On the recordMarch 18, 2010
As we face what may be one of the most important decisions Congress has made in our lifetime, I would like to highlight what a huge, positive impact the passage of health care reform will have on the lives of American women, on the health and the economic well-being of our mothers, daughters, your wives, and your sisters. First and foremost, passing reform will expand dramatically the number of women and children who have access to quality health care throughout their lifetime. The Joint Economic Committee, which I chair, has issued a report entitled 'Comprehensive Health Insurance Reform: An Essential Prescription for Women,' which documents that, in America today, 64 million women lack adequate health insurance. Over one quarter of our daughters between the ages of 19 and 24 do not have any coverage; 39 percent of all low-income women lack health insurance coverage. Passing health care reform will expand the availability of care, improve the affordability of care, and will expand the minimums of care. Today, due to costs, 1 in 5 women over age 50 has not had a mammogram in the past 2 years due to costs. The health care reform bill will require coverage of annual mammograms for women, including coverage for those under 50. Passing health care reform will bring badly needed changes to a system that places a particularly unfair burden on women who seek to buy insurance in the individual market.
