Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, the wrong that is proposed here tonight has nothing to do with the price of care in an economic sense. It is not going to raise the cost of health care to anyone. In fact, the Republican Congressional Budget Office has already pointed out that any cost change is negligible. The price is not economics; it is the political price that the Republican conferees were unwilling to pay to say no to the extremists who demand interference in reproductive health care, and yes to this House and to the United States Senate which said, by an overwhelming majority, that it is wrong to discriminate against women across this country and say to them that they can get some prescriptions, but not others. Mr. Speaker, 80 percent of the health plans available to Federal workers do not provide all forms of contraception, and some women are unable to use certain forms of contraception. While our women Members like the gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Lowey) have provided dynamic leadership on this issue, I am here to say that this is an important issue not just to women, but to men, to families all across this country; that the Federal Government ought to be a model employer, ought to set the example, and it ought not to be discriminating against women in saying they cannot get access to something that is so very important to their health care.”