John Rice Carter: “I thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Chair, I rise today in opposition to the so-called Protecting Americans with…”

“I thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Chair, I rise today in opposition to the so-called Protecting Americans with Preexisting Conditions Act. Mr. Chair, this is a misnomer. A misnomer is defined as a wrong or inaccurate name or designation. That is what the title of this bill is. It is wrong. I join my colleagues on the Republican side in supporting protections for people with preexisting conditions. In fact, it was one of the first votes in Congress that we took this year, and it was defeated by my colleagues across the aisle. This bill, which is ironically, as I say, misnamed because it doesn't protect preexisting conditions, would take steps to roll back State efforts to innovate and lower premiums for Americans across the country. One issue I often hear about from my constituents is the cost of healthcare coverage and the lack of options available under ObamaCare. These waivers would allow for new strategies to address the high premiums that so many people are facing. In fact, of the States that created their own reinsurance programs, they saw, on average, a nearly 20 percent drop in premiums, one State seeing a drop as high as 43.4 percent. As States continue to grapple with high insurance costs, they have looked to these innovative waivers for opportunities to bring about new ideas that help people, not remove options and opportunities. We all know that there is an issue with affordability of insurance in many areas.…”