Gene Green

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague on the Energy and Commerce Committee for yielding to me. I want to associate myself with the remarks of my colleague from Illinois (Mr. Kirk). That's why I'm here today. We have another opportunity today, Mr. Speaker, to give real hope to millions of Americans suffering from incurable diseases. These are our constituents, our family members and our friends who cannot afford to wait much longer while this administration stubbornly refuses to accept the people's will. Poll after poll shows that between 60 and 70 percent of the American people support the expansion of embryonic stem cell research to discover more effective cures and treatment for the diseases that plague our times--juvenile diabetes, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, just to name a few. Every religion in the world teaches us to do all we can to ease the burden of human suffering. The administration's current stem cell policy flies in the face of that shared goal and shuts the door of hope to too many Americans awaiting a cure. I know a majority of my colleagues agree with me, and I hope the President hears us loud and clear and will finally respond to the Congress's, and the American people's, desire for expanded embryonic stem cell research. Last week I saw what happens in research at the University of Texas Health Sciences Center. The private research is in one lab, and the NIH research is in a separate lab, duplicating facilities. What a waste of our scientific dollars, whether it comes from the taxpayers or from the individual and foundations. What a waste to have to do this, duplicate two labs, to be able to do this research. And, Mr. Speaker, we know people, not just my colleague from Rhode Island, but I know a young lady 26 years old who had her spinal cord severed. Her only hope is embryonic stem cell research, and I'm glad to hear our colleague from Rhode Island talk about his experience. And he gives hope to this young lady who has no hope right now, except hopefully she'll be able to move her fingers.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise to highlight the important role of our Nation's trauma systems. On March 27, 2007, this Chamber passed legislation I sponsored to reauthorize the Trauma Care Systems Planning and Development Act. This important legislation was signed into law on May 3, 2007. However, while the bill awaited the President's signature, the Nation observed the critical importance of trauma systems and the role they played in ensuring that New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine received the quick and efficient health care he needed to survive injuries he sustained during an April 12 traffic accident. I would request that this New York Times article entitled ``In Corzine's Fast Recovery, Doctors Cite Timing, Grit and Luck'' be inserted in the Record. This article outlines the important role that the Camden, New Jersey area's trauma system--and particularly its Level I Trauma Center, Cooper University Hospital--played in Governor Corzine's treatment. [From The New York Times, May 13, 2007] In Corzine's Fast Recovery, Doctors Cite Timing, Grit and Luck (By Lawrence K. Altman) An article on Sunday about the extensive medical care that Gov. Jon S. Corzine of New Jersey received at Cooper University Hospital in Camden after a traffic accident on April 12 misstated the date of Mr. Corzine's release in some copies. It was April 30, not May 1. Camden, N.J.--Dr. Steven E. Ross was about to perform an appendectomy shortly before 7 p.m. on a routine Thursday when a nurse paged him to say the governor of New Jersey had suffered an open femur fracture and severe chest injuries and was about to land on the helipad atop Cooper University Hospital here. ``Quite honestly, I didn't believe it,'' said Dr. Ross, who directs the level one, or most highly accredited, trauma center at the hospital. But he immediately alerted security guards and the public relations staff so they would ``keep people out of my hair'' and help him avoid ``the distractions'' that can interfere with the care of V.I.P.'s. Dr. Robert F. Ostrum was watching the Phillies-Mets game on television at his home just across the Delaware River in Philadelphia that Thursday, April 12, when an announcer interrupted to say that Gov. Jon S. Corzine was being flown to Cooper. In his 25-year career, Dr. Ostrum, the chief trauma orthopedist at the hospital, had repaired about 800 femur fractures, including 200 open ones. He called his colleagues and said he would come in, in part because of the patient's prominence. So began the medical odyssey to which Mr. Corzine, 60, owes his life. He was not wearing a seat belt while riding in a state vehicle clocked at 91 miles per hour and nearly became one of the more than 43,000 people a year who die in car crashes in the United States. Instead, after 11 days in intensive care, eight of them on a ventilator, and three operations on his leg, Mr. Corzine was released from the hospital on April 30 and resumed his official duties as governor six days later. In their first extensive interviews, doctors and nurses who treated Mr. Corzine here attributed his amazingly fast recovery to his speedy arrival at a trauma center, his grit in overcoming severe pain to begin rehabilitation, and luck. Mr. Corzine still needs strong painkillers that can impair judgment, but he has not allowed the doctors to disclose the drugs' names or share his X-rays or medical chart. He has also refused The New York Times's repeated requests for interviews. But in lengthy conversations with this reporter, who is a physician, the medical team that saved his life revealed many new details about Mr. Corzine's injuries, his treatment and the first three and a half weeks of his recovery. Over the first 24 hours in the hospital, Mr. Corzine received 12 pints of blood, an amount roughly equivalent to the total blood volume in his body. Most of the bleeding was internal, into muscles and the chest from 15 broken bones. But because the blood was replaced as he lost it, he avoided shock, a key way in which immediate trauma care saves lives. The jagged femur had torn through his thigh muscles and skin to create an open wound six and a half inches long--``By our standards it was pretty large,'' Dr. Ostrum said--and to repair it, doctors had to insert a titanium rod through the center of the broken bones and screw them in place. When Dr. Ostrum found that the longest rod was too short for Mr. Corzine's femur, he added an extension. ``I didn't shorten him,'' he recalled, smiling. The day after the accident, Mr. Corzine's family brought specialists in trauma and orthopedics from New York University to review his case. In the coming days, with Mr. Corzine unable to speak because of the tube connecting his windpipe to the ventilator, David Donaghy, a nurse, read his lips as one way to respond to his wishes for more pain medication or ice water. And when Mr. Corzine could talk again after a week of semiconsciousness, the chief topics of conversation were baseball and the New Jersey Devils hockey team, the doctors said. Do What You Have to Do About 500 of Cooper's 2,500 trauma cases each year arrive via the helipad, with its view of the Philadelphia skyline. As they waited for Governor Corzine to land on April 12, Dr. Ross, a trauma nurse, a nurse anesthetist, a respiratory therapist and an emergency medical technician received word that he was conscious but on oxygen because of difficulty breathing due to his chest injuries. Intravenous fluids helped maintain his blood pressure. Emergency workers had splinted his damaged leg. When he arrived at 7:03 p.m., the team talked with him as they wheeled him to a nearby resuscitation area for a quick examination. By 7:10, on the first-floor resuscitation unit, Dr. Ross asked more detailed questions about what hurt him, his general medical condition and what drugs he routinely took. ``Do what you have to do,'' Mr. Corzine told him, Dr. Ross recalled. An anesthesiologist injected sodium pentothal, a rapidly acting barbiturate, to put Mr. Corzine to sleep, and succinylcholine, a muscle relaxant, to allow doctors to quickly insert a tube in his windpipe and connect it to a mechanical respirator. Hospital aides wheeled Mr. Corzine to the basement for CAT scans looking for evidence of brain damage; tears in the aorta, the body's main artery; or damage to the heart, lungs, spleen, liver and intestines. Mr. Corzine escaped those problems. But he had a number of fractures: the femur, sternum, a collarbone, a vertebra and 11 ribs. The broken ribs were in the central area of the chest, six on the left side and five on the right. Two of the ribs on the left were broken in two places. An enormous force is needed to break the thick sternum and that many ribs in a chest cage that is designed to protect the heart and lungs. Dr. Ross, who has treated about 100 patients with injuries like Mr. Corzine's, said the governor was ``just lucky'' to have escaped heart and lung damage. At 8:30 p.m., Dr. Ostrum began repairing the femur. Aligning the pieces was difficult because the bone was broken in two places, leaving one piece floating and unattached. ``Normally, you take the hip on one end and the knee on the other and put them back together again like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle,'' Dr. Ostrum explained. ``When you get more pieces it gets more difficult.'' In the three-hour operation, Dr. Ostrum removed as much dead muscle and other tissue as possible to help prevent infection. The thigh wound needed to be cleaned in two additional surgical procedures, on April 14 and 16. About midnight that first Thursday, Dr. Ostrum and Dr. Ross met with two of Mr. Corzine's three children, advising them that he was in critical condition. ``All of us thought he would survive,'' Dr. Ostrum said. He did not ``paint a bleak picture,'' he said, adding, ``but I wanted them to understand the severity of the injuries.'' There were potential fatal complications: pneumonia; other infections; acute respiratory distress syndrome; blood clots in the leg that could travel to the lungs or other organs and cause emergencies, if not sudden death. ``It's counterproductive to tell somebody everything's going to be fine, and then when you do have problems, hear, `Doctor, you told us everything was going to be fine,' '' Dr. Ross said. ``I would rather tell them about the realities and have everybody happy when things go well.'' Mr. Corzine's children were ``not in any mental state to ask specific medical questions at that point,'' he said, adding: ``They were pretty distraught. They wanted to see him as soon as they could.'' After talking with the family, the doctors reluctantly participated in a news conference at the request of Mr. Corzine's aides. They said they were hesitant in part because of the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, which prohibits the release of a patient's medical information without explicit permission. At the time, Mr. Corzine was under heavy sedation. One More Fracture The first week was the diciest, with Mr. Corzine, who was in an isolation room for security reasons, using a mechanical ventilator because in one small area the broken ribs were unable to help the lungs expand, creating what is known as a flail chest. The doctors still did not know whether Mr. Corzine was paralyzed. So they reduced the amount of sedation to observe his spontaneous movements and to ask him to follow their commands. When he moved both arms and both legs, the doctors became more optimistic. Later, they performed a fuller examination. ``We just pat them down all over to make sure we did not miss any fractures or dislocation,'' Dr. Ostrum said. After the swelling subsided, they found that Mr. Corzine had also dislocated the last joint in his right middle finger. Trauma doctors measure recovery in part by what patients want to talk about and do; when patients talk about subjects other than their injuries, they take it as a sign of progress. Mr. Corzine's doctors said they were encouraged that baseball and the Devils' playoff run were among his favorite topics. At Cooper, doctors typically take turns caring for trauma patients every day. But Dr. Ross said that as the director, he wanted ``to keep an eye on things,'' so he accompanied the duty doctor on daily rounds, a move that could mean stepping on a colleague's toes. ``When one attending surgeon looks over another attending physician's shoulder, they get irritable,'' Dr. Ross said, adding with a smile, ``because we all know everything.'' Executive Decisions Once he was off the ventilator, Mr. Corzine read several newspapers each day, the doctors said, but he did not do office work in the hospital. In considering when Mr. Corzine could resume his official duties, the two main doctors--along with Dr. Michael E. Goldberg, the anesthesiologist who controlled his pain medication--discussed the timing and criteria among themselves and with members of the governor's staff, state lawyers and the governor's personal physician, who declined to be identified. They considered what criteria might apply to the return to work of lawyers and business executives, or of physicians like themselves who care for critically ill patients. Paramount was the worry that Mr. Corzine's pain medication could impair his thinking. So they interviewed him, informally testing his memory. They discussed sports and current affairs. He said he was less familiar with South Jersey than the central and northern areas. The doctors were satisfied that he was absorbing the information and asking appropriate questions. ``We gave him specific advice on how much we want him to limit his formal schedule,'' Dr. Ross said. ``We pushed the window back until he and we felt that he could respond if somebody needed him at 3 o'clock in the morning for an emergency.'' The doctors said Mr. Corzine seemed lucid, coherent and sharp. ``You can't tell he is on any medication at all,'' Dr. Ostrum said. After visiting Mr. Corzine at Drumthwacket, the governor's mansion in Princeton, on May 4, Dr. Ross decided that as a New Jersey resident he was ``comfortable with him making executive decisions on my behalf.'' Yet Mr. Corzine erred describing a broken bone in an interview conducted last Sunday and broadcast the next morning, the day he resumed his official duties. Speaking on NBC's ``Today'' show, Mr. Corzine said he had broken his tibia, the shin bone, not his femur. Every Time They Cough The main rehabilitation goal is for Mr. Corzine to restore his leg motion, then improve its strength and endurance. He uses arm crutches, instead of standard ones, to avoid aggravating his ribs. He has three daily physical therapy sessions and is scheduled for monthly checkups through the summer. The doctors plan to monitor X-rays periodically to determine how well his femur is healing and when he can put weight on his leg. (After Mr. Corzine underwent an outpatient checkup Friday, his office issued a statement saying all was going well.) Mr. Corzine still is not out of the woods, Dr. Ostrum said. A possible complication is osteomyelitis, a serious bone infection. Also, rib fractures are generally painful for weeks. ``You can fix every bone in their pelvis and both their legs, and they will come back and complain about ribs every time they take a deep breath, every time they cough, every time they roll over in bed,'' Dr. Ostrum said. Mr. Corzine, who has pledged to educate others about wearing seat belts, has said he remembered getting into the helicopter but virtually nothing about the first eight days in intensive care. That was good news to Dr. Ross. The drugs that Mr. Corzine received in intensive care are the same that patients may receive when undergoing procedures like a colonoscopy, to ease their discomfort. ``One effect of the drugs is amnesia,'' Dr. Ross said. ``We think it's a good thing that patients don't remember what they go through in the I.C.U.''

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I support the conference committee report and thank both the chairman and the Budget Committee for their good work. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the conference report accompanying the fiscal year 2008 budget resolution. This budget resolution represents a return to fiscal soundness for our country, which has operated without a budget resolution in 3 of the last 5 years. This budget will help our country emerge from a sea of red ink and put us on a path toward a budget surplus in the next 5 years, with a $41 billion surplus projected for 2012. Key to the fiscal responsibility in this budget is the inclusion of critical budget enforcement provisions known as PAYGO. This budget extends to the Senate the PAYGO rules adopted earlier this year in the House, which ensure that any future tax cuts or increases in mandatory spending are offset elsewhere in the budget. This budget hews to that principle and does not include any new mandatory spending that is not offset. Mr. Speaker, I also applaud our House and Senate Budget Committee Chairmen for their attention to the domestic needs of this country and the resources this budget dedicates for health care programs and research that have suffered in previous budgets. The conference report provides a reserve fund of up to $50 billion for the reauthorization of the State Children's Health Insurance Program. As a member of the Energy and Commerce Committee, which is working to reauthorize the SCHIP program, I want to make sure the program is available to the 6 million American children who are currently eligible but not enrolled in the program. The reserve fund in this budget will allow us to expand the program for these children while also maintaining fiscal discipline under PAYGO. On the discretionary side, the budget resolution includes an additional $20 billion over last year's level for health programs. In years past, worthy health care programs like trauma systems funding, Emergency Medical Services for Children, Health Centers and NIH research funding have been forced to compete for funding that was not sufficient to meet our health care needs. This budget recognizes the importance of adequately funding domestic priorities like health care and education programs that are true investments in our country's future. I thank our House conferees for their work on this budget resolution and congratulate them on this truly balanced budget, in terms of both the deficit and the needs of the American people.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Chairman, on rollcall No. 369, the King amendment, had I been present, I would have voted ``no.''

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Madam Chairman, on rollcall No. 356, had I been present, I would have voted ``present.'' Recorded Vote

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor a life- long Texan, a personal friend, and a great leader in our community. Burgess Etzel, or B.J. as most of us know him, was born in Roundtop, Texas. After finishing high school there, he went on to attend Blinn College, and then to my alma mater, the University of Houston. After graduation, B.J. began his work in the communications industry. Hired as a cable splicing helper in 1957 in what was then the Plant Department in Houston, he continued this work until 1969. At that time he was transferred to Network Operations as a Communications Technician. In 1987, after serving as Job, Chief, and District Stewards for over two decades, B.J. was elected President of the Communications Workers of America Local 6222. In this position, he represented over 7,000 bargaining unit employees working for SWB Telephone, SWB Yellow Pages, SWB Wireless, AT&T, Lucent Technologies, and printing sector in metro Houston and surrounding areas in the Southeast Texas region. Despite his busy schedule as President of the CWA Local 6222, B.J. also found time to serve on the board of trustees of the United Way of the Texas Gulf Coast, and raise four children with his wife Frances. B.J. has served as a leader in all phases of local organizing drives, and all legislative and community service work. I would like to thank B.J. for his service to the CWA and its members, and congratulate him for having the flag pole dedicated to him on May 19, 2007.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 1700 the COPS Improvements Act of 2007. Unfortunately, over the past several years funding for the hiring of additional police officers has been drastically reduced and the COPS program was basically eliminated. The Community Oriented Policing Services Improvements Act revives the grant hiring program. These grants will allow local police departments to hire 50,000 additional police officers over the next 6 years. I know in Houston after Hurricane Katrina we saw a significant rise in violent crime. This program will allow our local communities to hire additional police officers to protect their citizens. This bill will also provide critical funding for technology grants and hiring community prosecutors. These are tools that our communities need to reduce our crime rates. When the COPS program was eliminated our nation experienced a drastic increase in crime rates. By providing our law enforcement community with adequate funding and technology we will give them the ability to reduce crime rates. I have strongly supported this program since it was first introduced during the 1990's. Today I urge my colleagues to support this critical piece of legislation today.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 342, had I been present, I would have voted ``yea.''

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of House Resolution 334, which will support the goals and ideals of National Community College Month. This resolution was passed on May 1, 2007 with bipartisan support. Not only is a college education one of the best investments a person can make, it is the best way to ensure our children and grandchildren have a promising future regardless of socioeconomic status. The typical college graduate earns 80 percent more than a high school graduate, and this can add up to about one million dollars over one's career. Additionally, more educated people tend to have access to better health care, and often enjoy a better quality of life. For these reasons, I am always looking for ways to improve access to a quality education for our area, and I have found that community colleges are one of the best ways to achieve this. For many years now, I have seen the benefits of these schools, and their collaboration with community partners in our area is critical. Whether it's through training programs or working with local businesses, community colleges focus on areas to make sure that their students have the components they need to be successful. I am proud that the Congress has decided to honor our country's community colleges, their students, governing boards, faculty, and staff, not only for their contributions to education and workforce development, but for their vital role in ensuring a brighter, stronger future for our country.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Chairman, I rise today to express my support for the Head Start Reauthorization Bill that was sent to this Chamber. Head Start is one of the best programs we offer our youngest students. Since its creation in 1965, it has proven to be our most valuable school readiness program in the history of this country. Especially, now that we know more about the importance of early- childhood education. Time after time, we have seen reports that prove students who attend Head Start perform better than those who don't. It has also proven to help close the achievement gap between students of differing socioeconomic status. The Republican amendment to this bill would repeal existing civil rights protections that ensure programs cannot use federal funds to discriminate in their hiring practices. Head Start teachers should be chosen because they are qualified and effective teachers who will help children succeed and thrive. Discrimination should not be supported with public funds. National religious organizations, civil rights groups, national labor organizations, and the education groups all oppose any roll back of civil rights protections. This is such a critical program, and it's important that this body reauthorize this program in a manner that shows bipartisan support for educating our children. I urge my colleagues to support this bill. Thousands of children in my district benefit from Head Start and it's essential that we reauthorize this program with a bipartisan plan that will help this program serve more children effectively.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise today to commend Mr. Mario V. Gallegos, Jr., on being named ``Governor for a Day'' in the State of Texas. Senator Gallegos, a long time Houstonian, has served his community first as a Houston firefighter, then as a Texas State Representative, and now as a Texas State Senator. He was the first Hispanic Senator elected to represent Harris County. Senator Gallegos, like myself, is a graduate of the University of Houston. In Austin, he continually serves as a strong voice for the university, to ensure levels of funding increase with the growing population of his district. Having served 22 years as a firefighter, where he retired as Senior Captain, Senator Gallegos has fought for growth and increased funding for firefighters and law enforcement, alike. He was recently recognized for his work in the 77th Legislative Session by the Texas State Association of Fire Fighters and the Combined Law Enforcement Association of Texas. Senator Gallegos has also received such accolades as the Texas Municipal League's ``Distinguished Legislative Service Award,'' Legislator of the Year by the Mexican American Bar Association of Texas, and the Fiestas Patrias Distinguished Hispanic of the Year Award. And so it is with great pleasure that I recognize my good friend in his continued work to serve Texas, Mario Gallegos. His distinguished legacy of service speaks volumes and I congratulate him on being named ``Governor for a Day.''

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise today to commend Mr. Ned Baudat for his contributions to the P.E. Marion Science/Math Scholarship that is offered to students at Aldine High School in our district. With Mr. Baudat's support, students from Aldine High School have the opportunity to further their collegiate studies in math and science. I know P.E. Marion and his excellent teaching ability, and it is an additional honor to have this scholarship in his name. Our Nation is currently facing criticism relating to a decreased interest of American students in the study of math and science. For this reason, we are unable to keep up with the international community whose students often excel in their math and science studies. By encouraging advance study in these subjects, American students are able to better compete with students from all over the world, and we have persons like Ned Baudat to thank for this. Mr. Baudat graduated at the top of his class from Aldine High School and went on to Rice University. During his career in the oil industry, he developed a patent regarding an improved method to convert liquid natural gas back into its original gaseous state. A portion of the proceeds from Mr. Baudat's patent were used to develop this scholarship. I am very proud of his outstanding accomplishments as well as his continued support of the P.E. Marion Science/Math Scholarship. For his service to my constituents as well as the country, I offer Mr. Baudat my most sincere congratulations in his well deserved recognition.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 493, the Genetic Information Non-Discrimination Act. The sequencing of the human genome was an amazing scientific advancement, and has contributed to the rise of genetic testing to inform patients of their proclivity for disease. Thanks to genetic testing, individuals with a risk of an illness can take precautionary steps ahead of time to ward off disease, which will contribute to lower health care costs over time. As we take advantage of this scientific progress, however, it is critical that we protect individuals from any discrimination that could result from the information these tests reveal. The results should not be used by health insurers to deny anyone coverage or increase their premiums because of a pre-disposition to a certain disease. Likewise, the results should not be used by employers to discriminate against employees based on their predisposition to disease. I am proud to be a co-sponsor of this legislation, which our colleagues Ms. Slaughter and Mrs. Biggert have been working on for over a decade now. The health care marketplace has changed significantly since the bill's original introduction, and important changes were made to the bill during the 108th Congress to refine the bill's definitions and scope. During the Energy and Commerce Committee's consideration of the bill, we learned about one segment of the health care marketplace that was excluded from the bill's protections--the long-term care insurance market. The bill sponsors and supporters all agreed that this bill was never intended to regulate the long-term care insurance market, and I understand that current statute treats long-term care insurance differently. Regardless of the bill's original intent, the fact remains that the long-term care exclusion in this bill would allow a long-term care insurer to discriminate against an individual on the basis of genetic information. If an individual determines that she is at high-risk for developing Alzheimer's disease, the next obvious step is to plan her future care for Alzheimer's, including the purchase of long-term care insurance. Despite all of the good intentions in this legislation, the bill would allow long-term care insurance underwriters to refuse to cover her or charge her higher premiums for a disease she has yet to develop and may never develop. As a Congress that continues to encourage Americans to plan for their future, we should ensure that future legislation extends the patient protections inherent in this bill to consumers who want to plan for their future and purchase long-term care. With that, Madam Speaker, I am pleased to support this important legislation and encourage my colleagues to vote for its passage.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 260, had I been present, I would have voted ``yea.''

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Madam Chair, I rise in support of the Democratic budget resolution. The best word to describe this budget is ``balanced.'' First, it balances our Nation's books by bringing our country back to surplus by 2012, thanks in large part to the PAYGO rules this Chamber passed as part of our fiscal responsibility package. This budget also balances our Nation's many priorities by providing adequate funding for our defense and homeland security, while also paying much-needed attention to our deserving domestic priorities and social programs. This budget proves that Democrats pay more than lip service to our Nation's veterans by providing $6.6 billion over last year's funding for veterans' services. As a member of Energy and Commerce, I would like to thank the Budget Committee for including a $50 billion reserve fund for the expansion of the S-CHIP program. Of course, we understand that our reauthorization bill will be subject to PAYGO rules, but this reserve fund is an important first step in increasing access to health care for the nearly 6 million children who are eligible for S-CHIP but not enrolled. I applaud the Budget Committee for rejecting the administration's cuts to Medicare and Medicaid. I also appreciate the budget's refusal to incorporate the administration's cuts to LIHEAP, which should be further expanded to ensure that millions of low-income folks in southern States receive the assistance they need to cool their homes during the oppressive summer months. What a difference a year makes, Madam Chair, and I am proud to support Chairman Spratt and this budget, which strikes the right balance between investing in the American people and their future and keeping our fiscal houses in order. I urge my colleagues to support this budget.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Res. 76, which would establish a national holiday in honor of Cesar Chavez. Cesar Chavez dedicated his life to teaching others that persistence, hard work, faith, and willingness to sacrifice oneself breaks down barriers. He committed himself to achieving justice and equality for all farm workers, and paved the way for momentous social change. In 1962, Cesar Chavez formed what is known as the United Farm Workers. His efforts initiated one of the greatest social movements of our time. He dedicated himself to fighting for safe working conditions, reasonable wages, decent housing and the outlawing of child labor for farm workers everywhere. Mr. Chavez embraced nonviolent tactics to help focus national attention on the problems that existed for farm workers. Mr. Chavez was said to have given his last ounce of strength defending the farm workers before he died in his sleep on April 23, 1993. Cesar Chavez is honored throughout America for his tireless work to help those who could not help themselves. In my hometown of Houston and my district every year we celebrate the life and times of Cesar Chavez by holding a Hispanic heritage parade and day of celebration. A national holiday in honor of Cesar Chavez would serve as an inspiration to those who seek to create a better world in the legacy of one who served to remind us that together all things are possible; in Spanish, ``si se puede.''

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I urge passage of the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise today in support of H.R. 727, legislation to reauthorize the Trauma Systems Planning and Development Act. This program, under the Public Health Service Act, was first authorized in 1990 to improve and coordinate trauma care in our country. Since then, this program has provided $30 million to States to establish state-wide and regional trauma systems. Injury related to trauma is the leading cause of death for younger Americans, ages 1 through 44. Trauma also causes more than 300,000 permanent disabilities each year. For seriously injured individuals, the first hour after an injury is when medical care is most effective in saving lives and function. This hour is also often referred to as the ``golden hour,'' during which trauma and emergency systems must respond both quickly and efficiently. This golden hour is also the goal that our military has for getting medical attention to our soldiers injured on the battlefield. The military has an impressive, streamlined trauma system that my colleagues Dr. Burgess; our ranking member at that time, Congressman Deal from Georgia; and our late colleague Dr. Norwood from Georgia and I marveled at during our trip last summer to Iraq, where we toured the military's trauma facilities in Balad. Unfortunately, the military's trauma system is not replicated in civilian health care, and too many Americans do not benefit from trauma systems that facilitate medical intervention during this critical time frame. While the death rate from trauma is 50 percent higher in rural areas than in urban locations, trauma affects each corner of this country. In fact, nearly 25 percent of all Americans sustain injuries each year that require medical attention. Yet without coordinated trauma systems and quick access to care, injuries are too often fatal. In Houston, we learned this lesson the hard way when the lack of trauma coordination forced a young man to wait more than 4 hours to receive care after he was hit by a car on Halloween night in 2001. With serious head, chest and leg injuries, this patient was clearly medically unstable and should have received immediate care at one of Houston's two level-one trauma centers. But with the trauma centers increasingly on diversion, this young man was transported to Austin where he died the next day. It was clear that we needed better trauma systems in the Houston area, and we quickly learned that the problem was felt throughout our Nation. We also learned that the effective trauma systems would help prevent nearly 25,000 deaths each year. As a response, we developed this legislation to build on the program's initial success since 1990, and we authorized it through 2012. This bill includes changes to the program to ensure that scarce health care dollars go to the communities most in need, ensuring that Federal funds are utilized to strengthen trauma systems and improve communication and coordination among different trauma systems. It specifically ensures that grants go to States that coordinate planning for trauma systems with State disaster emergency planning and bioterrorism hospital preparedness planning. In addition, this legislation would require the Secretary to update the model plan for the designation of trauma centers and set triage, transfer, and transportation policies. The legislation also reauthorizes the Residency Training Program in Emergency Medicine in an effort to ensure an adequate level of ER physicians to treat patients in need of care from America's trauma centers. I would like to thank Mr. Burgess from Texas for his leadership on this legislation and for helping to craft the compromise before us today. I would also like to thank Chairman Dingell and our Health Subcommittee Chairman Pallone for their interest in this issue. We have been working on this bill for 5 years. Until now, this important issue failed to receive the attention it deserved, so I appreciate my chairman including this bill on our first markup in this Congress. I also appreciate the hard work that John Ford, William Garner and Pete Goodloe of the committee staff put in to guide this bill through the committee to ensure that we have a consensus product to approve today, and also my own staff who has worked on this for at least 3 years. I also appreciate the support of the American College of Surgeons, the American Osteopathic Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, the American Trauma Society, the Coalition for American Trauma Care and the Emergency Nurses Association. The members of these groups are on the front lines and know that coordinated trauma systems can literally save lives. We thank them for all they do for our communities. I urge my colleagues to vote for this important legislation. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, we reserve the balance of our time.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 727) to amend the Public Health Service Act to add requirements regarding trauma care, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 193, had I been present, I would have voted ``yea.''

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this legislation, thanking both Congressman Murtha and Congressman Obey for their work. It has now been 4 years since this war started, over 3 years since we heard the phrase ``mission accomplished,'' and almost a year and half since the Iraqi elections for a permanent government--it is time for the Iraqi government to police, govern, and run its country. This bill also provides more support for our veterans and military healthcare. This legislation will provide funding for our troops, but it will also force the Iraqis to take control of their own country, and bring our troops home within the next 18 months--possibly sooner, if the Iraqis do not meet benchmarks that demonstrate they are making progress. Our commitment in Iraq, which grew under the President's surge plan last month, has strained our military, cost thousands of U.S. and Iraqi lives, and has created serious readiness problems in the Army and Marine Corps. I don't like the idea of setting a timeline, but for 4 years we have had an open-ended commitment, and after those 4 years, we are still seeing some of the bloodiest attacks, and highest casualty numbers to date. We need to set benchmarks to force the Iraqis to take over their own country, and this bill does that. It is not pulling our troops out immediately--if Iraqis rise to this responsibility, we will have troops there for another 18 months, but if they don't, we will begin redeployment this year. After 4 years, it is time Congress exercise authority over the way this war is being run. Congress is not 535 commanders in chief, but we must provide guidance on what we will ask the American taxpayers to fund. We have held dozens of hearings this year, and passed a non- binding resolution opposing the escalation or surge in U.S. troops. Our vote on this Supplemental will be another step in bringing a resolution to this conflict and will let the Iraqis know our commitment is not open-ended. I applaud the leadership and Appropriations committee on bringing this bill to the floor, and I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting it.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 180, had I been present, I would have voted ``yea.''

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Madam Speaker, the promise of America means different things to different people. To some, it may represent better economic opportunities. To others, it is having access to a better education, better healthcare, or a better job. To still others, it is simply the chance for a better life. But regardless of how we define the ``promise of America,'' there is little doubt that Neighborhood Centers Inc.--Houston's largest and fastest-growing human services agency--is making that promise a reality for thousands of people in Southeast Texas. And the scope of that accomplishment is being underscored this month, as Neighborhood Centers celebrates its 100th anniversary of providing education, resources, and connections to the area's most vulnerable communities. Our Congressional District is served very well by Neighborhood Centers Inc.'s facilities and programs. Founded in 1907 by Alice Graham Baker--the grandmother of former Secretary of State James Baker III--Neighborhood Centers Inc. stands as a shining example of how innovative strategies and consistency of purpose, animated by a heart as big as Texas, can produce truly transformational change. From its inception, Neighborhood Centers has focused on helping underserved communities to achieve their full potential. The organization pursues this mission not by concentrating on the weaknesses of a neighborhood and its residents, but by building on the unique skills, strengths, resources, and capabilities that already exist. It then works to nurture these assets in order to create self- sufficiency, individual empowerment, and long-term economic and social development. The result is a unique approach for connecting people with what they need to fully realize the promise of America: child and family care, education, job skills, entrepreneurial incubators, leadership development, legal assistance, after-school programs, citizenship services, teacher training, and activities for seniors that encourage aging in place. The ability and willingness to provide these services have brought Neighborhood Centers face to face with numerous challenges over the years. But challenges are not uncommon to the agency. It has traditionally been Houston's go-to organization when it comes to dealing with the region's most complex issues. As Angela Blanchard, president and CEO, once said: ``The harder it is, the better we like it.'' Neighborhood Centers' response to Hurricane Katrina demonstrates clearly that those are not mere words. When the storm forced hundreds of thousands of New Orleans residents to flee to Houston, Neighborhood Centers created a special program called Stay Connected. It provided evacuees assistance in finding jobs, healthcare, homes, and other essential human needs. It worked to restore a sense of community for those who decided to make Houston their home. It helped rebuild lives, renew hope, and revitalize opportunity. To date, Stay Connected--which is largely staffed by Katrina victims--has served more than 4,000 families. That brings me to my final point about Neighborhood Centers: This is an organization defined by compassion, concern, and commitment. The agency and everyone involved with its mission--including corporate partners such as JPMorganChase, Shell, Chevron, and Aramark-- share an unbounded faith in human potential. They truly believe that people, when treated with respect and dignity and given a chance to grow and to build self-esteem, can have a profoundly positive impact on families, communities, and the entire social and economic fabric not only of Houston but of America as well. Potential is not just an abstract concept to Neighborhood Centers. It is a concrete foundation for touching lives, lifting hearts, and fulfilling promise. Over the past 100 years, Neighborhood Centers has never sidestepped an opportunity--or avoided an obligation--to keep that potential alive. In doing so, it has not simply made the American Dream a reality. It has kept the Human Dream alive. I cannot think of a more significant contribution to this country to those who make it great.