Political Quotes

“today the Senate will vote on the nomination of Alex Azar, President Trump's nominee for Secretary of Health and Human Services. I join many of my colleagues in expressing concerns about this nominee. First, I believe Mr. Azar will accelerate the Trump administration and congressional Republicans' harmful agenda on Medicaid, which I view as nothing less than a war on Medicaid. Medicaid is a lifeline for millions of Americans and a smart healthcare and economic strategy for our country. Last year, I spent hours on the Senate floor presenting data and information to my colleagues showing why cutting and capping Medicaid is a very bad idea. I met with Medicaid patients, safety net hospitals, community health centers, and local elected officials in every corner of my State. They had a crystal-clear message for me: Cutting and capping Medicaid will be bad for patients, bad for the healthcare delivery system, bad for local economies, and bad for our State. They expressed a consensus view that capping Medicaid is not healthcare reform, nor is it innovation; it is simply a budget mechanism to throw people off of healthcare. Mr. Azar has stated that he favors a block grant or per-capita cap financing approach for Medicaid. He speaks highly of the current Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, CMS, Administrator and their troubling regulatory agenda for Medicaid. Mr.…”