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[Page S4349]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
HEALTHCARE
Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, Americans have been hurting under
ObamaCare. Senators took a big step toward moving beyond its failures
with the motion-to-proceed vote earlier this week. It allowed the
Senate to proceed with this important debate. It allowed the Senate to
work through an open amendment process.
Senators have considered proposals already, including some procedural
motions from across the aisle. Senators will have the opportunity to
consider many, many more amendments tonight. I know that colleagues in
both parties are eager to do so.
I encourage Senators with healthcare ideas--whether Republicans,
Democrats, or Independents--to bring their amendments to the floor. We
have heard many different ideas on healthcare in recent months. Not
every idea, of course, is a good one.
One idea from the Democratic leader is simply to throw money at
insurance companies--no reforms, no changes, just a multimillion-dollar
bandaid.
Another idea from many other Democrats is to quadruple down on
ObamaCare with a government-run single-payer system. It is called
single payer because there is one payer, or insurer, the government.
Nearly every healthcare decision would be directed by a Federal
bureaucrat. Taxes could go up astronomically. The total cost could add
up to $32 trillion, according to an estimate of a leading proposal.
We will vote on single payer this afternoon, and we will find out
what support it enjoys in the Senate--especially on the other side of
the aisle. We all know this is likely to be a very long night. It is
part of a long process that has taken a lot of hard work from a lot of
dedicated colleagues already.
One phase of that process will end when the Senate concludes voting
this week, but it will not signal the end of our work--not yet.
Ultimately, the goal is to send legislation from Congress to the
President--legislation that can finally move us beyond ObamaCare's
years of failures.
The President is ready to sign legislation. Congress will keep
working to pass it because we know the American people deserve better
than ObamaCare. They deserve better than ObamaCare and its skyrocketing
costs. They deserve better than ObamaCare and its plummeting choices.
They deserve better than the job-killing regulations, crushing
mandates, and collapsing markets ObamaCare has given them.
We all know this. We all know that the ObamaCare status quo hasn't
been working for the people we represent. We have known it for
literally years.
Many of us committed to voting for a better way on healthcare. That
is what every Senator who supported the motion to proceed voted for on
Tuesday.
Let's finish our work. Let's not allow this opportunity to slip by.
We have made important progress already. We can build on it now.
The moment before us is one many of us have waited for and talked
about for a very long time. It is a moment that can't come soon enough
for the people we represent. I urge everyone to keep working hard so we
can get this over the finish line. It is what our constituents and our
country deserve.
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