John W. Olver: “American families are losing their health insurance every day because of corporate downsizing. The original…”

“American families are losing their health insurance every day because of corporate downsizing. The original Kennedy-Kassebaum health insurance bill was bipartisan common-sense reform that gave families a few simple protections. It cut down on denials due to preexisting conditions, it helped people get individual coverage when they lost group or COBRA coverage, it began chipping away at job lock, where fear of losing health insurance keeps people from changing jobs. But the House Republican leadership is turning straightforward reform into a goodie bag for a privileged few. Medical savings accounts, a payoff to a fat cat contributor to the majority. Limits on malpractice awards to people whose lives and dreams have been ruined. The Republican leadership has demonstrated once again they just do not care about average working people. We should pass the Kennedy-Kassebaum-Roukema bill and not a special interest spinoff. It is the very least we can do.”