Mike Enzi

The cost of this health insurance coverage continues to rise.

If they're selling a product for less than what the people pay, that wouldn't be a sustainable business model.

It's also interesting to me that Secretary Sebelius used to be an insurance commissioner, and she didn't use her authority to change the rates.

Anyone who thinks that insurers will not pass these costs along to individuals and small businesses in the form of higher premiums is deluding themselves.

I don't think that medical loss ratio will make a big difference in Oregon.

I still think the small business health plans would have increased the number of companies that were out there participating, and I'm hoping that this health care reform does, too.

We also need to enact several provisions that will actually lower health care costs, help employers, and allow Americans to keep the plans they want rather than being forced to buy the plan that a government bureaucrat thinks best meets…

More than 2 years ago, the Congressional Budget Office told us that the new health care law was going to increase premiums for individuals and families by 10 to 13 percent.

The only way that we can stem the increasing cost is by raising deductibles.

The Congressional Research Service confirms that all new plans will be forced to have essential health benefit packages that are dictated by the Secretary.

That's why I was pushing for the small business health plans so the associations could group together.

The authors of the new health care law do not want to acknowledge the reason premiums are going up is because of the law they enacted.

We reduced the initial request, which was a 22.1 percent request, to a 12.8 percent increase.

Rather than wasting our time on another hearing that tries to shift the blame for the entirely predictable results of the new health care law, we should instead be focusing on how to address the causes of these premium increases.

Insurance premiums are going up because health care costs are going up, and health care costs are going up, at least in part, because of the new health care law.

Senator Murkowski has done a lot of work on that, and I'll let her handle those questions and any others she's interested in.

The new health law is already driving up health insurance premiums.

Now, on a different question, apparently HHS prohibited the Institute of Medicine from considering cost implications when they drafted the recommendations.

The Administration's chief actuary at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services released a report last week that said that insurance premiums are estimated to increase by 9.4 percent in 2014.

I do believe, however, that the FDA can do better.

The success of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) was to prevent the economy from continuing its dramatic decline.

Is the middle class worth saving in America? Is it something that makes us a kind of unique country?

Taxpayer dollars are going to fund foreign jobs, as well as being extremely expensive per job in the United States.

I will work with Senator Harkin to see what the Federal requirements are and appreciate you bringing that to our attention.

Thank you Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member Enzi, and members of the committee; it is a privilege to be here today.