“One Democrat last night was explicit. He admitted that after yesterday’s vote Democrats won’t be able to say that ‘if you like what you have, you can keep it.’ And he went on to say that, quote, ‘that basic commitment that a lot of us around here have made will be called into question’”
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell made the following remarks on the Senate floor Friday regarding the importance of getting it right on health care reform:
“We’ve now had a very clarifying vote on the Senate floor about the direction that our friends on the other side intend to take our health care system.
“Yesterday, all but two of them voted to preserve nearly half a trillion dollars in cuts to Medicare, the health care program for seniors.
“In the run-up to that vote, they said these cuts weren’t really cuts, and that Medicare Advantage, in particular, isn’t really a part of Medicare — arguments plainly contradicted by the text of the bill itself, by the Department of Health and Human Services, by the independent Congressional Budget Office, and by the experience of seniors themselves.
“Seniors do not want senators fooling with Medicare. They want us to fix it, to strengthen it, to preserve it for future generations, not raid it like a giant piggy bank in order to create some entirely new government program.
“Yesterday’s vote was particularly distressing for the nearly 11 million seniors on Medicare Advantage. So today, members will have an opportunity to undo the damage they voted to do to this program.
“With yesterday’s vote, proponents of this measure authorized $120 billion in cuts to Medicare Advantage — and in the process, they expressly voted to violate the President’s pledge that seniors who like the plans they have can keep them … Because you can’t cut $120 billion from a benefits program without cutting benefits.
“The Congressional Budget Office has been crystal clear on this. When asked about the effect these cuts would have on Medicare Advantage, the director of the CBO was unequivocal. He said that ‘approximately half’ of Medicare Advantage benefits will be cut for nearly 11 million seniors enrolled in this program under this bill.
“That’s what our friends on the other side voted for yesterday. And they know it. One Democrat last night was explicit. He admitted that after yesterday’s vote Democrats won’t be able to say that ‘if you like what you have, you can keep it.’ And he went on to say that, quote, ‘that basic commitment that a lot of us around here have made will be called into question.’
“So our friends have a couple choices here today: they can reaffirm their plan to cut benefits for nearly one fourth of all seniors enrolled in Medicare; they can admit that the President’s pledge about keeping the plan you like no longer applies; or they can reverse part of yesterday’s vote later today by voting with Republicans to restore those cuts to Medicare Advantage.”
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WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell made the following remarks on the Senate floor Friday regarding the importance of getting it right on health care reform:
“We’ve now had a very clarifying vote on the Senate floor about the direction that our friends on the other side intend to take our health care system.
“Yesterday, all but two of them voted to preserve nearly half a trillion dollars in cuts to Medicare, the health care program for seniors.
“In the run-up to that vote, they said these cuts weren’t really cuts, and that Medicare Advantage, in particular, isn’t really a part of Medicare — arguments plainly contradicted by the text of the bill itself, by the Department of Health and Human Services, by the independent Congressional Budget Office, and by the experience of seniors themselves.
“Seniors do not want senators fooling with Medicare. They want us to fix it, to strengthen it, to preserve it for future generations, not raid it like a giant piggy bank in order to create some entirely new government program.
“Yesterday’s vote was particularly distressing for the nearly 11 million seniors on Medicare Advantage. So today, members will have an opportunity to undo the damage they voted to do to this program.
“With yesterday’s vote, proponents of this measure authorized $120 billion in cuts to Medicare Advantage — and in the process, they expressly voted to violate the President’s pledge that seniors who like the plans they have can keep them … Because you can’t cut $120 billion from a benefits program without cutting benefits.
“The Congressional Budget Office has been crystal clear on this. When asked about the effect these cuts would have on Medicare Advantage, the director of the CBO was unequivocal. He said that ‘approximately half’ of Medicare Advantage benefits will be cut for nearly 11 million seniors enrolled in this program under this bill.
“That’s what our friends on the other side voted for yesterday. And they know it. One Democrat last night was explicit. He admitted that after yesterday’s vote Democrats won’t be able to say that ‘if you like what you have, you can keep it.’ And he went on to say that, quote, ‘that basic commitment that a lot of us around here have made will be called into question.’
“So our friends have a couple choices here today: they can reaffirm their plan to cut benefits for nearly one fourth of all seniors enrolled in Medicare; they can admit that the President’s pledge about keeping the plan you like no longer applies; or they can reverse part of yesterday’s vote later today by voting with Republicans to restore those cuts to Medicare Advantage.”
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