Jesse Helms

Mr. HELMS

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, more than 3 years ago I began daily reports to the Senate to make a matter of record the exact Federal debt as of close of business the previous day. As of the close of business Wednesday, November 1, the Federal debt stood at exactly $4,981,703,482,414.58. On a per capita basis, every man, woman, and child in America owes $18,910.63 as his or her share of the Federal debt. It is important to recall, Mr. President, that the Senate this year missed an opportunity to implement a balanced budget amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Regrettably, the Senate failed by one vote in that first attempt to bring the Federal debt under control. There will be another opportunity in the months ahead to approve such a constitutional amendment. Mr. DORGAN addressed the Chair.

Mr. HELMS

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, the impression will not go away: The $4.9 trillion Federal debt stands today as a sort of grotesque parallel to television's energizer bunny that appears and appears and appears in precisely the same way that the Federal debt keeps going up and up and up. Politicians like to talk a good game--and talk is the operative word--about reducing the Federal deficit and bringing the Federal debt under control. But watch how they vote. Control, Mr. President. As of Tuesday, October 31 at the close of business, the total Federal debt stood at exactly $4,985,262,110,021.06 or $18,924.14 per man, woman, child on a per capita basis. Res ipsa loquitur. Some control.

Mr. HELMS

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, on that evening in 1972 when I first was elected to the Senate, I made a commitment to myself that I would never fail to see a young person, or a group of young people, who wanted to see me. It has proved enormously beneficial to me because I have been inspired by the estimated 60,000 young people with whom I have visited during the nearly 23 years I have been in the Senate. Most of them have been concerned that the total Federal debt which is $27 billion shy of $5 trillion--which we will pass this year. Of course, Congress is responsible for creating this monstrosity for which the coming generations will have to pay. The young people and I almost always discuss the fact that under the U.S. Constitution, no President can spend a dime of Federal money that has not first been authorized and appropriated by both the House and Senate of the United States. That is why I began making these daily reports to the Senate on February 25, 1992. I wanted to make a matter of daily record of the precise size of the Federal debt which as of yesterday, Monday, October 30, stood at $4,975,234,385,762.72 or $18,886.08 for every man, woman, and child in America on a per capita basis. The increase in the national debt since my most recent report this past Friday--which identified the total Federal debt as of the close of business on Thursday, October 26, 1995--shows an increase of $1,559,581,857.19 during that 4-day period. That 4-day increase is equivalent to the amount of money needed by 231,255 students to pay their college tuitions for 4 years.

Mr. HELMS

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, the printed record of the October 11 debate contains an error in the listing of original cosponsors of amendment number 2898 to H.R. 927, the Senate substitute version of the Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity (Libertad) Act of 1995. For the information of my colleagues, the original cosponsors of the amendment are as follows: Senators Dole, Helms, Mack, Coverdell, Graham, D'Amato, Hatch, Gramm, Thurmond, Faircloth, Gregg, Inhofe, Hollings, Snowe, Kyl, Thomas, Smith, Lieberman, Warner, Nickles, Robb, Craig, Cohen, Burns, Reid, Lott, Stevens, Specter, Shelby, and Pressler.

Mr. HELMS

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, as of the close of business yesterday, October 26, the federal debt stood at [[Page S 16106]] $4,973,674,803,905.53. We are still about $27 billion away from the $5 trillion mark, unfortunately, we anticipate hitting this mark sometime later this year or early next year. On a per capita basis, every man, woman, and child in America owes $18,880.15 as his or her share of that debt.

Mr. HELMS

Mr. HELMS. I ask for the yeas and nays on the pending amendment.

Mr. HELMS. I give the Senator a copy of the modified amendment which is now pending.

Mr. HELMS. I move to reconsider the vote.

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, I think this is one of few times when both sides are in favor of an amendment. It is to protect the right of senior citizens to choose their own doctors if they wish. I think the distinguished manager of the bill, Mr. Domenici, has a clarification.

Mr. HELMS. The Senator's suggestion was excellent, and as he knows we undertook to adjust and modify the amendment to conform with the Senator's excellent suggestion. Now, the HMO may set up a cost sharing plan in the manner that the Senator from Oklahoma suggested. A plan may require that the senior citizen pay up to 100 percent of the difference between what a network doctor would charge and what the HMO would pay for the doctor. And that is, of course, one of the many options. My amendment is intentionally silent as to how an HMO should set its cost sharing schedule, but as the Senator has suggested, HMO's could set deductibles and other specific cost sharing arrangements. So I commend the Senator on his suggestion. The modified version of the amendment is at the desk.

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, I am sure that I am not alone in my strong feelings that the senior citizens of America must not be deprived of their right to choose their own doctors. The text of my amendment has been modified to address both my strong desire to preserve the right of the senior citizens and the concerns of a number of Senators relating to options. The pending amendment stipulates that if a Medicare choice plan offers a closed plan HMO within the Medicare margin, that plan must also offer a point-of-service plan enabling senior citizens to exercise their freedom of choice regarding the selection of physicians. Three summers ago, I had a little encounter with some remarkable medical doctors, who are also my personal friends, in my hometown of Raleigh. I was at that time, of course, free to choose the team of surgeons who performed my heart surgery. The point is that all senior citizens enrolled in Medicare should have the same choice that I had. And the pending amendment will enable senior citizens to preserve their right to choose their doctors. Most Americans, whether their health is insured by private firms or by Medicare, enjoy their freedom to decide which medical professionals will perform their care and treatment. In reforming Medicare, Congress must make sure that senior citizens know their options and can choose their doctors and other medical providers instead of being required to accept somebody else's lineup of physicians and surgeons. Mr. President, the Senate is considering major reforms to save Medicare and prevent its being pushed over the cliff. Medicare must be reformed before it goes bankrupt. We agree on that. Otherwise, the Medicare trust fund will be flat broke when the 21st century rolls around just a few years hence. America's senior citizens--and I am one of them--depend on the health care coverage provided by the Medicare system, and those of us in Congress have a duty to make sure that they will not be forced to give up their right to choose their doctors. It is vital to their future security that our senior citizens retain this right. The power to choose will place senior citizens firmly in control of their health care. Senior citizens may be enticed to join an HMO because they will gain coverage for prescription drugs and eyeglasses and hearing aids-- coverages not presently provided by Medicare. However, without some moderating legislation, senior citizens could very well find themselves locked into coverage that limits them to services provided by HMO-affiliated doctors, other professionals and hospitals. No longer would senior citizens have the freedom to choose their own doctors. So, Mr. President, these are the reasons why I am introducing this amendment, to make sure that all Medicare-eligible Americans who choose to enroll in an HMO know their options of choosing the closed panel HMO or the point-of-service plan offered by the same insurance company. Mr. President, consider if you will the predicament of a patient who requires heart surgery, and whose HMO will not approve the cardiologist with whom the senior has built up a longstanding relationship. My amendment will enable women being treated for breast cancer to have more options when choosing a lower cost plan that will allow them to continue to see the specialists familiar with them and their conditions. For this reason, more than a hundred patient advocacy groups have voiced their support for this amendment. Point-of-service plans provide a safety valve to protect seniors who find themselves in the position of needing to see a doctor of choice. A point of service plan enables patients to see physicians and specialists inside and outside the managed care network. If seniors citizens are satisfied with the care they receive within the network, they will feel no need to choose outside doctors and specialists. Mr. President, CBO has given me repeated assurances that a built-in point-of-service feature--the technical term for freedom of choice-- would not increase the cost of Medicare. In fact, in testimony before the Senate Budget Committee, CBO stated that ``the point of service option would permit Medicare enrollees to go to providers outside the HMO's panel when they wanted to, and yet it need not increase the benefit costs to HMOs or to Medicare. . . .'' Moreover, the actuarial firm of Milliman and Robertson concluded that depending on the terms of the plan and a reasonable cost sharing schedule, there should be no increase in cost to the HMO. In fact, there could actually be a savings. The fastest-growing health insurance product is a managed care plan that includes the point-of-service feature. In fact, in 1993, 61 percent of all HMOs offer a point of service option. Building a point-of-service option into health plans under Medicare will not interfere with the plan's ability to contain cost, nor will it limit their efforts to encourage providers and patients to use their health care resources wisely. It simply will ensure that health plans put the patient's interest first. We can save Medicare. We can extend its benefits while lowering the towering costs that beset us today. And my amendment, we can also preserve a basic American freedom to choose one's own doctor. I yield the floor.

Mr. HELMS. I thank the Chair.

Mr. HELMS

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, more than 3 years ago I began these daily reports to the Senate to make a matter of record the exact Federal debt as of close of business the previous day. As of the close of business Wednesday, October 25, the Federal debt stood at exactly $4,977,804,019,628.98. On a per capita basis, every man, woman, and child in America owes $18,895.83 as his or her share of the Federal debt. It is important to recall, Mr. President, that the Senate this year missed an opportunity to implement a balanced budget amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Regrettably, the Senate failed by one vote in that first attempt to bring the Federal debt under control. There will be another opportunity in the months ahead to approve such a Constitutional amendment.

Mr. HELMS

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, before discussing today's bad news about the Federal debt, how about another go, as the British put it, with our pop quiz. Remember? One question, one answer. The question: How many millions of dollars does it take to add up a trillion dollars? While you are thinking about it, bear in mind that it was the U.S. Congress that ran up the Federal debt that is $27 billion away from $5 trillion. To be exact, as of the close of business yesterday, October 24, the total federal debt--down to the penny--stood at $4,975,508,732,304.35. This figure is approximately $27 billion away from $5 trillion. Another depressing figure means that on a per capita basis, every man, woman, and child in America owes $18,887.12. Mr. President, back to our pop quiz, how many million in a trillion: There are a million million in a trillion.

Mr. HELMS

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, on that evening in 1972 when I first was elected to the Senate, I made a commitment to myself that I would never fail to see a young person, or a group of young people, who wanted to see me. It has proved enormously beneficial to me because I have been inspired by the estimated 60,000 young people with whom I have visited during the nearly 23 years I have been in the Senate. Most of them have been concerned that the total Federal debt which is $27 billion shy of $5 trillion, which we will pass this year. Of course, Congress is responsible of creating this monstrosity for which the coming generations will have to pay. The young people and I almost always discuss the fact that under the U.S. Constitution, no President can spend a dime of Federal money that has not first been authorized and appropriated by both the House and Senate of the United States. That is why I began making these daily reports to the Senate on February 22, 1992. I wanted to make a matter of daily record of the precise size of the Federal debt which as of yesterday, Monday, October 23, stood at $4,973,904,347,350.96 or $18,881.03 for every man, woman, and child in America on a per capita basis.

Mr. HELMS

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, the skyrocketing Federal debt, now about $25 billion shy of $5 trillion, has been fueled for a generation by bureaucratic hot air; (sort of like a hot air balloon whirling out of control), which everybody has talked about, but almost nobody even tried to fix. That attitude began to change, however, immediately after the November 1994 elections. The 104th Congress promised to hold true to the Founding Fathers' decree that the executive branch of the U.S. Government should never be able to spend a dime unless and until it had been authorized and appropriated by the U.S. Congress--money supplied by the approximately 61.4 percent Americans who pay Federal income taxes, according to the Internal Revenue Service. So, when the new 104th Congress convened this past January, the U.S. House of Representatives quickly approved a balanced budget amendment to the U.S. Constitution. On the Senate side, all but 1 of the 54 Republican Senators supported the balanced budget amendment. That was the good news. The bad news was that only 13 Democrat Senators supported it, and that killed the balanced budget amendment for the time being. Since a two-thirds vote--67 Senators, if all Senators are present--is necessary to approve a constitutional amendment, the proposed Senate amendment failed by one vote. There will be another vote during the 104th Congress. Here is today's bad debt boxscore: As of the close of business Monday, October 23, the Federal debt-- down to the penny--stood at exactly $4,974,119,827,892.07 or $18,881.84 on a per capita basis for every man, woman, and child.

Mr. HELMS

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, I am among those who have long supported the concept embodied in the Jerusalem Embassy Relocation Implementation Act of 1995. Since Senator Dole introduced this legislation, there has been great gnashing of teeth and wringing of hands that have trivialized a fundamental and significant fact: Jerusalem is the capital of Israel, and the capital is where the United States Embassy should always be regardless of the country involved. The Government of Israel has asserted that Jerusalem is and will remain the capital of Israel. The dire warnings being heard that the peace process will be endangered are, in fact, threats. The peace process will be dismantled only if and when Yasser Arafat wants to dismantle it. I commend Senator Dole for his efforts, for his conviction, and for accomplishing what I feel should have been done years ago. I am pleased to be a cosponsor, and I will be pleased to visit the United States Embassy in Jerusalem, capital of the State of Israel.

Mr. HELMS

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, as of the close of business yesterday, October 19, the Federal debt stood at $4,974,014,009,081.49. We are still about $27 billion away from the $5 trillion mark, unfortunately, we anticipate hitting the $5 trillion mark sometime later this year or early next year. On a per capita basis, every man, woman, and child in America owes $18,881.44 as his or her share of that debt.

Mr. HELMS

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, passage of the Libertad bill will send a message that Congress wants a tightening of the screws on Fidel Castro. Castro knows that this bill will expedite his departure from power. Why on Earth would Castro have launched such a huge campaign against this bill if it wasn't harmful to his rule? He knows that the Libertad Act will help set the Cuban people free--free from oppression, free from communism, free from Castro's dictatorship. As several principal cosponsors of this bill have already stated on this floor, including Senators Dole and Gramm, we are going to fight hard--and I mean very hard--to keep the pressure on Castro--and on this administration to work for Castro's removal. Mr. President, let me say this: Fidel Castro is going to come to New York City this weekend to address the United Nations. Since the State Department has just given Mr. Castro a visa to enter this country, I want to give Mr. Castro an early Christmas gift to be delivered to the people of Cuba--a gift called the Libertad Act, on which we will vote final passage in a moment. I yield the remainder of my time.

Mr. HELMS

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, the distinguished President of Estonia waits without in the Vice President's Office. I desire to present him to the Senate, and I shall do so, and I shall go and invite him to come in. In the meantime, I suggest the absence of a quorum, the time to be charged to neither side.

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be dispensed with.

Mr. HELMS

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate stand in recess for 5 minutes, so that Senators and staff can greet our distinguished guest.

Mr. HELMS

Mr. HELMS. As I understand it, I have 20 minutes.

Mr. HELMS. On the two amendments.