Zoe Lofgren: “Today thousands of Americans are out of work as a result of the slumping economy and corporate scandals. In my home…”

“Today thousands of Americans are out of work as a result of the slumping economy and corporate scandals. In my home district in Santa Clara County, unemployment is now over 8½ percent. But rather than help these workers, we are asked to further punish them. Do not be misled. H.R. 975 is not about preventing spendthrifts from abusing the system. The leading cause of personal bankruptcy is not out-of-control spending. It is unemployment. Two out of three people who file have lost jobs. Half have experienced a serious health problem. Nevertheless, under these so-called reforms, many will be forced into Chapter 13, where more debts will survive and only limited households goods will be protected from repossessions. Under this bill, seniors, who represent the fastest-growing group of personal bankruptcies, will also suffer. Nearly half of seniors who file bankruptcy do so because of medical expenses. That is not hard to understand. Out-of-pocket health care expenses for seniors increased nearly 50 percent from 1999 to 2001. At the same time, many HMOs have cut prescription drug coverage, and this Congress has still failed to pass a sensible prescription drug plan. Women who represent the largest group of personal bankruptcies will also suffer. In 1999, over 200,000 women who filed for bankruptcy were owed child support and alimony.”