Trent Lott: “I have been indicating all year that the Senate was going to take this issue up, and beginning June 18 I sent suggested…”

“I have been indicating all year that the Senate was going to take this issue up, and beginning June 18 I sent suggested unanimous consent agreements to Senator Daschle. He and I talked yesterday. We are working together on that issue. We fully expect that probably early next week we will turn to this issue. We have not worked out the exact time or the exact procedure. But we had a good discussion yesterday, and we will continue to have that discussion. I would like for us to do it where we have the Patients' Bill of Rights as the issue that is pending, with Senator Kennedy's bill as one of those, obviously, that would be offered, and the task force bill that has been put together by Senator Nickles, and others, and not tie up appropriations bills. We have the people's work to do. The appropriations bills keep the Government running. They fund our farm programs, they fund our veterans programs, they fund our housing programs, they fund our parks and Interior, Commerce, State, and Justice. The Senator knows the list. So we need to go ahead with those appropriations bills, and then we will turn to the Patients' Bill of Rights in a reasonable period of time.”