Chris Van Hollen: “I would remind the body that the $500 million in Medicare reform savings, which we got from ending some of the big…”

“I would remind the body that the $500 million in Medicare reform savings, which we got from ending some of the big breaks to the insurance industry, are kept in the Republican budget. You keep those savings. What you do not do is what we did: use some of those savings to close the prescription drug doughnut hole. So you took the savings, but you left the seniors with the doughnut hole. I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentlewoman from Connecticut (Ms. DeLauro). Ms. DeLAURO. I strongly oppose this budget proposal. The choices the majority is making are ill considered and wrong. Instead of working to reduce the deficit in a commonsense way, this budget ends Medicare--it ends Medicare--throws seniors to the wolves. Instead of working to control health care costs, this budget shifts them on to seniors and families. The proposal repeals health care reform, dismantles Medicaid, throwing seniors out of nursing homes while providing giveaways to the insurance industry. It gives tax breaks to corporations that shift jobs overseas, cuts critical investments in education, research, job training and infrastructure. It provides subsidies to big oil companies, while cutting services to the most vulnerable Americans, including $350 billion in food stamps. Programs such as Medicaid, Pell Grants, WIC would be gutted. It cuts taxes for the wealthiest while raising taxes on the middle class.…”