Edward M. Kennedy: “I appreciate the concern of my colleague from Nebraska regarding the need to reduce the federal budget deficit. Reducing…”

“I appreciate the concern of my colleague from Nebraska regarding the need to reduce the federal budget deficit. Reducing the deficit is a high priority for President Clinton in his fiscal year 1995 budget proposal. Nevertheless, I disagree with many provisions of this amendment, particularly the Medicare cuts, and I urge rejection of the amendment. The Kerrey plan contains three Medicare proposals, all similar to proposals in the President's Health Security Act. The three Medicare proposals include a coinsurance on clinical laboratory services, a coinsurance on home health services, and means-testing of Medicare Part B premiums. These Medicare reductions are proposed outside the context of comprehensive health reform. It would be unwise to adopt this approach to Medicare in the midst of our concerted effort to achieve comprehensive health reform. Such reform that is urgently needed to provide Americans with the health security they need and deserve. The $31 billion in proposed Medicare savings in the Kerrey-Brown plan is almost one third of the total savings in the proposal. If these savings are taken now, it will be more difficult to finance any significant health reform without broad-based tax increases or even deeper cuts in Medicare.”