Max Baucus: “this Congress has made little progress on health care. We know the problems. Health costs are rising. The number of…”

“this Congress has made little progress on health care. We know the problems. Health costs are rising. The number of uninsured is growing. American companies, burdened by growing health-care obligations, are struggling to compete. And what has Congress done about it? Not much. The trends are worsening. Last month, we learned that nearly 47 million Americans lack health insurance. That is up from a bit over 40 million in 2001. Last week we learned that health insurance premiums rose 7.7 percent last year. That is twice the rate of inflation. And nearly every day, I hear from an employer concerned about the rising cost of health care. Unfortunately, this Congress has not made progress on these top-tier health issues. Congress has not made progress even where wide agreement exists. There is wide agreement on health information technology, or health IT. Most experts agree that smarter use of health IT would cut costs. It would increase efficiency. It would reduce medical errors. And it would save lives. Furthermore, health IT would help us to move to system of paying health care providers for the quality of care that they provide. That is an important priority of mine. Last November, the Senate passed a health IT bill unanimously. That was nearly 11 months ago. Yet an agreement has still not been reached with the House on a compromise health IT bill. This bill started with broad support across the Senate. But deliberations on this bill have now turned partisan.”