Bob Menendez: “while Republicans proclaim this week as Health Week on the Senate floor, it is quite the contrary in the homes of…”

“while Republicans proclaim this week as Health Week on the Senate floor, it is quite the contrary in the homes of millions of American families. Today, 46 million Americans have no health insurance at all. And 1.3 million New Jerseyans have no health insurance. Another 16 million or more Americans are underinsured, meaning that they have insurance, but still do not have access to the care they need. Complicating matters even more is the fact that the average cost of family health coverage--$10,880--now exceeds annual earnings for a minimum-wage earner. So what does the Senate majority propose to do to solve the problem? Nothing more than dust off the old playbook and make another run at the same old play. They propose a medical malpractice bill that has been defeated over and over again, that does not even really reduce costs for providers or patients, and in the process actually reduces remedies for patients. They propose a bill claiming to help small businesses, but it actually hurts patients by removing existing coverage and protections and exacerbates the problem of the underinsured. So at the end of Health Week in the Senate, all we have to show the American people is more of the same--the same 46 million with no insurance, the same 16 million people with inadequate insurance, and the same families working 40 hours a week to earn a living for their family but still unable to afford quality health care for them.…”