Steve Kagen: “I don't want anyone in this Chamber or anyone in America to misunderstand the situation. We present this bill. It's…”

“I don't want anyone in this Chamber or anyone in America to misunderstand the situation. We present this bill. It's already a compromise. We passed a bill that cared not just for children but for our senior citizens on Medicare. Medicare beneficiaries, when we sent the bill to the Senate, would have gained what? At no additional co-pay, they would have preventive health care measures like mammograms, cancer screening, diabetic education coverage. But the Senate chopped off the health care additions for our senior citizens, said, no, this is a children's bill, and they sent us a bill that I felt was morally responsible. This bill meets the needs of children. It's accepted by doctors, by insurance companies, by private hospitals. This bill is passable. This bill should not have been vetoed.”