Greg Ganske: “I rise tonight to clarify points about HMO legislation before Congress for my colleagues, particularly members of the…”

“I rise tonight to clarify points about HMO legislation before Congress for my colleagues, particularly members of the conference committee, and to specifically address two memoranda that have been recently released by the Heritage Foundation and one by the Blue Cross/Blue Shield Association. Mr. Speaker, I refer to the Heritage Foundation Backgrounder N1350, The Patients' Bill of Rights, Prescription for Massive Federal Health Regulation, by John Hoff; to Heritage Foundation Executive Memorandum 658, Why the Texas HMO Liability Law is Not a Proven Model for Congress; and to a letter by Mary Nell Leonard, Senior Vice President of Blue Cross/Blue Shield, with accompanying memo, A Regulatory Quagmire, Questions and Answers about the Bipartisan Consensus Managed Care Improvement Act of 1999. Mr. Speaker, these memos are primarily a rehash of previous arguments that have been made frequently on the floor. We had several days of full debate on the Bipartisan Consensus Managed Care Improvement Act, and we debated all of these issues. However, these repackaged arguments deserve comment, I think, precisely because they are so specious.”