I am thankful for the participation of so many individuals in this discussion – it‘s why I‘ve held over 100 events and meetings on health care and visited each of the 137 towns in our district. I have truly benefitted from the input of thousands of neighbors, friends, and constituents on this issue.
Last November, I voted against the House health insurance reform legislation because it did not adequately address the fundamentally flawed system that has led to skyrocketing health care costs, bankrupt families, and excessive profits for insurance companies. In the months since that vote, I have worked closely with my constituents, my colleagues in Congress, and with President Obama to address many of these concerns and ultimately strengthen this legislation.
I voted to pass the President’s health insurance reform legislation, which is fundamentally different from the House bill: it will stop the out of control growth of health care costs, protect our local industries and jobs from unfair taxes, and help small businesses create jobs - while cracking down on waste, fraud and abuse. I voted yes because of these changes and for the following reasons:
- This bill is fiscally conservative and slows the growth of health care costs and spending
As a fiscal conservative, I can support a bill that takes strong steps towards reducing the deficit. This bill is fundamentally more fiscally conservative and affordable for our nation. It contains new cost cutting measures that will help to slow health care costs that have been devastating our families and small businesses. This bill represents a major step away from the fee-for-service model that has driven costs upward for far too long. It will result in dramatic savings for the American people by reducing the deficit by $138 billion the first decade and by $1.2 trillion in the second decade, according to the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office.
- Supports small businesses and helps create jobs
Small businesses are the economic engine for job creation in our economy. As a small businessman, I am keenly aware of the impact rising health care costs have on small businesses and New York‘s economy. The final bill makes significant improvements over the House-passed legislation by eliminating the employer mandate for small businesses, providing meaningful tax incentives, as well as creating heath care exchanges that allow businesses to band together to negotiate better prices from insurance companies. Injecting this market competition into our system is critical to driving better outcomes and lower costs, and is something that I wish had existed when I ran small businesses.
- Takes steps towards cracking down on waste, fraud and abuse
I‘m very happy to announce that this bill will save billions by cracking down on waste, fraud and abuse in Medicare and Medicaid. This is an issue where we‘ve seen broad bipartisan support. I worked with the President to include provisions in the bill. Administrative changes that will save billions in criminal waste from the system protect tax payer dollars. I am proud that we will take great steps to drive this waste from the system.
- Fought to protect local employers and jobs
I am also pleased to report that, unlike in the old House bill, none of the paper mill manufacturers in our district will be subjected to any special tax. I also fought for significant changes to the proposed tax on medical products manufactured in our district. Perhaps more importantly, this bill ensures that these good paying jobs will remain in Upstate New York and won‘t give an edge to foreign competitors or encourage American companies to move jobs overseas. My priority remains creating jobs and getting our economy moving again, and this bill will do just that.
- I fought against the "Slaughter Solution"
As your representative in Congress, fighting for openness and accountability in government is one of my top priorities. In the days leading up to the health care vote, I fought strongly against the "deem and pass" procedures that would have denied the American people the right to witness a straight up or down vote on major legislation. Due to my efforts, the House rejected the so-called "Slaughter Solution" and instead considered the Senate bill and reconciliation amendments separately. I also sent a letter to House leadership asking that they pledge to give the public access to the bill for at least 72 hours before the vote. Rest assured that I will continue to lead the charge for transparency in the political process.
These reforms will put health care choices back into the hands of patients and doctors, instead of profit-driven of insurance companies. Insurance companies will be banned from the predatory practices of capping lifetime benefits, refusing those with preexisting conditions, and eliminating coverage for individuals who become sick.
This new legislation will allow every American to purchase health care on an exchange, just like Members of Congress, while expanding coverage for over 30 million Americans, including 29,000 in our own district. This plan will strengthen Medicare and protect our seniors, by closing the donut hole and make prescription drugs more affordable during these tough economic times.
This year, our nation will spend over $2.6 trillion on health care, up from $2.3 trillion last year, and the rate of spending is only increasing in the status quo system. If we don‘t act today to rein in this out of control system, by the next decade we will be spending over $7 trillion a year on health care. It‘s simply unaffordable.
This is why we need reform. This is why I voted yes.
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