Bob Filner: “I rise today to say shame on this body for passing this reprehensible Medicare bill that has been rammed through…”

“I rise today to say shame on this body for passing this reprehensible Medicare bill that has been rammed through Congress today by the Republican leadership. This legislation does nothing that its supporters claim it does. They claim that this bill will help seniors with their prescription drug costs and give them more choices in their healthcare. But actually, this bill does none of that. It does not provide a comprehensive, affordable or reliable prescription drug benefit. Further, it unravels the consistent, guaranteed healthcare coverage that seniors have come to expect under Medicare. This bill is so bad, that even some Republicans refused to support it. Opponents of this terrible legislation see through the smoke and mirrors that supporters are putting up and realize that this bill was not about helping seniors pay for their prescription drugs or giving them access to better care, but that this bill was actually about helping the bottom lines of private insurance companies, HMOs and the pharmaceutical companies.”