The health care reform debate remains in full swing and I wanted to inform you that the Obama Administration is continuing to try to keep those opposed to a government-takeover of health care from getting the facts out. Earlier this week the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a gag order on Medicare Advantage (MA) plans. Medicare Advantage is a program that allows seniors to choose from a range of private health coverage options, many of which offer benefits unavailable in traditional Medicare. In issuing the gag order, CMS overturned a Clinton-era ruling that “prohibiting such information would violate basic freedom of speech and other constitutional rights.”

Health care legislation being considered in the House of Representatives would cut reimbursement to MA plans by $156 billion, and the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has confirmed that these cuts could result in reduced benefits for senior citizens. The CMS gag order prevents companies from sharing factual information with their enrollees. I went to the Floor of the House of Representatives to speak out on this issue. You can see video of the speech here. The text of my remarks follow below:

“Madam Speaker, the Obama Administration keeps trying to silence critics of its government-run health care plan. This week, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services decided that Medicare Advantage plans were offering the wrong opinions about the health care bill. So CMS ordered them to stop telling their customers about proposed cuts to Medicare benefits. This Chicago-style politics is a shocking abuse of power that flies in the face of the President’s call for open and honest debate. It’s time to remind the President and CMS that all Americans have a constitutional right to speak their mind -- even when that holds back a government takeover of health care."