On the recordMay 20, 2014
I rise to discuss a critical issue facing this body and this country. The occasion for my remarks happens to be the nomination of Sylvia Mathews Burwell to head the Department of Health and Human Services. As a senior member of the HELP Committee and the ranking member on the Finance Committee, I have taken a great deal of interest in her nomination and have participated in her confirmation hearings. I am afraid the cordial nature of our exchanges and my recognition of Ms. Burwell's impressive qualifications has allowed some ObamaCare partisans to misconstrue my approaches as an acknowledgment that somehow the Affordable Care Act is working. Let me be absolutely clear on this point. I oppose ObamaCare, and I am going to fight as long as it takes to repeal that misguided law and replace it with a system that actually works for American families. That is why I have collaborated with several of my colleagues to unveil the framework of the Patient CARE Act, a plan that would repeal ObamaCare and replace it with commonsense, patient-centered reforms that would reduce health care costs and increase access to affordable, high-quality care. It would save the taxpayers about $1 trillion and yet have a better health care system than we have today with Obama. Let me also be clear on another point. No matter what the administration says, the reality is that ObamaCare is not working.…
