Jane Harman: “it's an honor to serve under Chairman Dingell on the Energy and Commerce Committee and to support this effort to keep…”

“it's an honor to serve under Chairman Dingell on the Energy and Commerce Committee and to support this effort to keep the Medicaid safety net intact. That our chairman shepherded this must-pass bill through our committee with unanimous support is testament to his enormous legislative skill and bipartisanship. Unless we pass this bill, Mr. Speaker, public hospitals and the essential services they provide will be at grave risk. A major public hospital in my district, Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, is among them. It is the only level 1 trauma center near top terror targets like LAX and the ports of Long Beach and L.A. In the event of an attack, Harbor would be on the front lines. As a teaching hospital, it helps train the next generation of doctors. Mr. Speaker, if all seven Medicaid regulations are implemented, Los Angeles County will lose $240 million in annual funding, the equivalent of closing a public hospital like Harbor. Harbor is already overcrowded. It needs more help, not less. It needs to offer more services, not to close. H.R. 5613 will stop these catastrophic cuts, and it deserves our full support. I urge our colleagues to vote ``aye'' and to join in overriding a White House veto should one occur.”