Bill Frist

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I understand that S. 2207 is at the desk, and I ask for its first reading.

Mr. FRIST. I now ask for its second reading in order to place the bill on the Calendar under provisions of rule XIV and object to my own request.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that notwithstanding the Senate's adjournment, committees be authorized to report legislative and executive matters on Thursday, March 18, from 10 a.m. to 12 noon.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I would like to turn to several unanimous consent requests.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Report 108-225 be star printed with the changes at the desk.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, this article describes ongoing political violence and intimidation in Cambodia against democracy and human rights advocates and the oppressive environment in which these courageous individuals work. Kem Sokha, Sam Rainsy, and all champions of freedom, have my respect and my support. While I recognize their bravery and selflessness, I also hear their concerns for their own safety. Tragically, the body count of peaceful advocates murdered in the line of duty continues to grow. Alliance of Democrats spokesman Sam Ung Bung-Ang is right on the mark in saying: It's not a bloody step forward when we go from 1 million dead [under the Khmer Rouge regime] to 200. Life is life, and one murder is too many. Caretaker Prime Minister Hun Sen and the Cambodian People's Party have failed to uphold the rule of law or to create conditions conducive to the growth of democracy and prosperity. I add my voice to those calling for new leadership in Cambodia. Let me close by recognizing the work of the International Republican Institute in Cambodia. For over a decade, through grenade attacks, a coup d'etat, and several flawed elections, the institute has stood shoulder to shoulder with those struggling for freedom. In such a hostile environment and witness to countless injustices, the institute's Cambodia director, Jackson Cox, is right to ask of the international community: Where's the outrage? It is past time the world's democracies stood up to champion liberty in Cambodia. While Cambodia may seem small and unworthy of the world's attention, we should not forget terrorism thrives in lawless and chaotic conditions, the very kind we find in Cambodia today. It is a warning and a plea. I urge my colleagues to support reform in this troubled land. Exhibit 1 [From the Boston Globe, Feb. 29, 2004] Cambodia's Rights Movement Faces Peril; Recent Slayings Renew Old Fears (By Rafael D. Frankel) Phnom Penh, Cambodia.--On a recent trip to a village along the banks of the Mekong River, Kem Sokha brought along not only his trusted bodyguard but also a private American security specialist. Kem Sokha is not a politician, a big businessman, or a diplomat, but a leader in Cambodia's fledgling human rights movement. And he believes his life is in danger. The recent brazen killings of a prominent labor organizer, Chea Vichea, and several others affiliated with an opposition political group have heightened the sense of lawfulness in Cambodia, where murder is seen as a common political tool-- and the rich and powerful seem above the law. The nation's police, judiciary, and elections institutions are controlled by the ruling party, led by Prime Minister Hun Sen, and many Cambodians and foreign aid workers have little confidence that justice can be served. ``I fear the killing fields in Cambodia are still open,'' said Kem Sokha, president of the Cambodia Center for Human Rights, referring to the place the genocidal Khmer Rouge regime would kill its victims of torture from 1975 to 1979. Hun Sen, a former Khmer Rouge member who deserted the regime and joined the resistance, has maintained his grip on power in one form or another for nearly two decades through collaboration with Vietnam, military coups, and elections deemed by international observers as lacking ``free and fair'' standards. The most recent elections, in July, saw the ruling Cambodian People's Party win a majority of seats in Parliament, but not the two-thirds required to form a government. Since then, a tense political drama has heated up between the CPP and the Democratic Alliance, made up of two opposition parties. Although both sides talk of reaching a settlement soon, the stalemate persists. The government crisis has coincided with a wave of high- profile murders the past few months. Chea Vichea, 36, who was affiliated with the opposition Sam Rainsy Party, was killed Jan. 22 in broad daylight in a driveby shooting in Phnom Penh. A radio journalist, a famous actress, and her mother--all associated with the Democratic Alliance--were gunned down in a similar fashion. Human rights workers and opposition leaders have seized on what they called a questionable investigation into Chea Vichea's killing, saying it shows the history of impunity that has plagued Cambodia for decades is still prevalent. Two suspects are being held; one accused police of beating him to force a confession. Accusations have been leveled by the opposition and democracy organizations that the killings were intended as a warning to opposition leaders to join the prime minister in a government. A ruling-party spokesman, Khieu Kanharith, rejected any idea that the killings were ordered by members of his party, saying the allegations were political ploys. ``If we wanted to use violence, why wouldn't we have hit someone higher up in the party?'' he said. But outside of the government, the killings have raised alarms. ``They certainly appear to be politically motivated,'' said Jackson Cox, the Cambodia director of the International Republican Institute, an American organization that promotes democracy around the world. ``The political situation here is tense, and members of the opposition, both high and low, are being murdered.'' The recent killings have foreign relief workers and many Cambodian wondering whether Cambodia's development as a democracy has foundered after making great strides since the United Nations launched a $2 billion relief effort in 1992. The government points out that Cambodia was rebuilding from total disaster. While many problems remain, the political situation is much less violent than in the past, Khieu Kanharith said. The opposition rejects such reasoning. ``It's not a bloody step forward when we go from 1 million dead to 200,'' said Sam Ung Bung-Ang, a spokesman for the Democratic Alliance. ``Life is life, and one murder is too many.'' Development statistics paint a picture of slow progress. A 2003 UN report said Cambodia is still ranked 130 of 173 countries on the Human Development Index. Other than Laos, Cambodia has the lowest life expectancy and literacy rates in the region, and the highest mortality rates for mothers and young children. ``With the economy now, state assets are war spoils, and what we call `corruption' . . . is simply [the government] running the country like a family business,'' said Sam Rainsy, the main opposition party leader. ``If we continue like that, we will go down the drain.'' Asked about the pace of Cambodia's development and human rights record under the current government, the government spokesman said more time and money were needed. (Cambodia receives about $500 million annually from foreign donors.) He also said Cambodia was being held to a higher standard of democracy than its neighbors. ``We don't have enough human resources,'' Khieu Kanharith said. ``We've had a lot of assistance from donor countries. If you want to blame someone, blame them.'' Many are now looking for the international community to increase the pressure on the government. Although some U.S. senators have criticized the government, reaction from most foreign governments and development institutions, many of whom provide the funding for Cambodia to function, has been muted. ``Where is the outrage?'' asked Cox, from the International Republican Institute. Meanwhile, the political stalemate had delayed the convening of the long-awaited Khmer Rouge war-crimes tribunal. Government and opposition politicians say the tribunal would go forward once a government was formed.

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I will close with a short statement on observations I made based on a recent article in the Boston Globe entitled ``Cambodia's Rights Movement Faces Peril.'' I ask unanimous consent that the article be printed in the Record at the conclusion of my remarks.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution and preamble be agreed to en bloc, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and that any statements relating thereto be printed in the Record as if read, without intervening action or debate.

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 320, submitted earlier today by Senators Graham of Florida, Snowe, Gregg, and others.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I rise to talk about an issue that is very close to my heart, having spent most of my professional career fighting heart disease. I will start with a couple of facts people may or may not know, and then make several points in terms of the importance of prevention. Fact No. 1, as I travel around the country and talk, whether it is in the field of medicine or as a policymaker, is that more women will die of heart disease this year than men. I say that and it is surprising to many people because historically people thought because of the difference in gender and hormonal conditions women would be protected from heart disease. But, again, more women will die of heart disease than men. Indeed, each year 500,000 women--half a million people--die of heart disease in this country. Heart disease is a big spectrum, and heart attack is about one-half of those deaths, a heart attack where there is blockage of blood flow to a part of a heart. That means more than one-quarter of a million women in the United States each year are struck down by this one disease. In fact, heart disease is the No. 1 killer of women in this country. Heart disease is at the top of the list--it is No. 1--and kills more women than the next seven causes of death combined. So we have the top eight causes of death, with heart disease as the No. 1 diagnosis, and if we add up all the other seven, we still do not have as many as those who die of heart disease. As I speak right now, about 8 million women are living with some element of heart disease, a potentially fatal condition. In my home State of Tennessee, nearly 200,000 women suffer with heart disease which has proved that heart disease affects all age groups. Mr. President, 73,000 women in Tennessee are living with heart disease under the age of 64. So it is not just our elderly with heart disease. This is an area in medicine that can respond to education, to public information, but there are few people today who are aware of how widespread and how devastating heart disease is among women. We know it is among men, and we have seen the old images and the warning signs of a clenched fist, centralized pain as if an elephant is stepping on your chest, and if we look at the old pictures used in public education, health education, programs and posters, almost always it is a man with a clenched fist or grabbing both fists. That imagery is played over to the point that most people do not realize how serious this disease is in women. It is imperative that we get the word out, and I want to use this pulpit over the next 2 or 3 minutes to do just that. I encourage people to learn what the causes of heart disease are, what the consequences of heart disease are, and what steps can be taken in order to lower the risk in terms of prevention because we know what the risk factors are. We know there are certain things that can be done, and if they are done, it minimizes the risk either of being debilitated by heart disease or dying of heart disease. The obvious things--again they need to be stressed because they are simple to do, but you have to do them--are improving one's diet, taking regular, consistent, and moderate exercise. One does not have to overdo it, but it is regular, consistent, moderate exercise. The addiction of smoking has so many people locked in its grasp. Some of our young people do start smoking, and then if they do start smoking they have to work very hard to break that addiction. I say that again as a heart surgeon. So many people I operate on--there are hundreds and hundreds of people I speak to and educate who are not in the Senate, but being in the operating room, opening up people's chests, taking veins out of the leg or from underneath the breast bone and hooking them on to the heart because of heart disease, that is strongly related to smoking. So if one stops smoking, it is less likely they will have that heart disease, and less likely that they will have the heart surgery. Preventive screening: There are preventive screening tests, things such as putting a blood pressure cup on the arm. In our recent Medicare bill that we passed 2 months ago, for the first time in Medicare we have a routine physical exam so things such as hypertension can be detected. It is amazing in Medicare, the great program that we have today--but one that needs to continue to be improved--that we did not have that basic entry level physical exam, where heart disease can be detected, until under President Bush's leadership we passed this recent Medicare bill. Sometimes heart disease strikes seemingly healthy women who may not have ever had symptoms, who have no history of either being sick or in poor health in some way, who have those risk factors. It attacks people who have not smoked as well. That is what happened to a Memphis mother of three, Kathy Kastan, who at the age of 42 suffered a heart attack. She tells her story this way: At 42 years old, I considered myself a healthy, optimistic woman blessed with three healthy boys, a wonderful husband and devoted friends. I have always been less than average weight, a nonsmoker and have exercised my entire life. But then I noticed that during exertion like biking or running or swimming, that I would get strange symptoms like nausea, turning pale, having shortness of breath. On occasion I would get a tingling down my left arm and left sided shoulder pain. But never once did I consider that I could have heart problems. And then one day, in a blink of an eye my life changed forever. As it turned out, Kathy had a condition known as vasospasm, or vessel spasm, which is exactly what it says, where the vessels go into spasm and they squeeze down; therefore, not as much blood can get through that vessel because of a contraction of coronary arteries. Coronary arteries are the vessels that feed the heart. The heart needs to get that blood, that nutrient, that oxygen because if there is obstruction of the blood flow going to the heart, the heart muscle does not work, and that is what we call a heart attack. Kathy went through five procedures where stints were inserted in these vessels. They are almost like a straw. If you can imagine, like a straw the vessel is squished down, and the stint is put in to keep the vessel open so it cannot squeeze down even when it goes into vasospasm. Then she underwent what is called a coronary artery bypass operation which does require opening the chest and taking a vein from the leg or an artery called internal mammary artery and hooking it on to the heart to bypass those vessels which contract down. For 8 months, Kathy says she simply could not believe what was happening to her. Remember, 42 years old, optimistic, healthy woman who had been struck by this disease. She was young, she was active at the time, and I quote: When I had chest pain, I even began to doubt myself and thought that maybe I was going insane. Happily, Kathy is recovering and getting her life back to normal, and she credits her family, her close friends, her doctor, and the professionals at WomenHeart, which is a national organization devoted to educating, advocating, and supporting women with heart disease. It has been a tough road. There were days she could not even move from room to room in her own house without suffering these crushing, excruciating chest pains. She is getting the treatment she needs and again, in her words: I am back to being a mother who can take almost anything my kids dish out. Well, Kathy is one of millions of sufferers and, like Kathy, before the heart attack many women do not even know they have a heart problem. They only find it out when it becomes severe. As majority leader of the Senate, and as a physician, as one who has spent his professional life studying that human heart and working in programs of prevention as well as treatment of heart disease, I joined with the President of the United States, President Bush, and First Lady Laura Bush, and other congressional leaders to launch what is called the Heart Truth Campaign. It is vital that we raise awareness so women get the treatment they need and that they take the proper precautions so they never have to have that later treatment. I encourage my fellow Senators to get the word out, to share information among themselves and among their own families, among their own communities and among their constituents back home to participate in educating the public about this very serious health issue. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, the motions to reconsider be laid upon the table en bloc, and that any statements relating to the resolution be printed in the Record.

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Judiciary Committee be discharged from further consideration of S. Res. 309 and that the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be read the third time and passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and that any statements relating to the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate now proceed to the consideration of H.R. 3915, which is at the desk.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Hutchison substitute be agreed to, the bill, as amended, be read the third time and passed, the motions to reconsider be laid upon the table en bloc, and that any statements relating to the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Foreign Relations Committee be discharged from further consideration of H.R. 254 and the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, we will be wrapping up here in about 15 or 20 minutes. Seeing the Presiding Officer, who is from Tennessee, I want to pull out something which I find remarkable. It doesn't have anything to do with Senate business, but it does have something to do with the State which the Presiding Officer represents and which I represent. In fact, it is a historic sort of message. The bottom line is very simple. It has to do with saying ``thank you'' and the thoughtfulness of saying ``thank you.'' I will take a very few minutes to recount this fascinating story. In the 2003 annual report of Berkshire Hathaway Incorporated, a report that was released to shareholders on Saturday, March 6, there was a fascinating item that piqued my interest. Berkshire Hathaway is the $42 billion dollar firm led by someone who is considered to be the greatest stock market investor of all times, Warren E. Buffet. I call the annual report to your attention because it contains an unusual story involving 40 students and a professor from the University of Tennessee. For the last 5 years, Professor Auxier has led his finance class on a field trip from Knoxville, TN to Nebraska to meet that legendary oracle of Omaha, as Mr. Buffet is known. The meetings there would last as long as 2 hours as students would have and took advantage of that opportunity of peppering the investor with questions on everything, everything from finance to life lessons, to mentors, to instances or occurrences or events that shaped his life. At the end of each meeting, the group presents Mr. Buffet with a gift of appreciation, a gift of thank you for taking the time to share his thoughts with them. Professor Auxier tells my office his pupils always leave, as we might expect, exhilarated and inspired. At last year's meeting, the Tennessee group presented Mr. Buffet with an autobiography of Knoxville home builder Jim Clayton. The book made sense. It was from their hometown of Knoxville, TN, where the University of Tennessee is located. They left this as a thank you. This would not be particularly noteworthy except for the fact Mr. Buffet became so interested in Jim Clayton's story and his successful venture--Jim Clayton's successful venture called Clayton Homes--that Mr. Buffet turned around and bought the Knoxville company for $1.7 billion. He closed that deal last October. Now the story gets even better. Mr. Buffet was so appreciative of the students who had come to visit him to share his thoughts with them, putting him on to Clayton Homes investment through this very simple gift, so this past October he presented each of them with a share of class B stock in his company. The shares are now worth roughly $3,100 each. He also gave the professor a share of his class A stock which was worth, as of yesterday, $94,700. Professor Auxier tells my office when Mr. Buffet unveiled these surprise gifts, everyone was simply, using his words, flabbergasted. All of this is recounted in Mr. Buffet's annual report to his shareholders. Those shareholders now include those 40 very lucky students and a tremendously appreciative professor from the University of Tennessee. I believe there are two lessons to be learned from this delightful story. The first is to be interested in other people. We all, no matter how busy we are, should take advantage of that opportunity to share experiences with others. It also shows Mr. Buffet was interested in other people, the fact that he took this book and he actually read it. It was an autobiography of a fellow businessman, indeed, a long way from his home. He was so impressed he turned around and ended up buying the company for $1.7 billion. The students took that opportunity--it is not always easy to go all the way from Tennessee out to Nebraska--to avail themselves of meeting the world's renowned expert in the field. They had the good fortune of getting his advice. What they did not expect is to get that additional per person $3,100. Now they are that much richer for the experience. That brings me to the second lesson and then I will close, and that is what I opened with. Make sure you always give a thoughtful thank-you present. It is the right thing to do. You never, ever know where it might lead.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be read the third time and passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and that any statements relating thereto be printed in the Record.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be read the third time and passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and that any statements related thereto be printed in the Record.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, this week the Senate completed action on S. Con. Res. 95, the fiscal year 2005 budget resolution, under the tremendous leadership of Chairman Nickles. As we look over the last 4 days, we have had a very busy course with debating and disposing of 64 amendments to the budget resolution. There were 25 rollcall votes in relation to the amendments, including passage. We had a long day of voting yesterday until the early hours of this morning with 19 votes, and Senator Nickles guided the budget resolution to passage early this morning by a vote of 51 to 45. In addition to that business, we were able to clear executive nominations. The Senate confirmed 17 nominations. Two of the nominations confirmed were district judges from Arizona and Mississippi. I am pleased we were able to clear these judicial nominations, and I look forward to continuing this process for the remaining nominations that are on the calendar. Indeed, there are approximately 22 judges on the calendar, of which I believe 15 or so should move expeditiously. I will continue to work with the Democratic leader in scheduling these when we return from the recess. I understand the Democratic leader mentioned additional nominations, and I will be consulting with him on those as well. He mentioned them earlier today and last night, and we will be consulting on those nominations. Late last night, as I mentioned earlier, the Senate confirmed the nomination of Mark McClellan to be Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Yesterday, the Senate also spoke with one voice with regard to a tragedy, the deadly attack yesterday against the people of Spain. Our condolences were expressed. We had a moment of silence yesterday to honor the people of Spain. In addition, we sponsored a resolution that condemned this cowardly act. Our prayers continue to go out to the leaders and the people of Spain over what we know is a very difficult time. In addition, we consider other matters that people do not see very much, and I won't go through all of them, but we passed S. 741, the animal drug bill that Senator Sessions sponsored that provides for new drugs on what are called minor animals. We passed H.R. 3195 just this morning, a bill that extends Small Business Administration programs. That is Senator Snowe's bill. We passed H.R. 254, which are amendments to the U.S.-Mexico Agreement on the Border Environment Cooperation Commission and the North American Development Bank. Senator Hutchison was instrumental in clearing this bill. The list goes on. I did want to reflect the amount of work we were able to pull through over the course of the week. In addition, we were able to ratify the United States-Japan Tax Treaty reported by Chairman Lugar and the Foreign Relations Committee. This is a very important treaty. We just passed Senator Alexander's S. 1881, the Medical Devices and Technical Correction Act. Senator Specter secured passage of S. 2043, which designates a Federal building in Harrisburg, PA, as the ``Ronald Reagan Federal Building.'' Senator Shelby assisted in passage of H.R. 3724. So we had a very productive week by anyone's measure. I wanted to notice the hard work and efforts of all of my colleagues with respect to these legislative and executive accomplishments.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Banking Committee be discharged from further consideration of H.R. 3724 and the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, early this morning, in fact, a little over 12 hours ago in the Senate, Dr. Mark McClellan became administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. I thank all of my colleagues for their cooperation over the course of that whole week, this past week, in order to facilitate the confirmation of Dr. Mark McClellan. I say that because the responsibilities of the CMS--again, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services--are that of being the Government organization responsible for Medicare and Medicaid in this country. These responsibilities are crucial. The administrator oversees the program that provides health care coverage for over 70 million people, including seniors, as we know, including individuals with disabilities, with low-income children, with pregnant women--a huge responsibility. This becomes critically important because the challenges facing CMS today are greater than at any time in this agency's history. I say that because the head of that agency, now Dr. McClellan, will be charged with implementing the Medicare Modernization Act and, in a very short period of time, educating seniors about the benefits of the new law, about the advantages of the new law, and how they best can take advantage of these new benefits. It is going to take a strong and steady hand to get the job done. I am confident, and I think my colleagues on both sides of the aisle have expressed that strong confidence, in Dr. McClellan. He has the skills, he has the commitment, he has the temperament, he has the judgment, he has the leadership abilities, all of which have been demonstrated in Government. He has served under both President Bush and President Clinton in Government, and also in the private sector as a physician. President Bush nominated exactly the right person for this point in time. I think the Medicare bill is a tremendous bill. It has tremendous potential to modernize Medicare, on a voluntary basis, where if people want to take advantage of this newer, more modern, more up-to-date Medicare, they can or they can keep exactly what they have. The legislation was bipartisan. It was signed by the President of the United States last year. If you just back away from it, it does--bottom line--what we know we have needed to do for a long time; that is, to give seniors and individuals with disabilities better access to the most powerful tool in American medicine today: prescription drugs, at lower out-of-pocket costs. That is it. And it is voluntary. Beginning in a few months--this is, in part, a segue from Dr. McClellan--seniors will be eligible for the savings of 10 to 25 percent, and low-income seniors will receive an additional $600 in value in additional assistance through the Medicare-endorsed prescription drug cards. I have had the opportunity to meet this week with a number of outside organizations, including the AARP, where we have talked about the importance of educating seniors appropriately so they can take advantage of these new expanded benefits. There is a whole range of other benefits in this new, modernized Medicare Program--and we talked a lot about it on the floor--including disease management; chronic disease management; improving preventive care, so we can make the diagnosis of things such as hypertension for people who come of Medicare age; improving the efficiency and safety of Medicare through electronic prescribing, to eliminate the potential of so many errors that can be made through so many steps that currently the prescription of medicines travel; significant regulatory relief. You put those two together--with Mark McClellan as the person who will be responsible for implementation, with what is a complex system but one that takes action now--and I think we will have a very effective laying out of the benefits so people can take advantage of it. Mark McClellan's background as a physician, as a doctor, I think will be enormously helpful in translating these legislative reforms into lasting improvements that will give our seniors better health care security. That, again, is sort of the bottom line. You want to be able to look seniors in the eye and say: You will be more secure in terms of your health care with this bill. We know that is the case, but now it has to be implemented. So I look forward to working with Dr. McClellan as he works to implement this new Medicare law. We build on what truly was historic legislation to provide affordable, high-quality care to our seniors. On the floor earlier today, and last night, and in some hearings with Dr. McClellan yesterday, the whole issue of prescription drug reimportation has arisen, has been discussed, has been talked about. It is a very important issue, an issue that, as majority leader, I can tell you we will address. It deserves to be addressed. We addressed it in the past by saying reimportation, under certain prescriptions and limitations. Reimportation is fine, but it is fine only if we can demonstrate and guarantee safety; that is, we can tell a senior, yes, you can have reimportation, say, from Canada, but you can say that and allow it to happen only if you can look that senior in the eye and say: You are going to be OK. The medicine you get will be exactly what is prescribed, with the same sort of safety certification, safety guarantees you get with medicines that are manufactured in the United States. Some of it--in fact a lot of it--is being driven by the fact we have these skyrocketing costs in health care, which we have to address, we should address, and it is our responsibility to address because they cannot be tolerated long term--whether it is by an individual who is taking care of themselves or their children or their family members or a business with skyrocketing health care costs which are driving the cost of doing business so high they no longer are competitive against other businesses in this country or businesses in other countries. In fact, it ties to other discussions we have about outsourcing and insourcing and jobs going overseas, because if the cost of doing business gets so high here, and it is not high in other countries, you simply are not going to be able to grow businesses here and people will shift businesses overseas. So we must address it. And we will address it. Many people believe part of the skyrocketing costs can be addressed by addressing the reimportation of drugs. Indeed, in the Medicare law I was just speaking to, we began to address this issue head on. We, in that bill--a lot of people do not realize it--asked the administration to prepare a comprehensive report that would come back to us in the Congress to identify the myriad of critical issues that are raised by reimportation, including, first and foremost, patient safety. As a physician, I am going to keep coming back to the patient's safety, because unless we can look people in the eye and guarantee they are going to be safe through obtaining drugs from overseas, we cannot-- we just should not--proceed down that path. Well, in response to the Medicare legislation, the administration has already set up a task force. That task force has begun the process. We look forward to receiving the findings from that task force. Indeed, the public hearings will begin this coming week while we are in recess. I believe the first meetings are with outside consumer groups that will come in and report to that task force. Then the task force will report back to us. I also believe the Senate can best--or should best--address this through the committee of jurisdiction. As majority leader, I have tried to focus on appropriate jurisdiction for the committees, and the committee for that is the committee that the Presiding Officer has taken such a leading role on; that is, the HELP Committee, the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, that is led by Chairman Judd Gregg. Through that committee of jurisdiction, we will begin to examine what barriers do exist--and the safety barrier is one--to reimportation and determine, first, whether there are ways you can reduce those barriers, but how you can reduce those barriers, how we should address those in a legislative fashion, and then reduce those barriers legislatively, if we need to. I look forward to working with Chairman Judd Gregg, chairman of the HELP Committee, and to reaching out broadly to all my colleagues-- Senator Dorgan, who has taken a real lead on this; Senator McCain; Senator Stabenow; and Senator Thad Cochran, who has been the author of the amendment we have used and addressed on the Senate floor, has been a real leader in this field--on both sides of the aisle to address this very important issue.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.