[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 8]
[Senate]
[Page 11368]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                               HEALTHCARE

  Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, 7 years ago, Democrats forced 
ObamaCare on the American people. It was supposed to lower health 
costs, but, of course, they skyrocketed. It was supposed to provide 
more health options, but they plummeted.
  At ObamaCare's launch, millions lost the health plans they liked and 
were promised they could keep. In the years since, Americans have 
continued to lose access to plans, hospitals, and doctors they know and 
they trust.
  Now ObamaCare teeters on the edge of total collapse, threatening to 
drag even more of the men and women we represent right down with it. 
That shouldn't be an acceptable outcome to any of us. It certainly is 
not acceptable to me.
  I made a commitment to the people I represent. I told the people of 
Kentucky that I would vote to move beyond the failures of ObamaCare. 
The Senate did so in 2015, but President Obama wielded his veto pen. 
The Senate can do so again now, and President Trump will use his pen to 
sign such legislation.
  The first step this time, the first vote we will take soon, is on 
whether or not to begin the debate at all--whether to have the debate. 
I believe my mandate from the people of Kentucky is to vote yes, and I 
certainly intend to do so.
  I know many colleagues feel the same. I know many of us have waited 
literally years for this moment to finally arrive, and, at long last, 
it has. I urge every colleague to join me.
  I know many have ideas on how to improve healthcare. Some of these 
ideas have real potential. Others, like applying temporary bandaids or 
quadrupling down on ObamaCare, are not going to move us forward. That 
doesn't mean Senators shouldn't have the chance to offer those ideas.
  The only way we will have an opportunity to consider ideas is if 
Senators are allowed to offer and debate them. That means voting to 
begin the open amendment process. That means voting to kick off a 
robust debate in which Senators from all parties can represent the 
views of their constituents. It means voting to proceed, and that will 
occur tomorrow.
  ObamaCare has been a disaster from the start. The added tragedy is 
the utter predictability of it all. Republicans warned about higher 
costs and fewer choices. We warned that Americans would lose their 
plans. We warned that ObamaCare would inevitably collapse under its own 
weight.
  Our concerns were all waved away all the time. It turns out that we 
were right to be concerned. ObamaCare has hurt the people we represent. 
We have seen all the statistics--the higher costs and the reduced 
choices--but this is about more than just numbers on a page. What we 
are talking about here are the lives of real people, constituents of 
ours who have struggled under this failed leftwing experiment literally 
for years.
  Through calls, letters, meetings, and dozens of healthcare forums 
across my State, thousands of Kentuckians have shared their ObamaCare 
horror stories. I have seen the pain in their eyes. I have heard their 
struggles to make ends meet. I have come to the Senate floor time and 
again to relay their heartbreaking stories. I know many colleagues have 
done the same.
  Our constituents deserve better than the pain ObamaCare has brought 
them. They deserve a new direction on healthcare. When that vote comes, 
I will keep my commitment to vote to move beyond the failures of 
ObamaCare. I will vote yes on the motion to proceed. I urge all of our 
colleagues to do the same.

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