On the recordOctober 18, 2017
I urge my colleagues to oppose this amendment. It sounds like something simple. It is aimed at ending the budget resolution. This budget does not cut Medicare, and it does not provide tax breaks for the wealthy. It does not protect special interest tax loopholes. Also, anything that we do here has to be completed in other committees in order to ever happen. This budget does slow Medicare's projected annual rate of growth by approximately 1 percent in comparison to the CBO's baseline. The CBO estimates that Medicare's hospital insurance trust fund will become exhausted prior to the end of the budget window of 2025, at which point it will no longer be able to pay full benefits to seniors. This budget resolution protects Medicare by extending the life of the trust fund. It also establishes a path toward pro-growth tax reform, which will generate additional economic growth in Medicare. I urge my colleagues to oppose this amendment, and I ask for the yeas and nays. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second? There appears to be a sufficient second. The question is on agreeing to the amendment. The clerk will call the roll. The assistant bill clerk called the roll.
