David Thomas: “I do not often find myself facing a tragic situation, but what I see occurring tonight here on the floor is a tragic…”

“I do not often find myself facing a tragic situation, but what I see occurring tonight here on the floor is a tragic situation. Everyone in this House wants to honor military retirees and veterans. And those are two different groups. We have worked tirelessly to try to assist military retirees, through the Department of Defense's program called TRICARE, as we have worked diligently to try to help veterans under the Veterans Administration program called Vision. Now, what is at stake here is not helping Americans who turn 65. That is not at issue. A military retiree turning 65, a veteran turning 65 has the Medicare benefits available to them. No one is being deprived of the full Medicare services, even though the hospital portion is a payroll tax, paid for by some Americans into a payroll tax and not paid by others. No one turning 65 does not get Medicare. That is not the issue in front of us. Please, do not try to make that the issue. It is not. The issue is should military retirees be able to go to military hospitals to get their Medicare benefits.”