David Thomas: “I think it might be useful just to remember where the prudent layperson language in the Republican provision and in the…”

“I think it might be useful just to remember where the prudent layperson language in the Republican provision and in the Democrat provision came from. It came from the changes that were made in the Medicare program. I think when you examine the gag rule provision, it is in the Democratic bill, it is in the Republican bill, it came from the Medicare revisions. If you recall, I said, prior to the election, the Democrats were accusing the Republicans of trying to destroy Medicare. After the election we sat down and put together a prudent package to preserve and protect Medicare. We included a number of provisions that were applicable only to Medicare because it was a bill dealing with Medicare. That was in 1997. We then began in the Subcommittee on Health a series of hearings about the problems that were out in the current marketplace because of the distortion of the rapid movement to managed care. We began examining the Medicare changes to find what we could include in the package. You have heard repeatedly that somehow the Republican plan was thrown together in a couple of days. That is pre-election rhetoric. It simply is not the truth. We include significant patient protections; they include some patient protections. We include the opportunity to get health care, make it more affordable, make it more accessible.”