    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1999, Book I)]
    [March 17, 1999]
    [Page 398]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Statement on Proposed Patients' Rights Legislation
    March 17, 1999

        Today the Congress is beginning its work on patients' rights
    legislation. This issue is critical to assuring Americans high quality
    health care in the 21st century, so I am pleased that we are moving
    forward.
        Unfortunately, the proposal by the Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
    Committee falls far short of the legislation the American people
    deserve. Because it applies patients' rights only to those in self-
    insured plans, this proposal leaves 120 million Americans in insured and
    individual plans without the guarantee of critical protections. Millions
    of Americans should not be held hostage to the hope that their State
    might pass legislation providing these protections. In fact, while
    States have the authority to pass patient protections for these plans,
    not one has enacted all of these protections. That is why we need strong
    Federal legislation to ensure that all health plans provide patients
    these important rights.
        Even for those it does cover, the Chairman's proposal leaves out many of the most fundamental
    protections. For example, it does not have an adequate enforcement
    mechanism to ensure that patients are compensated when they are injured
    or die as a result of a health plan's decisions; it does not assure
    patients access to specialists, such as oncologists or heart
    specialists; and it leaves our continuity of care protections. That is
    why every major patient, doctor, and nurse advocacy organization has
    concluded that this proposal is simply inadequate.
        Today represents the first test of whether this new Congress is
    serious about providing Americans with a strong, enforceable Patients'
    Bill of Rights to assure high quality health care. I urge the Committee
    to do everything it can to pass this test and give Americans the health
    care protections they need.