Don Nickles: “Today I am introducing the Republican Patients' Bill of Rights. Joining me in this effort are 46 of my colleagues who…”

“Today I am introducing the Republican Patients' Bill of Rights. Joining me in this effort are 46 of my colleagues who recognize the importance of ensuring that all Americans are able to not only receive the care they have been promised, but also receive the highest quality of care available. The foundation of this proposal was to address some of the very real concerns that consumers have about their health care needs. We know that many Americans have believed they were denied coverage that their plans were supposed to cover. We recognize that some individuals fear that their health care plans will not give them access to specialists when they need them. We know that some Americans think their health care plans care more about cost than they do about quality. In contrast, we also know that many Americans are happy and satisfied with their health care plan. We know that 81 percent of managed care enrollees are satisfied with their current health care plan. Another recent analysis suggest that 79 percent of consumers in HMOs would recommend their coverage. In addition Americans are leery of Washington solutions and increased federal intervention.”