Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, let us put some competition into the marketplace. We just have a proposal now that says we will have a government-subsidized program, and we all know where that will take us. The taxpayers will pay and pay. Here is the problem: 50 percent of America has one insurer. That means you have a monopoly, and that is where we are getting 20, 30, and 40 percent increases annually, and businesses are straining. But when you only have one insurer, the new pharmacy plan, we have guaranteed everybody two. But in health care, over half of America have one. Associated Health Plans would, I think, change the marketplace dramatically, because you would bring lots of competition to the marketplace. The monopolies would no longer rule. A lot of other companies that are not monopolies do not want health care either. Why? It is going to be competition. Whenever America is successful, we bring competition into the marketplace. Yes, those monopolies are leaving community rating; yes, they are cherry-picking today. And State mandates are part of the problem, because 50 States have different mandates and we guarantee everybody gets a Cadillac plan. That means a lot of people cannot afford a plan at all, because you only can deliver a Cadillac plan. That is the system we have. In rural areas, where monopolies exist, businesses, individuals and governments pay measurably more for health insurance than neighboring counties.”