Jim Marshall

Mr. MARSHALL

Mr. MARSHALL. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 20, had I been present, I would have voted ``yea.''

Mr. MARSHALL

Mr. MARSHALL. Mr. Speaker, this is the first time I have had an opportunity to speak to the Speaker, and it is an honor to do so. I speak on behalf of rural America, Mr. Speaker. It is an issue that is bipartisan. It is an issue that is of great concern to an awful lot of Americans. Last night in his State of the Union Address the President said all seniors should have the choice of a health care plan that provides prescription drugs. I hope that the President's plan when it comes out takes the opportunity to address some of the weak points in Medicare and to truly provide access to prescription drugs for seniors throughout the United States, including in rural areas. At the moment, Mr. Speaker, the formula for deciding how to reimburse medical providers discriminates against providers that are in rural areas. In my district we have had two rural hospitals close in the last 2 or 3 years. One closed, then reopened, and went through two or three different sets of management. We have had a number of rural hospitals that have struggled just to make ends meet. This is caused in part by our funding formula under Medicare, and I hope the President in crafting his plan for prescription drugs and for Medicare reform will take into account the need to protect rural areas, to protect the citizens that are in rural areas, and to protect the economies of rural areas. At the moment the funding formula for Medicare reimbursement discriminates against rural providers and benefits urban providers. That formula needs to be adjusted. I believe this matter has been addressed before in the House. I hope that the Rural Health Care Caucus will be presenting to the House a bill that will address this matter, and I also hope that the President and the House will support that bill. If the President could incorporate the concepts behind that bill, which during the last session was called the Rural Community Hospital Assistance Act, then I think the Medicare reform that is offered by the President could well address the crisis in health care that we see today in rural areas.