Nancy L. Johnson

A lot of seniors have, first of all, been misled to think that the discount card is the Medicare reform bill. The discount card is not the program. The discount card is only an intermediate step, and it is one that, in my district at…

Mr. Speaker, the goal of TANF, that is, welfare reform, was always twofold: first, it was to help women who had children and no means of support and therefore were dependent on welfare to regain their economic independence by entering the…

Let us look at this issue of outsourcing. Last year, foreign investment in America doubled. That means that other countries outsourced jobs to America at twice the rate they had the preceding year. We need them to keep doing that! Next, in…

I also want to say both to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Regula) and also to the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Obey) that you have brought forward for this body a very fine, balanced bill in a difficult era. The money that you have put into…

There is nothing that we could do that would hurt American workers more than a moratorium. Over the last few years Europe has consummated about 36 bilateral trade agreements in this part of the world, and we have consummated about three…

Direct and indirect subsidies are an extreme problem in creating not only a free trading community across the world but a fair trading community. And while we have struggled mightily to comply with the World Trade Organization's…

This is plain and simple a jobs bill. If American multinational companies are not competitive, we lose jobs all across this country, in the millions and millions of small businesses that produce parts and products that go abroad, and…

I have served in Congress a long time; and when there is a real problem in the lives of the people you represent, I believe your job is to solve it. I believe your job is to take action, to do something; and I know that this is the most…

For instance, someone said, why do not we have a prescription drug benefit that is part of traditional Medicare? That is what we should have passed. Folks, that is what we did pass. The bill we passed made prescription drugs a benefit…

I rise with pride and pleasure to recognize this June 1 as the first time in history that the seniors of America have had the opportunity to purchase a Medicare drug discount card as the first step, but only the first step, in reducing the…

I rise in support of H.R. 4227 and commend my colleague, the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Simmons), for introducing this legislation. This bill is simply about keeping promises, about keeping the promise made to the middle-class…

since Medicare was founded, medicine has changed and seniors have changed. We all know how medicine has changed, MRIs, open heart surgery, all the dramatic procedures, all the new diagnostic tests; and Medicare has a cumbersome though slow…

I thank the chairman; and I want to congratulate my colleagues, the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Portman) and the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Cardin), who have long been leaders on complicated pension issues, and to the whole conference…

The gentlewoman from Oregon should know that with this prescription drug insurance plan Medicare recipients in Oregon who are covered will go from 60 percent up to 96.6 percent. This bill brings a benefit to Oregon.

I do not consider the AARP a special interest group, or the Coalition to Ensure Patient Access a special interest group, or the Alzheimer's Association a special interest group, or the Kidney Cancer Association a special interest group.

It is simply my belief that within the time frame of this extension, we will be able to permanently reauthorize the welfare program and add to it the more flexible provisions that are in the underlying bill with some interest that the…

this legislation is nearly identical to H.R. 3146, a bill the House unanimously approved last week. The only change is the addition of a 6-month extension of expiring Medicare payment provisions affecting hospitals in small cities and…

I would indicate to the gentleman that the bill that passed the House has a very broad waiver of authority in it. There are some that think it is too broad and would like narrower waiver authority. We will see what the Senate has done, and…

Absolutely. That is exactly what I am saying. The fallback provision in the Senate bill will lead to drug prices that will cost our bill 8 to $12 billion more.

this is simple, serious, and sad. Significant errors of utterance and judgment were made by members of the Committee on Ways and Means of both parties this morning. The chairman responded to what were fast-paced comments and actions. There…

Study after study and the experience of nation after nation has demonstrated that the more knowledge women have of how to control their reproductive capability, the more the abortion rate declines. We have seen this in spades in Russia and…

I do want to say that often very small amendments are extremely important. This amendment is absolutely key to reducing the costs of drugs. There are many expensive products on the market that are no better than aspirin, and we need to be…

I raise this point of order respectfully and regretfully, but it is important that this section be struck. In 2001, I helped author and pass in this House a requirement that providers be required as of this October to submit all Medicare…

scare tactics have no place in this debate. There are no vouchers in this bill. In 2010, a senior that wants to be in the Medicare program will be in the Medicare program exactly as they are now. They will be in that Medicare program and…

Today, is an historic day for America's seniors. Congress is about to fulfill the promise and the potential of Medicare, which has been one of our greatest success stories in our history; but when Medicare was created in 1965, prescription…