This is an issue of such importance that it is essential to provide that kind of time.

Just a couple of quick thank-yous, and then I want to let my colleague wrap up for our side. It is pretty clear, Mr. President, that a bill of this magnitude does not happen by osmosis. It comes about because of scores of hearings…

H.R. 2 moves the physician payment system from one that rewards volume to one that rewards value. I look forward to extending value-based policies across the entire spectrum of Medicare. I agree, it is important to reward all providers and…

I rise in opposition to the Lee amendment. Colleagues, the Lee amendment is the bluntest possible instrument that would cut spending across government on every possible program. The SGR, the doctors reimbursement formula, has always been a…

I urge colleagues to oppose this amendment. What Senator Cornyn seeks to do is to strike an idea that originally came from the Heritage Foundation. If it is adopted, sick people will definitely sign up, healthy people will stay on the…

it is my hope that soon the Senate will be about to start voting on legislation that in one fell swoop will improve health care for millions of Americans. This discussion should start with a Medicare milestone. That milestone is abolishing…

while my colleague is on the floor, I want to commend Senator Cantwell for her superb work on this legislation. Senator Cantwell has really been the leader in the effort to get the Secretary of Health and Human Services to look at…

I rise in opposition to this amendment. Today, the Medicare Program is a fee-for-volume system. The underlying bill junks this and turns out the lights on millions of users. The underlying bill before the Senate says the future will be…

I ask unanimous consent to speak in morning business for up to 15 minutes. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. ____________________

I will be very brief. I think tonight is a milestone for the Medicare Program--a lifeline for millions of older people. That is because tonight the Senate is voting to retire the outdated, inefficiency-rewarding, commonsense-defying…

more than 5 years after being signed into law, the Affordable Care Act is improving the health and well-being of millions of Americans. Many of the Affordable Care Act's greatest successes are getting lost in the noise of political attack…

I ask for the yeas and nays. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second? There appears to be a sufficient second. The clerk will call the roll. The result was announced--yeas 47, nays 53, as follows: [Rollcall Vote No. 95 Leg.]…

earlier in this week I was encouraged when Republicans voted with Democrats to approve an amendment I introduced with Senator Sanders that would protect Medicaid beneficiaries from benefit cuts under the budget. But when we actually look…

I ask unanimous consent that the pending amendment be set aside in order to call up my amendment No. 1026. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. The clerk will report. The bill clerk read as follows: The Senator from…

I ask unanimous consent that the reading of the amendment be dispensed with. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. The amendment is as follows: (Purpose: To establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to…

I ask for the yeas and nays. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second? There appears to be a sufficient second. The question is on agreeing to the Wyden amendment No. 968. The clerk will call the roll. The bill clerk called the…

I call up amendment No. 968, and I urge Senators to support this amendment because it will cut taxes on the middle class and give millions of Americans a new ladder of economic opportunity. This amendment rewards hard work, makes college…

I think the Senator, through the Chair, would yield to me for a moment. The PRESIDING OFFICER. There is no time remaining.

I will be very brief. I support this amendment. President Obama favors lowering this tax rate, and I believe the reason he does is because he thinks this will provide another opportunity to reduce offshoring. I support the amendment. The…

I ask unanimous consent that the reading of the amendment be dispensed with. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. The amendment is as follows: (Purpose: To establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to…

This amendment would delete the reconciliation instructions in Section 201 of the budget resolution. When it comes to tackling the big economic challenges in this country, the best legislation is bipartisan legislation. Using the…

The first of the three amendments I call up would expand and simplify the tax credits to help students afford the sky-high costs of a college education. Students and their families today spend hours wading through a Byzantine web of tax…

I ask unanimous consent that the reading of the amendment be dispensed with. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. The amendment is as follows: (Purpose: To establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to…

This amendment deals with the stop-and-go tax cuts known as extenders. Last December, the Senate approved a package of tax extenders for the 2014 year. That law expired before the ink could dry. By New Year's Day, taxpayers were thrown…

first of all, I wish to thank Chairman Enzi for his courtesy in allowing me to take a few minutes to discuss a bipartisan amendment I will be offering on this bill. It deals with what I think is going to be an enormous challenge this…