Kendrick Meek: “first of all, this bill tonight, I have listened very carefully. It is a relief act for the insurance industry. That is…”

“first of all, this bill tonight, I have listened very carefully. It is a relief act for the insurance industry. That is what it is. Also, the Republican plan is not a fair plan. It is not going to help all seniors. Think about that. That is the fact. It does not cover them. There is no real guarantee at all, and many of them keep getting up and saying this is the first plan. That is all they want to go out and say, this is the first plan. It does not mean anything except it is the first ever, and it is not worth doodley squat. So they run with that. So we have got to think of three things. It will not cover all the seniors. Imagine this, seniors having to run around, trying to shop around and find a plan. That is a big hassle for older Americans. They cannot contend with all these various insurance plans that come and go. We do not know how the model is going to work. Those of us who have been around, we know it did not work in 1965; and this is just another part of it. It is not going to work now. We should be sure tonight to vote against this relief act for the insurance agencies.”