[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 7]
[Senate]
[Page 10255]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         HEALTHCARE LEGISLATION

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, ObamaCare has been hurting toward 
collapse for years. Today it sits on the edge of a total meltdown. 
Unless we do something about that, even more Americans are going to get 
hurt.
  These are the men and women we represent--Americans who didn't do 
anything wrong and Americans who, in too many cases, have been hurt by 
ObamaCare already--and we have a responsibility to help before 
ObamaCare literally comes crashing down around them.
  I think each of us understands this. Yet, too often, this central 
fact seems to get lost amidst the din of cable news sound bites and 
over-the-top attacks. Too many seem to have forgotten the pain 
ObamaCare has brought to so many families over the years. Too many seem 
to have forgotten that even more will be hurt if the ObamaCare status 
quo is allowed to continue.
  I recently shared a letter from a constituent in Lancaster who told 
me about her struggle to make ends meet under ObamaCare. Here is what 
she said: ``Why is there a law forcing me to pay for something I can't 
afford,'' she asked. ``Either I can eat and pay my mortgage or [I can] 
pay for insurance.''
  I recently shared the story of a single mom from Berea, a full-time 
student trying to make ends meet. When she began searching for a plan 
on the ObamaCare exchanges, she told me she saw a startling picture: 
high premiums and a staggering deductible.
  ``At this rate,'' she wrote, ``I would honestly be better not to take 
health insurance at all and hope for the best. Americans like myself 
need something better.''
  Premiums have been skyrocketing under ObamaCare for years now--by as 
much as an average of 105 percent in the majority of the States' 
Federal exchanges. Unless we act, premiums are poised to continue 
skyrocketing.
  Customers are now learning what they can expect next year, and the 
situation is concerning. ObamaCare premiums could climb by as much as 
30 percent in my State, over 40 percent in Tennessee, and over 50 
percent in Georgia. Unfortunately, these States are not alone. This is 
a trend we are seeing all across our country.
  To make matters worse, many have been left behind with fewer options 
as ObamaCare has forced insurance options literally out of the 
marketplace. Unless we act, choices will continue to decline on the 
exchanges, just as they have over the past several years.
  I recently shared a Lexington native's account about the limited 
options she found on the exchanges. Here is what she said: ``I live in 
one of the three largest cities in our state, and I had two options for 
insurance this year. The lowest deductible option,'' she continued, 
``was $10,000.''
  I recently shared a Louisville mother's pleas for Congress to bring 
relief from ObamaCare's limited options. Here is what she said: 
``Middle class Kentuckians are hurting because of ObamaCare,'' she 
said. ``Residents [have] little choice for health plans and our family 
is not the only one suffering from the high costs of health 
insurance.''
  ``I hope,'' she concluded, that ``you will push hard to fix our 
healthcare system.''
  This year, families in 70 percent of counties had just one or two 
insurance options on ObamaCare. As a survey out just yesterday showed, 
the number of uninsured grew in 2017, with nearly 2 million people 
dropping ObamaCare coverage. Now we are hearing even more negative 
projections for next year.
  In fact, it is expected that in 2018, thousands could be left without 
any ObamaCare options at all in States like Nevada and Missouri and 
Ohio, while thousands more are left with just one choice, which is 
really no choice at all.
  A new CMS report released just a few minutes ago found that nearly 40 
percent fewer insurers have filed to participate in the ObamaCare 
exchanges next year. This reduction in choice is a trend we have been 
seeing under ObamaCare, and it seems only to keep getting worse.
  Higher prices, fewer options, diminished hope, that is the legacy of 
ObamaCare for too many. It has been failing the American people for 
years, and it will collapse around them if we fail to act.
  We will not make things better if we go backward with even more 
Federal control. We will not solve this problem by simply throwing more 
money at it. Bandaids just will not work here. The American people 
deserve solutions that finally empower them in making more of their own 
decisions about their families' healthcare.
  I regret that our Democratic colleagues have made clear they are not 
interested in working seriously with us to pursue the types of 
comprehensive reforms needed to improve healthcare for hard-working 
Americans who have been hurt by this law, but the Senate Republican 
conference will continue working to help these families because we 
believe they deserve better than ObamaCare and its years of failures.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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