HCR Bill Passes US House

by: Jennifer Daler

Sun Mar 21, 2010 at 23:03:56 PM EDT

Is it perfect? No. But it will do some things that will improve health care access for millions of Americans.

Katrina Swett:

Katrina Swett Statement on Passage of Health Care Reform

CONCORD, March 21, 2010 -- Families and small businesses throughout New Hampshire know that the status quo on health care - skyrocketing insurance premiums, businesses forced to choose between hiring new workers and paying for health care, insurance companies dropping coverage when families need it most - is simply not acceptable.  That's why I am pleased the House has finally taken action to reform our health care system.

I support these reforms because they finally take control away from the insurance companies and give it back to patients and doctors, by banning the insurance companies from denying coverage because of preexisting conditions, or using the fine print to deny coverage when people get sick.  And it forces the insurance companies to spend more money on care, instead of waste, overhead, and CEO bonuses.

These reforms will help thousands of New Hampshire seniors by closing the prescription drug donut hole, and they will help our state's small businesses grow and create jobs by giving them tax credits to make health care more affordable.  They will slow the rising cost of care for families and make sure that, for the first time ever, middle class Americans will be able to have the same coverage as Members of Congress.

This bill is not perfect, and the process we've been through is an example of everything that is wrong with Washington: the insurance companies and their army of lobbyists fighting to protect their profits at the expense of American families, jaded politicians squabbling over process and cutting backroom deals that put their interests, not the people's, first.  But it is nonetheless a start, and I am happy to see that President Obama was able to eliminate the worst of these backroom deals.

As the Second District's congresswoman, I will keep working to make sure that New Hampshire's middle class families, seniors, and small business have access to affordable health care.  And I will fight to reduce the influence of the special interests and lobbyists who tried so hard to prevent this needed progress.

Ray Buckley:

Statement from NHDP Chair Ray Buckley on the House of Representative's Historic Vote to Pass Health Insurance Reform

Concord -- New Hampshire Democratic Party Chair Ray Buckley issued the following statement on the historic vote in the House to pass comprehensive health insurance reform:

"The House passage of the Affordable Health Care for America Act brings our country another step closer to guaranteeing comprehensive health care for all Americans. This legislation reins in the insurance companies' worst practices while extending coverage to 36 million Americans and cutting the deficit by more than $100 billion in ten years.

"In the Granite State alone, more than 140,000 people are uninsured, and the number grows daily as rising premium costs make it more difficult for middle class families to afford quality health insurance.  Earlier this year, WellPoint Insurance announced that premiums for New Hampshire residents would increase 12 to 13%.

"This landmark reform could not have been possible without the hard work of New Hampshire's Democratic congressional delegation - Senator Jeanne Shaheen, Congressman Paul Hodes, and Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter.

"Specifically, the legislation includes four key cost savings provisions that Senator Shaheen authored, including measures that will help Americans access more affordable prescription drugs, prevent costly hospital re-admissions, improve the coordination of care, and protect access to comparative effectiveness research so that patients and doctors can make more informed decisions.

"The bill also includes provisions that prevent insurance companies from cutting important coverage for women.  Congressman Hodes refused to stop fighting until mammograms, mastectomy stay coverage, direct access to OB/GYNs, and maternity care coverage could not be cut from the plans currently held by 80% of New Hampshire's insured women.

"And thanks to the effort led by Congresswoman Shea-Porter, the Affordable Health Care for America Act will fully close the Medicare 'donut hole.' Eliminating this coverage gap is long overdue, and will alleviate the financial burden placed on thousands of senior citizens in the Granite State, many of whom are on a fixed income and rely on their Medicare coverage to survive."

Ann McLane Kuster:

STATEMENT OF ANN MCLANE KUSTER ON PASSING OF HISTORIC HEALTH CARE REFORM:

CONCORD, NH - "Tonight the U.S. House of Representatives passed historic health care reform that will make a real difference for New Hampshire families and businesses.  This bill will cut the deficit by $130 billion in the next decade alone, extend coverage to 31 million Americans without health care, stop insurance companies from denying coverage to people who get sick or have a pre-existing condition, and close the so-called "donut hole" in the Medicare prescription drug benefit that otherwise leaves thousands of New Hampshire seniors without coverage.  In Congress I'll continue to work for and support a public insurance option that increases competition and will drive down insurance premiums and health care costs for New Hampshire families."

"I'm looking forward to President Obama signing this historic bill into law.  Health care costs are out of control and are crippling New Hampshire families, small businesses and our national budget.   The time for health care reform is now."

Jeanne Shaheen:

SHAHEEN STATEMENT ON HOUSE PASSAGE OF HISTORIC HEALTH CARE REFORM LEGISLATION

(Washington, DC) - U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen released the following statement in reaction to House passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, which passed the Senate in December.

"Today comprehensive health care reform is one step closer to becoming a reality for middle class families and small businesses struggling to pay their health insurance premiums. We are reigning in health insurance abuses that have bankrupted families in New Hampshire and nationwide. This is an important milestone in our nation's history." -- U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen

Carol Shea-Porter:

Final Health Care Bill Passes House with Shea-Porter Support

Washington, DC - Today, the House of Representatives passed historic health care legislation that will lower costs, expand coverage, and reduce our nation's deficit.  According to the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the bill will reduce the deficit by $143 billion in the first ten years. The bill will now go to the President's desk for signature.

"I voted for this legislation because it will lower costs for middle class families, expand coverage to 95% of Americans, and reduce the deficit by $143 billion in the first 10 years," said Congresswoman Shea-Porter. "It also ends discrimination against people who have preexisting conditions, strengthens Medicare solvency, and allows the 30% of young Americans who do not have insurance to stay on their parents' plans until age 26.

"There have been a lot of misconceptions about this bill, and I would like to set the record straight.  If you like your coverage, you can keep it.  If you have Medicare or TRICARE, you will keep it.  If you have insurance through your employer, you will keep it.  This legislation will improve coverage and lower costs for people who already have insurance, and it will provide access to affordable coverage for those who don't.  This legislation will also help families avoid financial ruin because someone happens to get sick. And it will help protect seniors by closing the Medicare donut hole.

"Nearly 100 years ago, President Theodore Roosevelt first spoke about the need for universal health care.  Since then, members of both parties have worked to make health care a right, not a privilege.  I was proud to vote for this bill, which I know will provide great benefits to New Hampshire families."

Shea-Porter spoke on the floor of the House Sunday afternoon in support of the bill. Click here to watch her remarks.

Here are some of the benefits the 650,000 New Hampshire residents of the First Congressional District will see from this reform.  This bill will:

• Improve coverage for 466,000 residents with health insurance.
  
• Give tax credits and other assistance to up to 128,000 families and 17,700 small businesses to help them afford coverage.
  
• Improve Medicare for 102,000 beneficiaries, including closing the donut hole.
  
• Extend coverage to 30,500 uninsured residents.
  
• Guarantee that 8,900 residents with preexisting conditions can obtain coverage.
  
• Protect 900 families from bankruptcy due to unaffordable health care costs.
  
• Allow 49,000 young adults to obtain coverage on their parents' insurance plans.
  
• Provide millions of dollars in new funding for 38 community health centers.
  
• Reduce the cost of uncompensated care for hospitals and other health care providers by $35 million annually.

This bill was endorsed by more than 360 leading health advocacy groups including the AARP, the American Medical Association, Alliance for Children and Families, Alliance for Retired Americans, American Academy of Pediatrics, American Academy of Family Physicians, American Association for Cancer Research, American Association of People with Disabilities, American Association on Health and Disability, American College of Physicians, American Council of the Blind, American Diabetes Association, American Federation of Government Employees, American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), American Group Psychiatric Association, American Heart Association, American Nurses Association, American Public Health Association, Association of American Medical Colleges, Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, Autism National Committee, Autism Society of America, Brain Injury Association of America, Cancer Action Network, Catholic Health Association,  Center for Rural Affairs, Children's Defense Fund, Colon Cancer Alliance, College of American Pathologists, Consumer Action, Consumers Union, Doctors for America, Easter Seals, Families USA, Federation of American Hospitals, HIV Medicine Association, LIVESTRONG, National Alliance on Mental Illness, National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders, National Association of Children's Hospitals, National Association of Community Health Centers, National Association of Social Workers, National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors, National Breast Cancer Coalition, National Cervical Cancer Coalition, National Council on Aging, National Disability Rights Network, National Medical Association, National Partnership for Women & Families, National Spinal Cord Injury Association, United Steel Workers, VetsFirst.

Paul Hodes:

Moments ago, Congress successfully passed health care reform. I proudly cast my vote in favor of this historic reform because it was the right thing to do.

It was the right thing to do for the people of New Hampshire's second district that I am honored to represent. It was the right thing to do for the 1.3 million people in the Granite State who have fought a broken, backwards health care system for far too long. It was the right thing to do for the thousands of small businesses on Main Streets across New Hampshire that have been forced to downsize, lay off or shut down completely in the face of uncontrollable premium prices.

And it was the right thing to do for every single middle-class family in this country, gathered around their kitchen tables trying to figure out how they can possibly make ends meet.

Above all else, this bill is a jobs bill. It will fundamentally fix a broken system that has let insurance companies jack up premiums and eliminate health care choices, killing jobs across New Hampshire. In this reform proposal, nearly 35,000 small businesses across New Hampshire will be given tax credits to provide the health coverage of their choosing. This bill will help put the Granite State back to work.

It will extend coverage to 60,000 of our uninsured neighbors, reduce the federal deficit by $130 billion in the next decade, improve Medicare coverage for 200,000 New Hampshire seniors, and will rein in some of the most egregious practices of health insurance companies.

Insurance companies and their corporate allies spent billions trying to bully us into giving up. Today, we showed them what we are made of. They fought reform at every step, desperately trying to protect their own profits. But together, you and I stood strong, stayed tough and never gave up fighting because we knew it was the right thing to do.

Today is an historic day for this country. I am proud and humbled to be a part of it.

John DeJoie

Concord, NH - Tonight, the US Congress passes historic healthcare reform. This legislation, which has been debated for more than one year, will ensure that all most of the more than 30 million uninsured American will have access to affordable, quality healthcare. For far too long, insurance companies have profited through the pain and suffering of our friends and neighbors. today, we start down the road of reform.

While, history will discuss this legislation in the same breath as Social Security and Medicare, our work is not done. We must continue to ensure that healthcare is provided in the most cost effective manner possible. We are addressing one cause of cost spiraling, insurance companies, but we must continue to address the others: pharmaceutical costs, excessive diagnostic tests and defensive medicine. In everything we do, access to car and the rights of consumers must always be put first, along with containing costs in ways which does not infringe on the consumer's rights.

Hubert Humphrey said "Compassion is not weakness, and concern for the unfortunate is not socialism". In spite of the naysayers, tonight we stand tall knowing that while our legislation is imperfect, as are all things created by man, tonight we have done our best to stand up for all Americans who worried about personal bankruptcy because of unexpected medical bills. We shouted "Aye" for all those who have ever had to choose between paying for healthcare, or buying food or paying rent. This is a great day where we have stood firm, in the face of hostility, for those less fortunate than ourselves. Let us continue to stand tall.