Al Franken: “Thank you. I thank the Senator from Iowa for the time. Madam President, I thank my friends on both sides of the aisle…”

“Thank you. I thank the Senator from Iowa for the time. Madam President, I thank my friends on both sides of the aisle for their work on the legislation we are considering today. The Food and Drug Administration Safety and Improvement Act is not only among the most important piece of legislation we will consider this year, it is also the product of more than a year's hard work and negotiation. This legislation will help support a culture of innovation in this country. It will help millions of Americans access the lifesaving medications and devices they need, when they need them. As a member of the HELP Committee, I am proud of the bipartisan bill before us today and look forward to passing it into law. Let me tell you why. Of course, the Presiding Officer spoke so eloquently about this bill earlier. The Presiding Officer does not have to know why, but let me tell you a story about a little girl in Minnesota--from our State--named Josie. Josie seemed perfectly healthy when she was born, but at 9 months of age Josie's parents found out she had a rare congenital heart disorder, a condition with the scary name of ``atrial septal defect,'' which means she had a hole in the wall between the upper two chambers of her heart. When the doctors tested her, they found Josie had not one, not two, but three holes in her heart. It became clear that what was originally a fairly simple surgery to repair the hole was actually a lot more complicated. But Josie was lucky.…”