Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, after 7 years of campaigning against the Affordable Care Act, congressional Republicans have finally produced what they cynically describe as a replacement plan. Sadly, however, this bill will unravel all of the progress we made under the ACA, including expanding access to health insurance to 22 million Americans and improving the quality of coverage and care for tens of millions more. It nearly doubles the amount of uninsured people in this country, guts Medicaid by almost $900 billion, and weakens the Medicare trust fund. {time} 1130 That was bad enough. But the last-minute changes to this bill are astonishing and appalling. This legislation now allows insurers to end coverage for prescription drugs, mental health, maternity and newborn care, preventive care, emergency room visits, hospitalizations, outpatient care, rehab visits, lab services, and pediatric care. That is not progress. That is not a fix. That is a potential health crisis for every American. My Republican colleagues are well aware of this. Why else would they have drafted this bill and these last-minute changes in secret? Why else would complicated legislation affecting the lives of millions be sent to the floor just 2 weeks after it was introduced with no congressional hearings, not a single one, on a bill that impacts the health care of nearly every American family?…”