Orrin Hatch: “I rise to set the record straight. Amendment No. 432, which characterizes the House budget plan as a plan to turn…”

“I rise to set the record straight. Amendment No. 432, which characterizes the House budget plan as a plan to turn Medicare into a voucher program, is patently false. This amendment is not trying to voucherize Medicare. That is not true. I think it is ironic that my colleagues on the other side of the aisle attack the House budget proposal when the Affordable Care Act took $716 billion from the bankrupt Medicare Program to create an unsustainable new entitlement. In no way can the House budget be considered as turning Medicare into a voucher program, and we reject the characterization of amendment No. 432. The House budget proposal draws from bipartisan proposals put forth by the Breaux-Thomas Medicare Commission, President Bill Clinton, and Domenici-Rivlin. We are prepared to take the amendment. We will be happy to take it by unanimous consent. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The time of the Senator has expired.”