John Ensign: “I want to sum up this debate telling one story and making a few other points. Some on the other side of the aisle claim…”

“I want to sum up this debate telling one story and making a few other points. Some on the other side of the aisle claim ``they want to make health care a birthright for every single child born in this country.'' Yet they are driving the very doctors who bring America's babies into the world out of their medical practices. Let me remind you of Melinda Sellard's story. She is the unfortunate woman who went through a horrifying experience of delivering a baby on the side of the road in the middle of the night because her doctor had quit obstetrics altogether due to exorbitant insurance premiums. En route, she and her husband had to drive right past the Copper Queen Community Hospital, which closed its maternity ward 2 months earlier because of the medical liability crisis. Instead, the Sellards were forced out onto the highway to try to get to the only hospital within 6,000 square miles with obstetricians who could afford malpractice insurance. After enduring the excruciating pains of labor without anesthesia, Melinda was forced to give her newborn infant CPR, since the baby was not breathing immediately after delivery. She finally got her newborn breathing, wrapped him in a sweater she was wearing, and drove the rest of the way to the hospital where the emergency staff cut the umbilical cord in the parking lot.”