Political Quotes

“I thank the gentleman for yielding. I also thank him for his leadership on issues that relate to the health and well-being of the American people. I also commend the leadership of the previous speaker, Mr Waxman, and our ranking member on the Ways and Means committee, Mr. Levin. They have been two champions on the subject of health care in America--and doing so in a fiscally sound way. While I appreciate and share the concerns here--and I will speak to that--I do think that we have to think carefully about the decision that we make. I know that they have. The leadership is bringing this bill to the floor on a short fuse, with an expiration date of March 31, without most people in this room having ever seen what is in the bill, which is a missed opportunity. We should be considering right now a bill that would permanently speak to the SGR. For those in the public, I know it is inside baseball talk, SGR. That is the rate that docs are compensated for treating Medicare patients. So don't think of SGR--think of the patients. That is what we are doing here. Think of the certainty that they need in terms of their health care, and that is our seniors. Think of the certainty that a permanent fix, paid for or not--but let's say paid for--would mean to remove the uncertainty from this debate. The American Medical Association is opposed to this bill that is on the floor today because it is a patch. How many times have you heard people talk about a Band-Aid?…”