I rise to speak first about amendment No. 2196 pertaining to the National Drug Intelligence Center which is located in Johnstown, PA, in southwestern Pennsylvania. This center was created in 1993 and provides Federal, State, and local law…

Let me finish my thought. There are a lot of ways to prosecute a crime like that. But when you have legislation that is supported broadly across the country, including by law enforcement agencies, district attorneys, and police…

I rise for a few moments to do something that I had hoped to do yesterday but didn't have the opportunity in the midst of our hearings on Iraq and so much else going on. I don't want to miss the opportunity to commend so many people in…

In the letter, Professor Kofman writes: The changes made to the preemption section in S. 558 mean that the current HIPAA federal floor standard would apply to the new Mental Health Parity law (just like it applies to the current law passed…

the Mental Health Parity Act of 2007 amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, ERISA, and the Public Health Service Act to require a group health plan that provides both medical and surgical benefits and mental health benefits to…

I join my esteemed colleague in having assured myself that S. 558 will not serve to preempt in any way the services and benefits provided to the citizens of Pennsylvania by Pennsylvania Act 106. I know that our offices have collaborated…

I rise today to clarify my support for S. 558, the Mental Health Parity Act of 2007. This bipartisan legislation introduced by Senators Domenici and Kennedy, seeks to provide parity between health insurance coverage of mental health…

Dear Senator Casey and Senator Specter: This is a response to a request for an analysis of the preemption provisions in the Mental Health Parity Act of 2007 (S. 558 as amended 8/3/ 07 Managers' Amendment). The changes made to the…

Treating health insurance for needy children as a political bargaining chip-- And he's referring to the President's other health care ideas---- would be wrong. He talks about the fact that Mitch Daniels, who worked in a Republican…

I thank Senator Baucus, my distinguished colleague from Montana, for not only the argument he is putting forth today on children's health insurance but in a special way his leadership on the Finance Committee. On the question of children's…

I rise today to speak about children's health insurance for a number of reasons, but principally because the President of the United States, several times in the last couple of weeks and months--but especially this past week--has spoken to…

I rise for a brief period of time to pay tribute to a Pennsylvanian who just passed away this past week, a constituent of mine whose family I have known for many years. I think he is like a lot of people in our communities and in our…

I am honored today to join in a bipartisan initiative to introduce legislation based upon the recommendations of the Iraq Study Group. I proudly stand with my distinguished colleagues--you, Mr. President, as well as Senators Alexander…

I rise today to offer my Prepare All Kids Act of 2007, a bill that represents one of my highest priorities, high quality prekindergarten education for all children, and particularly those from low income families for whom the cost of…

I stand today in support of an amendment to S. 1082 offered by Senator Dorgan and several of our colleagues. This amendment is identical to a bill sponsored by the Senator from North Dakota, a bill I am proud to cosponsor. We have a…

this Sunday we will celebrate Earth Day, a day when we should reaffirm our commitment to a clean, safe, and healthy environment for our children and future generations. We have made a considerable amount of progress since Senator Gaylord…

Yesterday I filed amendment No. 740, which allows dairy farmers in Pennsylvania to receive a one-time emergency assistance payment of $2.50 for every hundredweight of milk they produced over the past 6 months. Dairy farmers in my home…

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Director, I was struck by some of the information in your testimony, as well as the prepared testimony, with regard to risk-sharing.

I was pleased that today a fellow Pennsylvanian, Nora Barry Fischer, was confirmed by the U.S. Senate to serve on the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania. I was also happy to help expedite her nomination before the…

He didn't make a mistake like this president did, and like Rick Santorum did, by failing to ask the tough questions about Iraq.