John Joseph Moakley: “Mr. Speaker, American seniors are having a very hard time today, and the House could really do something about it. Today…”

“Mr. Speaker, American seniors are having a very hard time today, and the House could really do something about it. Today we could have passed a Democratic bill to make sure that every single senior citizen gets help with their expensive prescription drugs and never again has to make the terrible choice between putting food on the table or medicine in their cabinet. But my Republican colleagues decided against legitimate help for seniors. Instead, they decided to offer a bill to pour billions of dollars into the coffers of insurance companies and drug companies on the off chance that these companies will offer people some kind, any kind of drug benefit. In fact, Mr. Speaker, the Republican drug bill does more for insurance companies and the Grand Old Party than it does for grandparents. Mr. Speaker, people with incomes over $12,600 get no direct help whatsoever from this Republican bill. But, Mr. Speaker, we have a chance to do something different. We have a Democratic prescription drug bill that would give every single senior American affordable, dispensable prescription drug coverage.”