On the recordJanuary 19, 2011
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 2, the repeal of the Affordable Care Act. I consider this one of the most crucial votes in this Congress. As a cardiothoracic surgeon, I can speak from the perspective of a physician who has dealt with the growing need for health care reform in our country. We all know there are too many uninsured; too many underinsured. But a government solution is the wrong approach. This law does nothing to address the critical issue in health care today, and that's the rising cost of health care. Now let's touch on my patients. Sixty to 70 percent of my patients are in Medicare. A $500 billion cut in the funding of Medicare and decreasing reimbursement for physicians, for hospitals and other providers over the course of time will lead to what it has led to in every other country that has a government health care system--rationing of health care for some of the most vulnerable people in our society, our American seniors.