Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I came to the House of Representatives nearly 9 years ago, and for the majority of my tenure here, Congress has been struggling with the concept of a bill of rights for patients. There are no policy arguments that have not been made, no statements left unspoken, and no new points to interject. Mr. Speaker, 95 percent of the patients' bill of rights is agreed to by every one here. We all agree that patients should have access to emergency room and specialty care and direct access to obstetricians, gynecologists, and pediatricians. We agree that doctors should have input in the development of formularies for prescription drugs and that patients should have access to health plan information. All the players agree that gag clauses that prevent doctors from discussing certain health care options with their patients should be prohibited and that patients should have a right to continuity of care. In fact, I would like to remind my colleagues that the House has previously passed a patients' bill of rights. We have, we have done it here, and yet we still have no Federal protection to offer the 170 million Americans with private health insurance. Well, help is on the way. We finally have a President committed to making this happen and a Congress which has worked long and hard to help him.”