[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 9]
[House]
[Pages 11969-11970]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1100
                 TRUMPCARE AND PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
California (Ms. Maxine Waters) for 5 minutes.
  The gentlewoman will suspend.
  The Chair would advise the gentlewoman to remove the chart from the 
well.
  Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Mr. Speaker, would the Chair tell us 
why.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. It is the determination of the Chair that it 
is a breach of the decorum of the House.
  The gentlewoman may proceed.
  Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Mr. Speaker, yesterday was the 27th 
anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. It is a day to 
reflect on how people with disabilities are treated in our society.
  Our President indicated to us what he thinks about people with 
disabilities long before he was elected when he mocked a disabled 
reporter. Mocking the disabled is rude and insensitive,

[[Page 11970]]

and it sends a terrible message to our children.
  Who are the disabled people who were mocked that day? They are 
veterans who lost a limb or suffered a traumatic brain injury while 
courageously serving our country. They are children who were born with 
serious medical conditions like autism, Down syndrome, and cerebral 
palsy. They are victims of workplace accidents and car accidents. They 
are victims of mass shootings and terrorist attacks. They are senior 
citizens in nursing homes. They are our mothers and fathers, our 
brothers and sisters, our friends and neighbors, and our children.
  They might be with us today or they may be with us a year from now. 
They deserve to be treated with respect, and they deserve quality 
healthcare.
  Given that we already know about the attitudes that have been 
displayed against them, it should come as no surprise that TrumpCare 
would have a devastating impact on people with disabilities.
  The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has scored several 
versions of TrumpCare. Most would cause at least 22 million people to 
lose their health insurance. The so-called repeal only bill, which 
repeals the Affordable Care Act and does not replace it with anything, 
would cause 32 million people to lose their health insurance. Even the 
so-called skinny TrumpCare would cause 16 million people to lose health 
insurance and increase premiums by 20 percent.
  When people with disabilities lose their health insurance, they 
cannot get affordable treatment for their medical conditions; and when 
healthy people lose their health insurance and then become disabled, 
they, too, will not be able to find affordable treatment for their 
injuries. Furthermore, when they try to find a new health policy, their 
disability will be considered a preexisting condition.
  TrumpCare cuts more than $700 billion from Medicaid. According to an 
analysis by the Center for American Progress, more than 15 million 
children and adults with disabilities rely on Medicaid for their health 
coverage and could lose it if TrumpCare became law.
  The President's budget would also have a very devastating impact on 
all people with disabilities. Trump's budget cuts $50 billion over the 
next 10 years from benefits earned by American veterans who are unable 
to work because of a service-connected disability.
  His budget cuts billions from Social Security Disability Insurance, 
which provides earned benefits to workers who become disabled after 
years of paying Social Security taxes on their earnings.
  His budget cuts billions from Supplemental Security Income, which 
protects vulnerable people with disabilities, including 1.2 million 
children who suffer from conditions such as Down syndrome, cerebral 
palsy, autism, intellectual disabilities, and blindness.
  His budget cuts funding for the Individuals with Disabilities 
Education Act by $113 million, jeopardizing special education services 
for students with disabilities.
  His budget cuts funding for housing for persons with disabilities by 
20 percent.
  His budget eliminates the Limb Loss Resource Center and the Paralysis 
Resource Center, which cuts support for people with traumatic brain 
injuries by 67 percent and cuts funding for the National Center on 
Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities by 26 percent. It even 
eliminates Special Olympics Education.
  In conclusion, people with disabilities deserve better. That is why 
we must raise our voices to support them, oppose these budget cuts that 
target them, and protect their healthcare.
  Stopping TrumpCare is not about politics. It is a matter of life and 
death, and this is especially true for people with disabilities.

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