Cory Booker: “my motion to instruct the Senate conferees would simply insist that the final conference report does not increase the…”

“my motion to instruct the Senate conferees would simply insist that the final conference report does not increase the number of individuals who do not have health insurance and does not increase health insurance premiums. It has been stated on this floor by my colleagues on this side of the aisle that this bill is a blow to our deficit, that it is a blow to our budget, and that it is going to hurt families, particularly in States like mine, with the elimination of the State and local tax deductions. We also know that it could be a bill that could literally threaten the lives of Americans as well. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has said that it will increase premium costs by 10 percent and cause 13 million people to lose their coverage, increase premiums and hurt people. We know that this bill as it is currently written threatens Americans who rely on Medicaid, including children, people with disabilities, and seniors in nursing homes, because of the bill's potential to impact a State's ability to access funds for its Medicaid Program--again, the State and local tax deductions. It is also going to possibly trigger cuts to Medicare. Because the bill that passed the Senate would possibly add $1.5 trillion to the deficit, it could trigger automatic cuts to government programs, including an annual cut of $25 billion to Medicare.…”