Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. DeFazio). Mr. DeFAZIO. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, this bill, H.R. 1418, has 51 cosponsors in the House: 26 Democrats, 25 Republicans. It is endorsed by 23 national organizations, including Consumer Reports, which estimates it will save consumers billions of dollars a year in health insurance costs, other consumer rights groups, the American Dental Association, Hospital Association, and more. There are only two for-profit industries in America that have an exemption from antitrust law: One is professional baseball, dating from the 1920s, and the other is the vital area of health insurance, dating to the 1940s. This bill will take away that exemption. What does that mean? Well, right now, insurance companies can and do get together and collude. Before COVID, they would go to some fancy resorts, get together, and say: How about you stay out of North Dakota; we will stay out of South Dakota? You stay out of Oregon; we will stay out of Washington. Let's divide up the pie here. You decide where you are selling, and we will decide where we are selling. Oh, and by the way, here are the things we don't want to cover. Here are the people we want to redline and exclude. That is all legal. That is all legal. What does it do? It drives up the cost and the availability is diminished for Americans.…”