 
will quickly share with the body.
  Scott, from Goose Creek, SC:

       I am a college professor from Columbia, SC, at a private 
     university. We are up for our insurance open enrollment. I am 
     35 years old, a vegetarian, never smoked, ridiculously low 
     blood pressure and cholesterol.

  Obviously, I have nothing in common with Scott.
  Continuing Scott's story:

       I noticed the following about my policy: My share of 
     premiums went up by 35 percent to 40 percent. In addition, my 
     actual policy changed. My deductible tripled from $250 to 
     $750. I cannot get regular monthly prescriptions at my 
     pharmacy now. I am sure there are other changes that I have 
     not examined closely enough to notice.

  Thomas Dougall, from Elgin, SC: After submitting his personal 
information on healthcare.gov received a phone call from a Mr. Justin 
Hadley, a North Carolina resident, who informed him that when he signed 
onto healthcare.gov, he received all of Mr. and Mrs. Dougall's personal 
information.
  This is beginning to be a very famous case.
  There are 572 people who have been enrolled in ObamaCare in the State 
of South Carolina.
  ObamaCare care is not working, and I fear it will never work. The 
best way to fix it is to repeal it and replace it with something that 
will work.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Utah.
  Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, I have received letters from constituents 
all over Utah who are scared, angry, and confused about the changes 
they are facing under ObamaCare. I have heard countless stories from 
Utahns losing their coverage and who will be forced into more expensive 
plans, thanks to the so-called Affordable Care Act.
  One such story came from Kathy in Salt Lake City. I spoke briefly 
about Kathy on the floor a few weeks ago. Kathy wrote to tell me how 
she was notified by mail that her existing health care plan was no 
longer going to be offered. Instead, she was presented with an 
ObamaCare-compliant policy that will increase her deductible from 
$3,000 to $5,000, increase her copays for doctor visits by 30 percent, 
and increase her copays for prescription drugs as much as 50 percent.
  As a result of these changes, Kathy's health care expenses will 
exceed her income. To quote Kathy:

       The claim that only substandard policies were canceled is a 
     lie--the plan I was on was a good policy.

  She does not trust the new healthcare.gov Web site and feels there is 
not adequate security to protect her personal information. In her 
words: ``I wouldn't touch the exchange with a 10-foot pole.''
  She is not alone in feeling this way, which spells trouble for these 
new health care exchanges and for the President's health care law.
  I yield the floor.
  Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, I rise today to discuss higher premiums 
and deductibles facing Alaskans, despite President Obama's promise that 
he will lower premiums by up to $2,500 for a typical family per year. I 
can assure you that families in Alaska that I have heard from are 
experiencing just the opposite; significant, double digit increases in 
their premiums and they are not pleased with the President's failed 
promise to lower their healthcare costs.
  I received a letter from a couple in Fairbanks, AK who is in the 55-
plus age group and make ``decent'' but not significant incomes. They 
also do not qualify for Federal subsidies. They say the new cost of 
their insurance is ``like another mortgage payment--over $1,500 per 
month with an increase from $5,000 to $6,350 for each deductible.'' By 
my assessment, that's over $18,000 in premiums plus $6,350 for their 
initial out-of-pocket expenses, which totals over $24,000 before any 
non-routine checkups are covered. They say they would rather pay the 
penalty, and unfortunately, this couple is not alone in their thinking. 
In Alaska, a State with the second highest premiums in the Nation 
according to CMS' own data, many of my constituents will opt for the 
penalty rather than bankrupting themselves to pay for a health 
insurance policy. It's not surprising that the letter ends by saying, 
``Not happy with the Affordable Care Act.'' I agree. And recent polls 
indicate that many Americans aren't happy with the Affordable Care Act.
  Contrary to what we've been hearing about how higher premiums are 
actually making health insurance better or more affordable, that's just 
not the case. Mr. President, this couple wants to contribute to 
society. They want to be responsible citizens. But they can't when 
their insurance premiums costs are like another mortgage payment. This 
is the harsh impact the Affordable Care Act is having on everyday 
Alaskans who are trying to do the right thing.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Republican time has expired.
  The Senator from California.
  Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, we have seen an array of my Republican 
colleagues come to the floor, which is their right--and I am glad the 
government is open so they can have their staff help them prepare their 
speeches--but I have to say this is typical of the Republicans when it 
comes to health care. All they do is criticize. Not one--not one 
because I monitored the speeches--gave one new idea of how to make sure 
our citizens are protected with the insurance they have or how to 
insure the 48 million uninsured Americans--not one.
  But this is the way the Republican Party has been for years. Let's 
look at what happened when Medicare came to the Senate floor and to the 
House floor--Medicare, which is one of the most beloved programs. Sixty 
percent of Republicans in the Senate and 50 percent of House 
Republicans voted against Medicare in 1965.
  Representative Durward Hall, a Republican from Missouri, said:

       We cannot stand idly by now, as the Nation is urged to 
     embark on an ill-conceived adventure in government medicine, 
     the end of which no one can see, and from which the patient 
     is certain to be the ultimate sufferer.

  This is typical of Republicans through the generations. Every time we 
have tried to expand health care they have opposed it and opposed it 
and tried to derail it.
  Senator Milward Simpson, a Republican from Wyoming, said:

       I am disturbed about the effect this legislation would have 
     upon our economy and upon our private insurance system.

  That is what they said about Medicare, and they read horror stories. 
They read horror stories about it.
  Here is what the Republicans aren't saying. They are saying there is 
a problem with the health care law that needs to be fixed, which is 
that people who want to keep their substandard plans are having trouble 
keeping their substandard plans. But President Obama has already said 
he is going to fix that. There is legislation to fix that. We will fix 
it. But that is not good enough for our Republican friends. They want 
to tear it down, just like they wanted to tear down Medicare.
  They have even wanted to tear down Medicare more recently. This isn't 
ancient history, let's be clear. In 1995, Dick Armey, the Republican 
House majority leader, said that Medicare is ``a program I would have 
no part of in a free world.''
  This is the Republican sentiment about health care being offered to 
our people. That same year, after leading an effort to raise premiums 
and costs for seniors, Newt Gingrich predicted that Medicare was 
``going to wither on the vine.''
  We have tea partiers saying hands off my Medicare. OK. That is how 
out of

[[Page 17099]]

touch the Republicans are with where the people are.
  In 1996, Senate majority leader Bob Dole bragged:

       I was there, fighting the fight, voting against Medicare . 
     . . because we knew it wouldn't work in 1965.

  Now Paul Ryan's budget ends Medicare as we know it.
  So let's be clear. When you see almost the entire Republican caucus 
come down and try to repeal the Affordable Care Act, this is not just 
stemming from today or yesterday or a glitch in the Web site or a 
problem we have that we have to fix about people losing their 
substandard plans. If they want to keep them, we will figure out a way 
to help them fix that. But notice they never said anything about the 
good things the Affordable Care Act is doing for millions of people.
  Because of the Affordable Care Act, 3 million young adults are now 
insured on their parents' plan. Yet they want to repeal the Affordable 
Care Act. What is going to happen to those 3 million young adults?
  We have 71 million Americans getting free preventive care such as 
checkups, birth control, and immunizations. There are 17 million kids 
with preexisting conditions, such as asthma and diabetes, who can no 
longer be denied coverage.
  They want to talk about people who are having a problem. We are going 
to fix that. We think it is about 5 percent of the people, but even if 
it is 1 percent, we should fix it.
  Yesterday we learned in the first month of the open enrollment 
period, 106,000, or 1.4 percent of consumers expected to sign up in the 
first year, have enrolled. If you look at Massachusetts during its 
first month--and I am sure the Chair is aware of this, being from New 
Jersey, close to Massachusetts--only 0.3 percent, or 123 people, signed 
up for coverage out of the 36,000 who ultimately signed up in the first 
year.
  So let's be clear: We all wanted to see bigger numbers, but the 
Affordable Care Act numbers are four times better than what 
Massachusetts did in its first month. If you talk to the people in 
Massachusetts, they love their health care plan, and our plan is based 
on their plan. By the way, the Massachusetts plan is a Republican plan.
  Hundreds of thousands have started the enrollment process, and I am 
one of them. I have created an account and I am going to go shopping 
and buy my plan. I am taking my time because I have some time--until 
December--and I wish to discuss it with my husband. We are going to 
decide what is best for us and I am going to sign up. I think it was 
Secretary Sebelius who said this isn't like buying a toaster. This is a 
commitment for 1 year and you have to take your time.
  So don't come here and tear down the Affordable Care Act without 
having to put anything in its place and focus on one problem the 
President has said he is going to fix--and we are going to fix it. 
Things are going to pick up.
  But I wish to tell you the great news about California. Just in the 
first 2 weeks of November, California's enrollment has doubled. Our 
story is a truly good one. There is a huge amount of interest in 
California. People are enrolling. We do have a good Web site, which is 
important. People are finding affordable health care options.
  At the end of the day, when the kinks are worked out, I believe the 
California experience will be repeated across the country to the 
benefit of all our families.
  So I will break down some of the numbers from California. We have the 
largest State in the Union. I hate to say this to my friends here, but 
we are always ahead of the curve.
  During the month of October, 370,000 Californians began the process 
of signing up for private coverage or Medicaid through our health 
insurance marketplace, Covered California--coveredCA.com. Of those, 
over 30,000 Californians enrolled in health exchange plans and over 
72,000 applied for Medicaid. So we are off to an excellent start in 
California. In October, there were more than 2.4 million unique visits 
to Covered California. In other words, this doesn't count people going 
back and back. These are unique visits. More than 249,000 calls were 
made to Covered California call centers, and they have got it down to 
just a couple of minutes of wait time. To date, more than 17,000 
counselors, agents, county workers, and others have been certified to 
offer in-person assistance to Californians.
  We have heard the horror stories from over there--one side of the 
story--of people having a problem. We are going to fix the problem. I 
will quote what Californians are saying.

       I enrolled online on Monday! No website troubles! Took me 
     about 15 minutes! I'll be saving $628 a month after January 
     1st! So grateful!
       Very short wait on the phone; helpful cheerful person to 
     talk to. This online app is very easy. Thank you!
       The insurance package I am getting is more comprehensive 
     and way cheaper than the one I've had for the last 9 years. 
     Thank you for creating the marketplace and making the 
     information more accessible and understandable.
       I find the new coverage provisions to be amazing compared 
     to what was out there before. Many of the plans are cheaper 
     than anything I've seen before and the one I chose has zero 
     deductible.
       Simple, straightforward, and intuitive. I haven't had 
     health insurance since 1985, so this site has made it 
     unexpectedly easy to enroll. Thank you.

  What we heard from the Republicans is from a group of people we are 
going to help who have substandard plans--they don't meet the standards 
of the Affordable Care Act; sometimes they are called junk plans--some 
a little better than junk, many of them are not there when you need 
them. I have to say, to come down here and echo that sentiment without 
saying the good things which have been done is outrageous.
  I ask unanimous consent for 2 more minutes.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mrs. BOXER. So we now know the history of the Republican Party. Sad 
to say, but they opposed Medicare when it went in. They tried to tear 
it down; they still are trying to tear it down in the Ryan budget. They 
come down here, and they talk about a problem that exists that we are 
going to fix. They never said: The President is going to fix it. He may 
be on the way to fixing it in moments here. But they ignore the fact 
that the signups are ahead of where Massachusetts was at this time.
  Sage McCollister from Castro Valley told me how the law is helping 
her family. She was able to get insurance for her 7-year-old daughter, 
Leah, who was born with an autoimmune disorder. Sage said that before 
the Affordable Care Act was passed she applied to eight different 
companies to try to get insurance, but none were affordable. After the 
law went into effect, she was able to get insurance for Leah for $8 a 
month. Leah was able to get a procedure done to treat a spinal cord 
problem that could have resulted in paralysis. Sage said that without 
the Affordable Care Act, ``my family would be bankrupt and Leah 
wouldn't have gotten the health care she needs.''
  ``Obamacare saved my family from financial ruin,'' said another 
constituent, Janine Urbaniak Reid.
  So let's be fair. To come down to the floor one after the other and 
shed light on one problem we are going to fix--that the President said 
he was going to fix--and then say you are going to repeal the whole 
thing sounds just like their predecessors who said that Medicare was 
terrible and that Social Security was an awful idea. That is what this 
is about.
  We are going to make history here. We are going to do the right 
thing. We are going to fix the problems, and there will be more because 
that is what happens when we are tackling this big issue. But at the 
end of the day, we will be a better nation, a healthier nation. Our 
children will have a brighter future, and I stand with those who want 
progress. We are not going to tear something down like they want to do 
and go right back to where we were before--with parents like these 
having to choose between feeding their families and giving their kids 
health care.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Connecticut.
  Mr. MURPHY. Mr. President, I thank the Senator from California for 
telling

[[Page 17100]]

the stories of people in California, which are not unlike the stories 
in Connecticut--an exchange that is working, a flood of people signing 
up way above expectations from where we originally thought the numbers 
would be. I thank her as well for pointing out what is the reality--
which is that over 40 times Republicans in the House of Representatives 
and in the Senate have voted to repeal the health care reform law. Even 
well over the last 5 years, using over and over this mantra of repeal 
and replace, they have offered absolutely no replacement.
  There is a story in one of the trade publications this morning saying 
that the Republicans were just going to change their strategy. Instead 
of piling on repeal vote after repeal vote, they are now just going to 
come down to the floor and use their committee chairmanships to simply 
criticize the law, and shelve, for the time being, their incessant 
efforts to try to repeal the law entirely.
  But make no mistake, that continues to be their intention. While they 
are going to come down to the floor of the Senate, as they did this 
morning, and tell a handful of anecdotes about people who are 
dissatisfied with the law, their true intention is to get rid of the 
entire law and go back to a world in which 30 million people in this 
country had no access to insurance; that if you got sick, you would 
lose your insurance; a world in which insurance companies essentially 
set the rules of the game, to the disadvantage of providers and 
patients. That is what the agenda is here, to repeal the law and go 
back to the status quo, which is unacceptable--the highest number of 
uninsured citizens in the industrialized world, the most expensive 
health care system by a factor of two, compared to all of our G-20 
competitors.
  I get it that there are people who are unhappy, and the President is 
going to make an announcement later today which is going to set a path 
forward to try to fix one of the issues with the law with respect to 
cancelled policies. But I will share a couple of other stories about 
what the reality of the old system was.
  Kyle is today about 11 years old, but when we first came into my 
office he was an 8-year-old living with hemophilia. Kyle is an 
amazingly brave young man who inspires courage in his parents. But Kyle 
has to get three to four injections a week in order to treat his 
hemophilia, and each one of those injections costs $3,000.
  His plan prior to health care reform had a feature in it that most 
people didn't know was included in their health care plan. That was a 
lifetime cap on the amount of money his health insurance company would 
pay for his care. Because Kyle was mounting up bills in the tens of 
thousands of dollars every week, his family was going to hit that cap 
very quickly and then be on the hook for those $3,000 injections that 
Kyle needs to take three to four times a week. That was going to 
bankrupt Kyle's family. They thank their lucky stars that we passed 
this health care reform law, because now their insurance has to be real 
insurance. It protects them against their lifetime exposure of high 
health care costs.
  Think about the Burgers from Meriden, CT. Betty and her husband had 
insurance their entire life, except for a 1-week period of time when 
Betty's husband switched jobs. During that 1-week period of time, their 
son was diagnosed with cancer, and because that was then a preexisting 
condition, her husband's new insurance plan wouldn't cover their son's 
treatment. Their story, unfortunately, can be told millions of times 
over across this country--because the Burgers went bankrupt. They lost 
their savings, they lost their house, and they lost everything as they 
mounted up huge bills to pay for their son's cancer treatments, just 
because he got diagnosed during a 1-week period of time in which their 
family had no health care insurance. That practice ends with the 
implementation of this health care law. No sick person can be denied 
insurance simply because of a preexisting condition, simply because a 
diagnosis happened to happen during a small window of time in which 
their family didn't have insurance.
  I get it that the road has been a little bumpy as we have implemented 
this new health care system. But it is nothing compared to the bumps 
which have been encountered by millions of families across this country 
who have been abused by a system which simply does not work.
  If our biggest problem is that enough people who don't have insurance 
aren't signing up quick enough for insurance, that is a problem I will 
accept because it is a problem we can fix. If all we are talking about 
here is just the pace at which people are going from uninsured to 
insured, then we can fix that. We can fix that because we know the 
product is good.
  Senator Boxer talked about the Massachusetts experience, where during 
the first month of their enrollment for the Massachusetts exchange only 
0.3 percent of the total signed up during that month. Why? Because 
people take their time. This is not an easy decision, to sign up for 
health care. But in Connecticut, where we have an exchange which has 
been up and running and a Web site that is working, in the first month 
our number wasn't 0.3 percent. We enrolled nearly 10 percent of our 
expected total in the first 30 days.
  Here is what people say about their experience with Connecticut's 
exchange. One person said: This is a great resource for Connecticut 
residents to apply for health coverage thanks to the health care law.
  Another said: I chose Access Health because I have been denied in the 
past by other carriers before this law changed.
  Another said: Thank you so much for this health care law. I haven't 
been insured in a decade. I am so, so thankful.
  Another said: Thank you for this program. I lost my job a year ago 
and couldn't find anything that I can afford in health coverage before 
this law passed.
  Finally, another said: Thank you. This law is helpful and 
appreciated. God bless America, and thank you President Obama.
  The President is going to make an announcement which will paint a 
path forward for the relatively small number of Americans--4 percent--
who get their insurance in the individual market, some of which have 
had their plans canceled. But the solution with respect to the timing 
of enrollment is not to abandon the law, as is the real agenda of 
people on this floor. The solution is to fix the problem so that, like 
in Connecticut, more people across this country can for the first time 
have access to affordable quality health care.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Illinois.
  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I thank my colleagues from Connecticut and 
California for coming to the floor.
  We saw for the last hour Republican Senators come to floor and tell a 
number of stories about individuals and the difficulties they have run 
into with health insurance. I don't dispute the facts they have brought 
to the floor, but I do dispute their characterization of what America 
faces at this moment in time.
  I supported the Affordable Care Act. I believe it was the right thing 
to do. I still believe it. I will tell you right off the bat--and most 
Democrats and Republicans would agree on this point--it is off to a 
rocky start.
  This Web site that was supposed to be ready October 1 we are told 
will be ready by November 30. I hope it is, and the sooner the better. 
I am told it is improving by the day. That is good. Americans need 
access to information about health insurance. And when they have that 
access, they can do something--for many of them for the first time in 
their lives--go shopping for health insurance. There are a lot of 
people who have never had that luxury. Some have never had health 
insurance one day in their lives. Others have been given a ``take it or 
leave it'' situation, with a policy that may or may not be worth 
anything.
  I listened carefully to the Republicans for a long time on the issue 
of health insurance. I have heard a lot of criticism, a lot of 
complaints. They want to defund ObamaCare. They want to delay the 
Affordable Care Act. They want to destroy it.

[[Page 17101]]

  They do not have an alternative. ``We want to repair it and replace 
it.'' Then let's hear your proposal. We never heard one during the 
course of our debate on creating this law 3\1/2\ years ago. We kept 
waiting for a Republican plan. The honest answer is they had none and 
apparently they still do not.
  The reason they do not is they fall back and say let the marketplace 
decide. Many of us know the marketplace in health care personally. We 
know a marketplace that has turned away 40 to 50 million people who are 
uninsured in America, people who still get sick, still go to the 
hospital, and whose bills are paid by everyone else.
  The Republican Party is supposed to be the party of responsibility 
and rugged individualism. What about the responsibility we all have, if 
we can afford it, to have health insurance and as a country to provide 
the means for those who cannot afford it so they can have protection 
too. That to me is responsible. Trying to just stop this reform is 
irresponsible.
  When you get into the specifics on the Affordable Care Act you never 
hear a Republican Senator come to the floor and make a case against the 
specifics. Do you know why? They cannot. Is there a Republican Senator 
who will come to the floor and defend the right of a health insurance 
company to turn down a person or a family because of a preexisting 
condition? That is the situation we faced when we passed the Affordable 
Care Act. Is there a family in America who does not have someone with a 
preexisting condition? Most families do. My family has in the past and 
does now too.
  Preexisting conditions can range from the very serious to conditions 
which are chronic and manageable, from asthma and diabetes to cancer 
survivors. The list is long. The Affordable Care Act says you cannot 
turn down a person in America for health insurance because of a 
preexisting condition.
  The Republicans say they want to repeal that. If they want to go back 
to the day where you can turn down a person because of a preexisting 
condition, then have the courage to come to the floor and say it. They 
will not.
  The law also says you cannot limit the lifetime payout on a health 
insurance policy. There were a lot of people who thought $100,000 was a 
lot of money for health care until they got into a serious situation. 
We are one diagnosis, one serious disease, one accident away from 
medical bills that would wipe out $100,000 in a day or two. So we put 
in the Affordable Care Act that there can be no upper lifetime limit 
when it comes to the payout under the health care insurance policy.
  The Republicans say they want to repeal it. I challenge any 
Republican Senator to come to the floor and explain that one.
  Did you know as well that of the family policies sold in America, 60 
percent of the family policies did not cover maternity benefits? We 
require the coverage of maternity benefits. Let me tell you, my wife 
and I are not in a situation where we are likely to ever use those 
personally, but we happen to believe it is a good policy across America 
and it is family friendly across America to make sure policies cover 
maternity. Those who talk about family values and love of family and 
love of babies and children, why in the world would you not want to 
include that protection in all family policies? Spread the risk across 
the population but make sure every family can afford to have prenatal 
care for a healthy baby and a healthy mom when that blessed event 
arrives. I am waiting for the first Republican to come to the floor and 
say that is a bad idea too.
  Incidentally, health insurance policies used to discriminate against 
certain groups, particularly women. We said that is over. You cannot 
discriminate against women and treat them differently. You have to be 
fair in the allocation of this risk and you cannot use gender as a 
basis for increasing the cost of a policy. The Republicans want to 
repeal that. I am waiting for the first Republican Senator to come to 
the floor and say health insurance policies, because of the free 
market, should be allowed to discriminate against women. That is a 
reality.
  The other provision we provide in the Affordable Care Act, finally, 
is families with children coming out of college, looking for a job, can 
keep their kids on their health insurance policies to the age of 26. We 
do not know exactly how many are helped by this. Some estimate 300,000-
plus young people still on their families' policies. Why is it a good 
thing? Because a lot of young people coming out of college do not find 
a job right away, and some that do may not have a full-time job or 
benefits. If you have ever been a mom or dad--and I have been in that 
circumstance as a father, where I called my daughter and I said: 
Jennifer, do you have health insurance? Dad, I don't need it; I am 
healthy. Those are things that keep you up at night. The Affordable 
Care Act provides additional protection for these young Americans who 
are just starting out in life and trying to find a job. The Republicans 
want to repeal it. I am waiting for the first Republican Senator to 
come to the floor and make that case. Oh, we should make sure young 
people in their twenties do not have health insurance. That is the 
result if you repeal the Affordable Care Act.
  What about senior citizens? Medicare Part D provides prescription 
coverage so senior citizens can stay healthy, independent, and strong 
for as long as possible. The problem we had, of course, was something 
called the doughnut hole. It meant out-of-pocket expenses seniors had 
to pay for those prescriptions. We are closing and filling the doughnut 
hole so seniors are not giving up their life savings in order to have 
the prescription drugs they need for a healthy life. They want to 
repeal that. They want to repeal the Affordable Care Act. I am waiting 
for the first Republican Senator to come to the floor and say seniors 
ought to pay more for the prescriptions they need under Medicare, 
because that is the result of repealing the Affordable Care Act.
  Let me also say this. Life experience tells us several things. First, 
premiums on health insurance go up with some frequency. We are trying 
to slow down the rate of growth, but they have been going up for a long 
time. In some markets, for example, when it comes to individual 
policies people are buying, those have gone up rather dramatically, 
sometimes 15 percent a year for a long period of time. Second, in that 
market of individuals buying health insurance, 67 percent of those 
policies are canceled every 2 years. Now they come to the floor and 
tell us stories about premiums going up and cancellations. Can I remind 
my friends on the Republican side that has been going on for a long 
time. Now they blame every cancellation on the Affordable Care Act. 
They blame every premium increase on the Affordable Care Act. That is 
just not factual. It is not true.
  Let me tell you about some mail I have received on the subject. Here 
is an email from a constituent in Illinois I would like to read. Here 
is what this constituent writes:

       As a lifelong Republican I am absolutely appalled by the 
     extremists who have hijacked MY party! And I am thoroughly 
     ashamed of all the attempts to defund President Obama's 
     healthcare act.
       Already, my medical costs have dropped due to early 
     provisions of the act--and if it passes [becomes law] it 
     appears I will be able to save $6,000 per year on the cost of 
     my premiums!
       I realize that not everyone shares my enthusiasm for the 
     healthcare bill, but I would make two comments:
       1. When the act is broken down into its component parts, 
     polls consistently show that the American people do agree 
     with the program.
       2. All I'm asking is that we give it a fair trial--[give it 
     a fair chance]--say, two years. Of course it will need 
     tweaking and revising.
       But if it doesn't work, it can be repealed then. Quite 
     frankly, obstructionists are a public embarrassment to those 
     of us who grew up with a different Republican party that 
     cared about people and was not madly trying to exclude as 
     many as possible through hateful bigotry and racism.
       This is TOO IMPORTANT to let it fail! I stand with the 
     President and the Democratic Party on this issue and hope 
     that you will do everything in your power to see that the 
     Healthcare Act remains in force.

  Take a look at what is going on around this country. There have been 
Senators from States who come to the

[[Page 17102]]

floor, and I will use for example the Senators from the Commonwealth of 
Kentucky, both of whom came to the floor and called for the repeal of 
the Affordable Care Act. Let's take a look at the numbers. I believe, 
with a flawed startup, which I will readily concede, in the 
Commonwealth of Kentucky, according to the Washington Post, 76,294 
people have already submitted completed applications under the new 
health care law; 39,207 are eligible to enroll in the plan, and as of 
this date, 5,586 have selected a plan. Kentucky is leading, on a per 
capita basis, many other States; some larger, some smaller. Kentucky is 
leading while its two Senators come to the floor and rail against the 
very health care law the people of Kentucky apparently need and want 
and are exercising their right to choose.
  I salute Governor Beshear in Kentucky. He stood and said: Get out of 
the way. If you don't want to help Kentuckians to get good health care, 
get out of the way. We are going to give them a chance, and he is doing 
it. Other States, fighting the President and fighting Congress tooth 
and nail, they are not going to cooperate at all. We wonder why the 
startup has been so slow. It has to be without that cooperation, it 
makes it more difficult. I am not making any excuses for the Web site. 
It has to be improved. It has to be better--and it will be.
  Take a look at that experience in Massachusetts. The Senator from 
California talked about that earlier. During the first month of 
enrollment in Massachusetts, 123 people signed up--in the first 30 
days. By the end of the year, though, 36,000 had signed up. The number 
of uninsured young people went from 25 percent to 10 percent within 3 
years. Massachusetts today, because of the leadership of Gov. Mitt 
Romney and the cooperation of the Democratic legislature in that State, 
has nearly universal health insurance coverage. However, the rollout 
was not without some problems, just as ours. The current Governor, 
Deval Patrick, said there were a series of Web site problems. He also 
said the Web site was a work in progress for the first few years. There 
were outages during peak times and problems searching for providers.
  I recently met with a doctor from Boston. He is one of the best. He 
said people in Massachusetts cannot remember what it was like before, 
what it was like before people had health insurance. This doctor is an 
oncologist. He deals with people who are diagnosed with cancer. He had 
a 19-year-old woman come into his office before they had this version 
of the affordable health care act in the State of Massachusetts, and he 
said to her: We can cure you, but we have to really do this 
aggressively. It is going to take chemo, going to take radiation, it is 
going to take surgery.
  This 19-year-old woman said: Please, don't tell my parents. I cannot 
afford to pay for this. If they hear this, they are going to mortgage 
their home to pay for my medical care and I don't want them to do it.
  The parents learned and the parents made the decision and they 
mortgaged their home and their daughter's life was saved. This 
oncological doctor, this cancer doctor, said to me: Senator, I have 
never run into another case like that since Massachusetts passed its 
affordable health care act, since people have basic insurance and basic 
protection.
  The life-and-death choices people make every single day should be 
front and center here and not the political squabbles that have become 
the trademark of this town. We have to understand that there are hard-
working people across America who have no health insurance. There are 
families with people with preexisting conditions who cannot get a 
decent policy. They are going to be given their chance. We will be a 
better America for it, and I say to the Republican critics: After this 
is in place, after thousands, maybe even millions of Americans have 
signed up, you are not going to take it away. They are going to fight 
to keep it, and I am going to stand by them in that fight to make sure 
they have supporters and champions on the floor of the Senate.
  Mrs. BOXER. Will the Senator yield through the Chair for a couple of 
questions?
  Mr. DURBIN. I will be happy to yield for a question.
  Mrs. BOXER. I thank the Senator. I see the Senator from Colorado is 
here as well. It was so interesting to see Republican Senator after 
Republican Senator come down here to focus on one of the problems we 
are having and are going to fix. Not one of them touched any of the 
issues my colleague spoke about or I spoke about or that the Senator 
from Connecticut did, which is the broad look at what we were facing 
when we passed the Affordable Care Act, the benefits that have gone 
into place that are saving our families from bankruptcy and saving 
lives. I know my friend was very clear.
  When the Senator said that to see this become all about politics is 
something that is so wrong--we all know there is a time for politics. 
The Senator and I are into that. We understand that. There is a time 
and place.
  There is also a time and place to put that aside and help our 
families. I wished to ask my friend a couple of questions. Does he not 
remember, as I do, that years ago as we were facing a crisis in health 
care in this Nation, before the Affordable Care Act, we found out from 
constituents over and over that their insurance company would walk away 
from them just at the time they got sick?
  They thought they had a policy, as some of our people think they have 
good policies that do not meet the standards, but when they got sick--I 
remember constituents saying they get a call: You know, back 5 years 
ago you didn't mention the fact that you once had high blood pressure. 
We are sorry. We are canceling your policy.
  Does my friend remember that? Does my friend remember learning, as I 
did, with shock, that being a woman was a preexisting condition? For 
example, if you were a victim of abuse as a woman, they said you were 
too much of a risk and they turned you away.
  Does my friend remember just those two problems before we tackled the 
Affordable Care Act?
  Mr. DURBIN. I thank the Senator, and responding through the Chair, 
there was a time, as a Member of Congress and a Senator, this was a 
normal request. People would call your office and say: I am at my wit's 
end. My health insurance company will not cover the problems my family 
faces. Can you make a call to an insurance executive? And we have. 
Almost to a person, Members of the House and Senate have done it, 
trying to advocate to get them to open coverage under a health 
insurance policy. That was the reality and, frankly, for many of these 
health insurance companies, any excuse would do. They would disqualify 
people on preexisting conditions because as an adolescent the insured 
had acne. Acne was deemed as a preexisting condition and subject to 
disqualification.
  I see the Senator from Colorado is on the floor, and I want to yield 
time to him.
  I thank my colleague from California for coming forward. I hope at 
some point the Republicans--who are so adamant about repealing and 
ending ObamaCare, as they call it, or the Affordable Care Act--would 
have one good idea on their own about providing affordable health 
insurance to the people across America. We all share that 
responsibility.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Colorado.

                          ____________________