STATEMENT OF CONGRESSMAN ERIK PAULSEN
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 7, 2009

CONTACT: Luke Friedrich (952) 405-8510 / Andrew Foxwell (202)503-7809

Congressman Erik Paulsen (MN-03) issued the following statement today following the U.S. House of Representative’s vote on the H.R. 3962, the Affordable Health Care for America Act.

“Today, the House Majority passed a massive, $1 trillion health care bill that establishes a new government-run health care plan, raises taxes on small businesses and cuts Medicare for seniors by $400 billion.  In fact, this bill will likely raise premiums and actually increase the long-term cost obligations of the federal government.  

“The U.S. unemployment rate currently sits at a 26-year high of 10.2%, and one of every ten Americans is currently out of work.  Congress should focus on putting Americans back to work, but this bill takes the opposite approach by raising taxes on small businesses and medical technology companies - the engine of job growth in this country.  Moreover, this bill continues a disturbing pattern of runaway spending and a massive expansion of government.   

“When it comes to health care, I continue to believe the status quo is unacceptable.  For months, many new members of Congress have expressed a willingness to work on bipartisan measures to lower health care costs for families and small businesses.  This bill was pushed through on a partisan basis, with bipartisan opposition.

“Moving forward, I am hopeful the Senate takes a different approach and seeks to enact bipartisan health care legislation.  With the right reforms we can control costs, improve access and cure our ailing health care system – without a massive expansion of government that will burden future generations.”

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