On the recordJune 26, 2003
The fact that this bill doesn't take effect until 2006 is another brutal hoax on seniors, truly an abusive, shameful, misleading ploy. The fact is, many of those who most need prescription drug coverage today simply will not live long enough to get any benefits under this plan. As much as I have wanted to vote for a drug bill, for those reasons, I simply cannot vote for the one before us this evening. We have lost our focus. The focus should be on the Medicare Program in reform and how to help our 40 million seniors and disabled persons. Instead, the focus is everywhere else--insurance companies, drug companies, and hiding the flaws which ought to be exposed. This focus is often presented as the issue of choice. Choice has different meanings. For the idealog, choice means a choice among delivery systems. But for seniors, choice means doctors, hospitals, and, hopefully, prescription drugs.
Source
govinfo.gov
