Political Quotes

“Madam President, I rise with great concern regarding a program just revealed in the Sunday New York Times--outstanding work by Robert Pear--``U.S. Plans Stealth Survey on Access to Doctors.'' I am asking my colleagues to join me in sending a letter to Secretary Sebelius, sharing our concerns with the legality, standards, and repercussions of this program. I have deep concerns regarding the Department's recent plans for this so-called stealth survey, its legality, the notification to Congress, the lack of standards for any misconduct or bad reporting by the staff hired to carry out this work in looking clandestinely at American doctors and their practice of medicine. The cost and proposed clandestine method of collecting information about physicians' offices is questionable. Therefore, I will be requesting details on how this survey will be conducted and how investigators will be punished for misconduct or extortion they may carry out in their duties and how patient and physician confidentiality will be maintained. In our letter, we are outlining 12 key questions. No. 1. Since there are already a number of surveys answering this question, does this expenditure of taxpayer money add anything? We are asking for the Department to provide detailed records of their literature review on the current research that has already been published on the subject before launching this taxpayer-funded expense. We are also asking for the total cost of this program to be revealed. No. 2.…”