Sylvester Turner: “the House leadership has twisted the rules today so that we have only one choice: their bill or no bill. So let us talk…”

“the House leadership has twisted the rules today so that we have only one choice: their bill or no bill. So let us talk about what their bill does. First of all, it gives millions of dollars to insurance companies instead of giving it back to seniors in the form of lower prescription drug prices. Secondly, the bill leaves out middle-income Americans. Middle-income Americans cannot get any help. All they are told is to go buy insurance. There are millions of middle-income Americans who are struggling to pay the costs of high prescription medications. Thirdly, this bill simply rewards the pharmaceutical industry who has spent almost $100 million trying to be sure that this bill that is on the floor today is the only bill we have a chance to debate. A group called Citizens for Better Medicare, formed by the pharmaceutical industry, has worked hard to be sure that this day arrives in the form that we have it. Finally, the Republican bill lets the greedy HMOs decide what medicines seniors get. We believe seniors and their doctors should decide what kind of medications they get.”