Congressman Dave Reichert

Washington, D.C., Jul 17, 2009 -

Congressman Dave Reichert (WA-08) today opposed sending a $1.1 trillion government-run health care plan to the House floor.  Reichert offered two amendments to protect the health care and pocketbooks of American families and small businesses during debate on the proposal before the House Ways & Means Committee. The Committee approved the bill 23-18.

“A government-run public health plan that threatens to raise Americans’ health care costs, reduce their choice of care, and let the government interfere in deeply personal medical decisions at a cost of more than a trillion dollars is the wrong prescription for our health care and our economy,” said Reichert, a member of the Committee.  “Democrats and Republicans can agree: we need to make better quality health care more affordable.  Unfortunately, the government-run proposal before the committee today does just the opposite, by increasing costs, assessing penalty fees on families and employers, and jeopardizing access to quality health care.”

Reichert continued, “I remain committed to protecting and strengthening Americans’ health care - protecting them from increased health care costs, losing the health plans they currently have, and government interference in medical decisions, and strengthening health care to ensure that all Americans have access to the best care anywhere at prices they can afford.”

Reichert’s first questions in the debate focused on changes to the bill that would permit the government to ration health care, and was not convinced by the responses he got that the bill would protect patients. Reichert also offered two amendments:

1)     To enable Americans satisfied with their health care plans to keep them. The overhaul bill prohibits individuals from enrolling in new health plans not offered by either the government or their employer, and also bans these plans from offering any new benefits.  Reichert worked to eliminate the provision; it was voted down 26-15.  [WATCH HERE]

2)     To protect small businesses from a new 8% employer mandate penalty tax if the tax increase would result in laying off workers, cutting wages, or preventing the small business from hiring new workers.  The amendment was defeated. [WATCH HERE]

The bill considered before the Ways & Means Committee today would implement a government-run public health plan that could force millions of Americans to see increased health care costs or lose the health plans they currently have.  The head of the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) warned earlier in the day that the $1.1 trillion proposal would create an expensive new program that would weaken the economy.

Nearly 1,000 constituents interacted with Reichert during committee debate through his all-access Protect and Strengthen Health Care website, where they watched live proceedings and shared their health care stories and opinions. 

Learn more at http://reichert.house.gov/healthcare.

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