Jim McGovern

I am a cosponsor of this legislation. I am not going to hide that fact.

In the richest country in the history of our species, at its richest moment, not to advance forward to adopt a Medicare for All system is to deny I think the common humanity of our fellow citizens.

And by now, we all know that the Republican plan for healthcare can be summed up in one word: repeal, no replacement.

Medicare for All is possible. It is reasonable. It can move forward, and I think it should.

Though I think the Democratic Medicare for All proposal is an extreme one, I would remind the majority that Republicans are, as Mrs. Lesko said, committed to working together to improve the system we currently have and to build on and…

I look forward to working with my good friends on the other side of the aisle, certainly with you, Mr. Chairman, to make sure that we can do something that matters in the weeks and months ahead that makes a big difference.

I am proud that you have both called on that, Mr. Chairman, and announced that at least one of those are going to take it up.

We ought to be able to go on both tracks. I refuse to believe that we are incapable of doing great things.

I believe we can do great things here if we want to, right? We can walk and we can chew gum at the same time.

I think instead we welcome the opportunity to look to the future and begin the work of making our healthcare system...

Unlike the President, the members of this House believe it is critical we address the healthcare crisis head on...

The fact is, Donald Trump does not have a plan to address healthcare, unless you consider dismantling the Affordable Care Act...

I think Medicare for All is the way to go.

The system that we have in place is deeply flawed and it is hugely expensive.

I don't think anybody in this world is illegal.

We have 29 million people who do not have insurance, over 40 million people who are underinsured.

If you experience such a misfortune, and you get such a diagnosis and you can't get healthcare, ... that is not a misfortune; that is an injustice, because we can do something about that.

Thirteen years it took me to repeal the sustainable growth rate formula, and I did. And I did it in a bipartisan fashion.

We approved their version over here on the House floor and the President signed it into law, the first major sickle cell authorization that had been passed in certainly over a decade, and with no new therapy.

All I want to do is practice medicine in a world where I no longer have to watch a patient walk out of the ER without medical care that could save their life because they are worried about going bankrupt.

The solution has to involve approaching medical care in just the same way we approach educating our children, maintaining our roads, or supporting our armed forces.

I want to thank Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal for her commitment and her dedication to this issue.

National security should also mean things like quality healthcare for every person in this country.

But no one should have to fight a healthcare company while they are fighting for their lives.

But I want to focus on one witness. With us today is Ady Barkan.