Renee Ellmers

Mrs. ELLMERS

Mrs. ELLMERS. Thank you to my colleague from Georgia. Mr. Speaker, this is such an important issue on which to be speaking here at the House. I rise in support of the Research for Lifesaving Cures Act and in support of the funding of the NIH in order to help bring lifesaving cures to sick Americans. The situation in Washington today should not be standing in the way of this important lifesaving work. There is no defensible argument against this legislation. NIH has been in the forefront of biomedical discoveries that have revolutionized the field of medicine. These discoveries have laid the foundation for treatments and cures for many diseases, including cancer and including improving the lives of countless Americans. The government shutdown is preventing new patients from entering clinical trials. For those patients, it is a matter of life and death; it is not a matter of politics. About 200 people register at the NIH every week. About 30 of those are children, 10 of whom have cancer. We must ensure that medical care is not suspended for these patients, especially for those children who are faced with difficulty.

Mrs. ELLMERS

Mrs. ELLMERS. Thank you to my distinguished colleague from Kansas, vice chair of our Republican Conference. Thank you for yielding time to discuss this situation that's at hand right now. Right now, we're faced with this government shutdown. Right now, millions of Americans are thinking to themselves, What on Earth is happening in Washington? There's a shutdown. There's the implementation of ObamaCare exchanges that took place starting yesterday. The interesting thing is that 47 States are receiving frequent error messages on the Web site. In my home State of North Carolina, the Obama navigators were grounded as the exchanges and the computer system was shut down. Americans across this country are faced with error messages on both exchanges run by the State and those run by the Federal Government. Day one. Day two. Failure of ObamaCare. So despite 3 years of time, countless dollars, countless administration officials testifying in hearing after hearing after hearing in the Energy and Commerce Committee and in the Ways and Means Committee that everything would be ready to go on October 1, for sure, right on track--those were the things we were told, We are moving right on track; consistently, we were told--and this is what the people of the country are seeing. This is what we're seeing in North Carolina. This is day two of ObamaCare exchanges. They changed up a little bit from day one. They added some cute little icons here. It says: We have a lot of visitors on this site right now. Please stay on this page. As if you have nothing else to do. Just hang out. Just stay here. We checked this site throughout the day just about every hour to just check and see if it would be up and running. And it goes on. It says: We're working to make the experience better. We don't want you to lose your place in line. We'll send you to the login page as soon as we can. Thank you for your patience. Well, yes, America is going to need a lot of patience with ObamaCare. Because if this terrible law--and, yes, it is law, but there are bad laws that get passed--if this law is fully implemented, health care will be changed forever. You will have to have a lot of patience because you are going to be waiting at the doctor--if you can even find a doctor to go to. You will be waiting at the hospital, in the emergency room, or wherever you seek care, because the care will not be available. And the care that you will receive will be diminished. Yes, we're all going to have to have a lot of patience. One of the things that I've been doing in my office is trying to get firsthand accounts of what my constituents are experiencing as they're learning about their health care coverage; if they have health care coverage right now, what's happening to them. And I'd like to share a few of those with you. A nice lady by the name of Judy emailed me saying she received a letter from Blue Cross & Blue Shield stating that the plan she currently has would no longer be available. Now, if you can flash back a couple of years ago, our President-- President Obama--said repeatedly, You will be able to keep the health care you have. You will be able to keep the doctor that you have. Well, our worst fears are once again realized. Judy has had a change, and she didn't choose it--someone else did. And she goes on to say that a new plan was chosen for her where her premiums will go up from $151 a month to $589 a month. My question is, Chosen by whom? It certainly wasn't Judy who chose that. It was someone else. It was Blue Cross & Blue Shield. Somewhere along the way, someone else dictated to Judy what she would be able to have. The reason she was given--and this actually was stated in the letter: While rates often change due to rising costs of health care, the new rules and regulations of the ACA, effective January 1, 2014, contributed to the majority of the increase. It literally stated in the letter that the reason her premiums were going up so significantly was because of the implementation of the Affordable Care Act. Another constituent wrote: Our self-employed son's insurance went up from $430 a month to $900 a month. That's almost double. That's almost a 100 percent increase. We were promised lower costs and more competition. President Obama said our premiums would be decreased by $2,500. Yet I am hearing the opposite from my constituents. One of the other issues that's happening in North Carolina right now has to do, again, with the exchanges. One of the things that we found out about a week ago was that the number of insurance companies that were going to be offering plans on the exchange is two--two insurance companies are offering plans. There are 100 counties in North Carolina. One insurance company has a monopoly, essentially. They can offer plans throughout North Carolina; and in 61 of those counties, they have a monopoly. They're the only plan being offered. They're the only insurance company being offered. To that, they counter by saying, We're offering multiple plans. But that's not competition. Competition is amongst the insurance companies that should be provided. We were promised lower rates. You receive lower rates with competition. It's very simple. So only two insurance companies are providing health care coverage on the exchanges in North Carolina. One has a monopoly throughout. The other covers 39 counties. So you can see 61 counties having a monopoly. That's not fair. How is that fair? As my colleagues and I have been saying over and over again, this law is not ready for prime time, And it never will be. That's the sad part. It is never going to measure up to what we were promised. Even as changes have been made to it, it still is lacking. It's filled with tax increases. It's filled with mandates. This isn't the plan that we should be following for health care. I'm a nurse. I dedicated my life to health care. I came here to Washington to fight ObamaCare. I never wanted to run for office before; but in the summer of 2009, the President was on the road telling us all about the health care plan that he wanted for America. My husband is a general surgeon. We practice in our small town. We said we've got to go out, and we've got to speak on this. One of the things that the President also said was that, overwhelmingly, doctors and nurses were in favor of this plan. We said, No, Mr. President, this is not true. And we started speaking out against it. The same issues that I was raising with the people of North Carolina that I was speaking about back then are the fears and the realities that we're faced with now. The cost, the overreach, the inefficiency, all affecting health care, all affecting our economy. The workforce alone, as we know, is going to be changed from a 40- hour work week to a 30-hour work week. We're going to become a part- time America. That's not what our country was built on. And yet that's what we're faced with with the implementation of ObamaCare. That's why we've asked for a delay. That's why we believe that every individual, every American should be receiving the same options that Big Business has gotten with the 1,500-plus waivers given. Every American should be able to say, I think it's a good idea and I'll take it; or, No, I don't. Why should we not have that choice? Why should every American not have that choice? We need to delay it; but more importantly, we need to put a better system in place. And the system that I support, at least at this point, is the Republican Study Committee's plan for health care reform. It's an alternative plan. It's the American Health Care Reform Act that we rolled out a couple of weeks ago. It puts in place all of the pieces that we know, one, that the American people want, that the American people feel they need; but at the same time, it puts forward flexibility, affordability. It's patient-centered. It's not government- run. They're the reforms that have been necessary, complete with tort reform, liability reform that is such an essential piece, health care savings plans, tax credits for individuals who are buying health care insurance. It is the answer to health care reform. You should be able to purchase insurance across State lines. You shouldn't have to be told that there are only two insurance companies that you can choose from. These are the solutions in health care that we really should be looking for--not given something, not told you have to have something, not told that you will be penalized if you do not participate. The whole point of an online marketplace was to provide options; but as we are seeing, this couldn't be further from the truth. And I thank my colleague from Kansas for allowing me to speak my mind on this issue. It's so important to America, so important to these times, with this government shutdown.

Mrs. ELLMERS

Mrs. ELLMERS. Thank you so much to my distinguished colleague from Georgia. This is such an important day. We have reached day one of the ObamaCare exchange being up. If you look at the chart that we have up, very similar, Congressman Gingrey, to that same chart that you are showing, it is what North Carolina is seeing today. For any North Carolinian who is going on the Web site, it is not ready for prime time. I rise today to talk about the failures of ObamaCare and why we have persisted for so long to remove this terrible law. It is law, we get that. We understand it. It was upheld by the Supreme Court. However, it is a bad law. It is bad for America, it is bad for the economy. It is bad for health care. And as it is right now, it will not be improved. There's no way that we can change it, that we can improve it at this point. The exchanges being up, 32 States that are showing the same screen to those who are going online, those who have been promised this exchange so that they can check and see what kind of coverage they will have available to them, this is what they are seeing. Coupled with the government shutdown--which we all tried to avoid with every effort possible--there again, the Senate not cooperating with us, the President staying committed to ObamaCare going forward when we know the structure is simply not in place. You know, Mr. Speaker, I ran for office a couple of years ago. I was elected in 2010. My whole goal has been to repeal ObamaCare because it is not only, again, devastating to the American people, to our economy, but to health care itself. When you have devoted your life to something and you see that it is just being taken apart in front of you, you know that you have to act. Nevertheless, here we are, day one of ObamaCare, day one failure. For 3\1/2\ years, countless administration officials have testified before us in subcommittee hearings in Energy and Commerce over and over and over again. The question has been posed to them: Will the exchanges be ready October 1, 2013? Repeatedly, consistently we heard from administrators of those agencies: Yes, we are right online; everything is moving completely the way that we would envision it to move. Yeah, there may be some glitches here and there, but we are ready to go October 1. And this is what the American people are seeing.

Mrs. ELLMERS. You know, and that gets to the greater point that the gentleman points out. This objective, when President Obama put it forward--I go back to the summer of 2009. I was not in any position to ever considering running for office; working as a nurse with my husband in his general surgery practice, trying to take care of the patients back home. When we were learning about what the President was proposing, we said, you know what, we just can't simply sit back and watch this happen to us, we have to speak out. Because there were many in our medical community who said, you know, this is wrong, this is wrong. We know that there are reforms that are needed. We know that we have so much to fix in health care. But this approach, this government takeover of health care, is only going to lead to socialized medicine. We know that. And that's not a winning health care system, not when you have the best health care system in the world. So we did, we started speaking out. We got on the road, we talked to people, we explained to them how dangerous this was. The very conversations I was having then are being realized today. The fears that we were discussing, the issues that we were discussing about where this would take us in health care, are now being realized. The quote that's on the chart, ``The system is down at the moment. We are working to resolve this issue as soon as possible. Please try again later.'' That is what the people who are in need of health care, that's what they're reading. And for the hardworking taxpayers of America, that is what you're paying for, a complete and total failure of the Federal Government. We agree, the system is down. That is why we fought so hard for a delay. That is why we felt that that reform was a very essential piece moving forward. That is why we're fighting today for every American to have the same health care coverage, the same options that we in Congress have. Every American should be treated fairly. Every American should have the same opportunities as everyone else. You cannot just simply hand out waivers to those that you pick and choose. You know, when big businesses have the ability now to have that mandate put to the side for a year, why does the individual--the individual who needs it more than anyone, the one who's going to that site looking for health care, they can't even be helped by that right now. Meanwhile, we're telling them, oh, and by the way, you're going to pay for this. If you're a young adult male in North Carolina, your premiums are going to quadruple. If you're a young woman, your health care premiums are going to triple. That is who is going to pay for this. And the system is down; it isn't even working. As my colleagues and I have been saying over and over again, this law is not ready for prime time, and it never will be. It is unworkable. It will continue to remain so. And for months, again, HHS, IRS, CMS, all of these agencies have repeatedly said that when today comes, October 1, it would be up and running. I do want to share with you just one of many, but one phone call we received today from one of my constituents, Rachael Burt from Fuquay Varina, North Carolina. She called our office and spoke to one of my staff. And she was emotional, she was concerned, and she was afraid. She said: ``My husband's premium is going up 155 percent. We are shocked. I am on maternity leave, and I am afraid to know how much mine will go up. I'm sure the letter is on its way though.'' In anticipation of this, this poor woman is waiting to receive that information. And what she said was: ``ObamaCare seems to be nothing but a punishment on those who are trying to do the right thing.'' Rachel, I can't agree more. That's what the problem is here. That's why we're working so hard to fix it. We will remain committed to this issue. We will continue to pursue a delay. And by the way, we will continue to pursue avenues for health care coverage that really are truly affordable, that really do give more coverage to Americans, that really are patient centered, such as the RSC plan, the American Health Care Reform Act that Members of our own conference worked on--eight Members to be exact--to give the American people a choice other than this failure on October 1 of ObamaCare.

Mrs. ELLMERS

Mrs. ELLMERS. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 491, I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea.''

Mrs. ELLMERS

Mrs. ELLMERS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 3102, the Nutrition Reform and Work Opportunity Act. I commend the chairman for his tireless work on this effort, the effort to put in place sensible reforms and close loopholes in order to improve this nutrition program. One reform which has been mentioned many times is that of the modest work requirements of people who are able to do so. We will be able to save nearly $40 billion over 10 years. All we are asking is that those receiving benefits--who do not have children, who are without disabilities, and who do not have any other extreme circumstances--simply work, volunteer, train or go to school for 20 hours a week. Mr. Speaker, we are preserving this program for those who truly need it. I urge my colleagues to support these important reforms so that the truly vulnerable never go hungry.

Mrs. ELLMERS. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to this motion to recommit.

Mrs. ELLMERS. Mr. Speaker, my friends on the other side can say the same thing over and over again, but it does not make it true. This motion does nothing. Food stamps are not affected by a government shutdown. No one--not a struggling mother, not a child, a veteran, or any person in need--will be denied benefits if they meet the program's current law and eligibility requirements. All this bill does is ask them, just as we did in a bipartisan way in 1996, to prepare for work or participate in their communities in exchange for services. But those much-lauded welfare reforms of 1996 have been thrown aside without the input of this Congress for years and has undermined the well-being of families participating in this program. Work has been proven to be a beneficial part of the physical and mental health of every individual. It raises their family income and improves the outcomes of their children. Why do the opponents of this bill want to undermine this successful strategy for reducing hunger in America by increasing workforce participation and increasing incomes of American families? I urge my colleagues to oppose this harmful motion and support the underlying bill. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mrs. ELLMERS

Mrs. ELLMERS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the heroic efforts of Corporal Rodolfo Perez ``Rudy'' Hernandez of the United States Army. Corporal Hernandez was with Company G, 187th Airborne Regimental Combat Team, and was awarded the Medal of Honor for visible gallantry in action on May 31, 1951 in Korea. His platoon was in a defensive position on Hill 420 when it came under heavy attack by enemy forces. Although his comrades were forced to withdraw, Corporal Hernandez stood his ground. When his machine-gun jammed, he valiantly charged with rifle and bayonet straight into the attacking force and he was seriously injured by a grenade blast. Due to Corporal Hernandez's heroic charge, the enemy advance was stalled long enough for his unit to mount a counteroffensive and retake the hill. It is for this extraordinary courage in action that I am proud to honor and remember the actions of Corporal Rodolfo Perez Hernandez.

Mrs. ELLMERS

Mrs. ELLMERS. Madam Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 339, I call up the bill (H.R. 2775) to condition the provision of premium and cost- sharing subsidies under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act upon a certification that a program to verify household income and other qualifications for such subsidies is operational, and for other purposes, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

Mrs. ELLMERS. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous materials on H.R. 2275.

Mrs. ELLMERS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise today to speak about the economic disaster facing all Americans on October 1. Nearly 3 years ago, I decided to run for office for one primary reason: to defeat and repeal Obamacare. Three years later, this terrible law is set to be implemented and the dire warnings and predictions are already coming true. This past summer alone, we saw three major delays in the law's implementation--from the employee mandate to consumer price caps to the issue we are debating here today. Congresswoman Black's bill, H.R. 2775, the No Subsidies Without Verification Act, is a first step at attacking the latter. The premise of this bill is quite simple. Serving as the stewards of taxpayer dollars is one of our most important jobs as Members of Congress. After all, dollars wasted by Congress or improperly spent by the executive branch has a direct impact on the budgets of families across this country who are struggling to pay their bills. This is why I was appalled by this summer's announcement by the Department of Health and Human Services. In the 600-page rule issued during the July 4 holiday, HHS stated that they would no longer verify income for ObamaCare subsidies. Instead, the Obama administration would now rely on self-attestation and sample audits when launching the ObamaCare exchange subsidy program--an initiative that is estimated to cost over $1 trillion over the next decade. After receiving criticism, HHS announced that they would reverse course and extend audits to all applicants. Yet, to this date, the administration has issued no formal change in the rule to codify this policy. In other words, they are saying one thing and doing another. As it stands today, the rule issued by HHS reads: The exchange may accept the applicant's attestation without further verification. And yet, while verification has been removed, the fines remain in place. Any applicant who enters information improperly could possibly face a $25,000 fine. If the mistake is knowing and willful, the fine could grow as high as $250,000. As Ronald Reagan famously said, ``trust, but verify.'' If history is any guide, these claims of accountability will be disregarded unless oversight is enforced. This only reinforces the need for the No Subsidies Without Verification Act. The bill would simply require certification systems to be in place so that the administrators can successfully and consistently verify eligibility before any premiums and cost-sharing credits are paid out. Similar language was adopted by the Senate, but the bill before us would implement a bipartisan consensus and protect taxpayer dollars. It would do so by requiring the inspector general of HHS to certify that income verification is in place before precious taxpayer dollars are wasted and abused. I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of H.R. 2775, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mrs. ELLMERS. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Pitts), the chairman of the Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee.

Mrs. ELLMERS. I now yield 2 minutes to the gentlelady from Tennessee (Mrs. Blackburn), the vice chair of the Energy and Commerce Committee.

Mrs. ELLMERS. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlelady from Washington, Congresswoman McMorris Rodgers, the chair of our Republican Conference.

Mrs. ELLMERS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself 45 seconds just to outline some of the things that have already been repealed in ObamaCare. As a consequence of Congress passing ObamaCare to find out what is in it, we have found some terrible ideas in the law. To date, the President has actually signed into law seven bipartisan bills repealing or defunding parts of the health care law. H.R. 4 repealed the small business paperwork mandate, or the 1099. H.R. 1473 cut $2.2 billion from a stealth public plan and froze the IRS budget. H.R. 674 saved taxpayers $13 billion by adjusting eligibility for ObamaCare programs. H.R. 2055 made more cuts to CO-OPs, IPAB, and the IRS. H.R. 3630 slashed billions from ObamaCare slush funds. I could go on, Madam Chairwoman. Now I would like to yield 2 minutes to my colleague from Pennsylvania, Congressman Pat Meehan.

Mrs. ELLMERS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I would just like to point out to my colleagues across the aisle that in the latest Wall Street Journal article of September 10, one of the things that they point out again is that in the Senate, which is the Democrat majority, they put in an HHS spending bill a sense of the Senate that the provision for income verification be in place. This is something that is very important. It is common sense. Madam Speaker, wouldn't it be just a major commonsense issue to just simply put in place a proactive prevention of fraud, waste, and abuse? I would also like to point out to my colleagues that have discussed the issue of whether or not the inspector general has the ability to do so, first and foremost, we wouldn't be approaching this in this manner if the rule had not been removed. Yet, we have to have a system in place that will address these issues. There is no reason that we can't approach it from this, again, very commonsense approach where we ask that we actually have a rule put in place. We can't simply move forward on this incredible disaster of a law when we are not asking for some verification. I think it's a very simple move. I think it's a very commonsense move. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mrs. ELLMERS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 2 minutes to respond to some of the comments from my esteemed colleague. This is theory. That's basically what we have now, because, as the rule was removed the week of the Fourth of July, there has been no rule put in place to replace it. Basically what we're hearing is the description of how it would be run if the rule were in place. Mr. Speaker, an August 5 frequently asked question document was given out by HHS and the administration, which basically explains the verify process of the Federal exchange but outlines no details on how it will occur. Additionally, this fact sheet has no force of law. Even worse, the fact sheet doesn't even pretend to address the verification applications submitted to ObamaCare exchanges administered by the States. It simply says that the State can choose whatever sample size it wants to audit, meaning no actual verification may occur before millions of dollars of taxpayer-financed benefits are paid out. While I believe America is a Nation of honorable people, we have to remember there are always those who will abuse the system. The fact sheet from CMS doesn't change the status of the rule. States can continue to audit whatever sample size they see fit or simply not audit at all. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mrs. ELLMERS. Mr. Speaker, we are prepared to close. I would like to ask my colleague if he has any further speakers remaining?

Mrs. ELLMERS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. Here in Washington we have a way of doing things, and one of those ways is to deal with problems after they've been created. Prior to coming to Washington, I was a nurse for many, many years. One of the rules that we had drummed into our heads was, if it's not documented, it did not happen. This is a rule that is not documented, so it will not happen. It is not enough that we simply ask to be on the honor system. This is a very important piece of legislation. We must ensure the hard-earned taxpayer dollars are protected and abuses are avoided. I would urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on H.R. 2775 for this purpose. I believe it is incumbent on the American people and the job that we do here in Washington to ensure that this happens. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mrs. ELLMERS

Mrs. ELLMERS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak in favor of H.R. 2009, the Keep the IRS Off Your Health Care Act. ObamaCare has proven to be a terrible law that will continue to hurt individuals, employers, and our health care system. While accurate information regarding the law has been scarce, what we know for sure is that premiums are skyrocketing, American families are confused, and doctors and nurses are afraid they will not be able to continue to care for their patients. Businesses across the country are being forced to not only adhere to the onerous paperwork requirements, but have been in a holding pattern for over 3 years waiting for implementation. Recently, we learned that the IRS has been targeting different groups and singling them out for intense scrutiny based on their political views. But as ObamaCare is set to be implemented, Americans are expected to trust the IRS with the responsibility of implementing this destructive law. This has proven to be unworkable and a dangerous path for our health care system and our country to be on.

Mrs. ELLMERS

Mrs. ELLMERS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to discuss the upcoming implementation of ObamaCare. Prior to coming to Washington, I was a nurse for over 21 years, and I'm passionate about health care. My husband is a general surgeon, and he continues to practice in our hometown of Dunn, North Carolina. I'm very, very proud of that. A couple of years ago when the President was proposing his legislation to basically overhaul health care in America, my husband and I became very active speaking out. That was well before ever considering running for Congress. As a result, because of our passion and concern for this country and health care as a whole, I found myself winning my election and here fighting this fight. We continue with this fight, and we are 98 days away from the open enrollment process going into effect for ObamaCare. This is something that the American people have been sitting back and watching for quite some time, and there are many, many questions that remain to be answered. Mr. Speaker, a recent GAO study shined some light on some areas that we've been asking questions about for a very long period of time. Serving on the Energy and Commerce Committee, the Energy and Commerce Committee put forward a request to the GAO to find out where exactly are we in the implementation of ObamaCare, this takeover of America's health care affecting one-sixth of our economy and affecting jobs across this country. It's the number one reason today, Mr. Speaker, that employers are not hiring, because they're not sure of the effects that this will have once fully implemented. There again, this week, the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office put forward their findings. I just want to highlight some of those for you: States have yet to complete 85 percent of the required program activities. That means essentially, Mr. Speaker, that only 15 percent of what needs to be in place at the State level for ObamaCare is actually in place. Core functions of both Federal- and State-based exchanges have yet to be completed with less than 4 months before open enrollment, any other missed deadline threats, and timely establishment of exchanges. Exchanges are not in place, exchanges are not ready to be implemented, and yet we continue on this timeline path. HHS has not yet completed the critical steps needed to determine eligibility for credits and cost-sharing subsidies. There's much groundwork that still needs to be laid and implementation figured out, and we don't even have those answers from HHS. Key data-sharing agreements between the Federal exchange and its Federal and State counterparts are not complete. Consumer assistance and outreach activities to individuals and employers have yet to be implemented and have been delayed. It cannot simply be a political campaign on the road touting the virtues of ObamaCare that will implement this program. This is a major, major concern for all of us who know how important health care is. I can go on. There are many more pieces to the GAO report, which basically cites the fact that CMS is not ready. CMS is supposed to come in and help the States that haven't implemented yet or aren't ready. Where are they? They're not there. They're not acting. We have these questions, but who does this affect? What are the questions that need to be answered? This afternoon, I had the opportunity to go to National Children's Hospital and meet with some of the families there, very ill children, children dealing with diabetes, cancer. I got the opportunity to see a 1-year-old who's waiting for a heart transplant. These are the children that will be affected by the implementation of ObamaCare. Why? Because research will be affected, because lifesaving cures and treatments will be affected. How can we implement a health care system that no one at this point can actually state will improve the quality of care of our health care system? It's very important that when we talk about health care and the takeover of health care that we separate the two issues: one, health care pay-for, health care insurance, health care coverage; and then health care itself. They both suffer as a result of ObamaCare being implemented. We simply cannot stand by and allow this to happen. My colleague from Kentucky, he is here this evening as well, and he has some words. I yield some of our time to the gentleman from Kentucky.

Mrs. ELLMERS. Mr. Speaker, continuing with our discussion about the implementation of ObamaCare, I think it's important, as my colleague from Kentucky has cited, that back home, in his district, many businesses, many individuals, many families are being negatively affected as this moves towards implementation. Tomorrow, in the Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, we will be holding a hearing that actually discusses the challenges facing our American businesses. Back in my district and actually testifying here tomorrow is one of my constituents, Mr. Steve Lozinsky, who will be here with his wife, Kathy. They actually own a business, Sparkle & Shine Cleaning Service. It's a family-owned business, and it's based in Apex, North Carolina. Sparkle & Shine was started in 1998 with one employee, and, today, it has over 240 employees. Put simply, Sparkle & Shine cannot afford the $2,000 per employee fine attached to ObamaCare. My friend, my constituent, back home cannot provide the health care coverage. He employs low-income workers. They are entry-level jobs. They are hard workers. Many of these individuals actually served time in jail and are now on a second chance at life. Mr. Lozinsky and his wife, Kathy, have given these individuals a second chance, and now their jobs are in jeopardy because of this devastating health care law. To my colleague again from Kentucky, I'm sure that he also has many, many stories to share.

Mrs. ELLMERS. Just to follow up on some of the remarks that my colleague has made, in getting back to the issue of jobs and job creation, there was a recent Gallup Poll out this week that found that 41 percent of small businesses have stopped hiring because of ObamaCare. That is a staggering number. Then to the point of good patient-centered health care, that is not what ObamaCare will provide. In fact, the CBO has estimated that 31 million in 10 years will still remain uninsured. So what are we doing? Why are we creating this system that will be broken from the start and on which we will only spend hard-earned taxpayer dollars trying to fix and plenty of time? Who will go without the good patient-centered health care that every American deserves?

Mrs. ELLMERS. I was at home, watching the TV, ready to put my foot through it.