[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 9]
[House]
[Pages 12525-12526]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                          MEDICARE ANNIVERSARY

  (Mr. TAKANO asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I rise today to commemorate an important 
accomplishment for our Nation, as it was 48 years ago today that 
President Johnson signed Medicare into law, thus cementing a promise to 
our Nation's seniors.
  Before Medicare, nearly 30 percent of seniors lived below the poverty 
line and American life expectancy was 70 years old. Since then, the 
poverty rate has plummeted all the way down to 7.5 percent and life 
expectancy has risen to 78-1/2 years.
  Madam Speaker, Medicare is a sacred promise that we made, and it is a 
sacred promise that we must keep, despite the House Republicans' 
addiction

[[Page 12526]]

to slash-and-burn policies. If the House Republicans got their way, 
they would replace Medicare with a voucher system, removing the 
certainty of what seniors will receive. These are benefits that have 
been earned and paid for, but turning Medicare into a voucher system 
will result in reduced benefits and increased health care costs.
  The Democratic Party, however, believes that working families should 
not lose their life savings in their golden years to pay for health 
care, and they should not suffer without treatment due to an inability 
to pay for medical services. The Democratic Party believes that seniors 
deserve the certainty of Medicare.
  Madam Speaker, on this day, the 48th anniversary of Medicare, I 
pledge to uphold the promises we made to seniors and to never turn my 
back on working families.

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