Frank Pallone

Mr. PALLONE

Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time at this point.

Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Vermont (Mr. Welch).

Mr. PALLONE. I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Eshoo).

Mr. PALLONE. At this time, Mr. Speaker, I would like to yield 2 minutes to the dean of the House of Representatives and the House sponsor of the health reform legislation, the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Dingell). (Mr. DINGELL asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. PALLONE. I yield myself 2 minutes. Mr. Speaker, I wanted to thank my colleague from Florida, who just spoke, for saying and admitting that health care reform does create jobs, because, if you listen to the Republicans, they have been saying over and over again that that's not the case. But he finally said, yes, it does create jobs. That's what we really should be doing here. We should be creating jobs and improving the economy, not talking about repealing health care reform, which already is providing so many benefits to many Americans. Yesterday, I saw a statement from our former Republican majority leader, Senator Frist from Tennessee, who said that we shouldn't do the repeal. He recognized the fact that this legislation, this health care reform, is actually making a difference in people's lives and that we should build upon it, as Senator Frist said, a Republican, rather than just trying to do an outright repeal, which is a complete waste of time. Now what I am hearing from my constituents is that they like the benefits that are already coming out from health care reform, whether it is eliminating all the discriminatory practices, like lifetime caps or preexisting conditions or annual caps, or being able to put your children up to age 26 on your policies. These benefits have already kicked in, and Americans actually like the benefits. They understand why they are helpful to them. The only group I can think of that actually would benefit from repeal is the big insurance companies. Unfortunately, that is the bidding, if you will, that the Republicans are doing, the other side of the aisle. The insurance companies want to continue to increase premiums by more than double digits. They don't want to cut into their profits. One of the things that kicked in on January 1 is a provision that says that 80 percent of your premiums have to actually go to provide benefits. They can't go to the shareholders or to the profits of the insurance companies. The insurance companies are the only ones that benefit from repeal because they can raise premiums, they can have discriminatory practices, and they can just increase their profits. I will use an example. I think the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Slaughter) used this example before about someone who has breast cancer.

Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself an additional 15 seconds. Now, because of the policies of the health insurance reform, if people have breast cancer and there are recurrences, they will not experience lifetime caps or annual caps. They will be able to go back and have chemotherapy or whatever is necessary. Those are the types of benefits that have kicked in, and they should continue. We should oppose repeal.

Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Markey).

Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Engel).

Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Gene Green).

Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the distinguished ranking member of the Rules Committee, the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Slaughter).

Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Colorado (Ms. DeGette).

Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 15 seconds. Mr. Speaker, I have heard talk on the other side of the aisle about small business, but I would point out that repeal would eliminate tax credits for small businesses. In Mr. Burgess's district, there are up to 13,600 small businesses that are eligible for the tax credit, and repeal would force these small businesses to drop coverage or bear the full costs of coverage themselves. I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Capps).

Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Doyle).

Mr. PALLONE. I yield myself 15 seconds. Mr. Speaker, I just wanted to mention the gentleman from Texas was decrying the HHS study about preexisting conditions. These are very serious preexisting conditions: heart disease, cancer, asthma, arthritis, high blood pressure. They are people that have had their policies canceled or they couldn't get insurance because of these preexisting conditions. I don't think they should be belittled. I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Harman).

Mr. PALLONE. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Illinois (Ms. Schakowsky).

Mr. PALLONE. At this time I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Gonzalez).

Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, could I ask again about the time remaining on each side.

Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 15 seconds. I hear talk on the other side of the aisle about jobs, but I would point out that under Democratic policies, including health reform, there's been a strong private sector job growth this past year. In 2010, there have been 12 straight months of private sector job growth. And under the Obama administration overall this past year, we have created a total of 1.3 million new private sector jobs.

Mr. PALLONE. I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Inslee). (Mr. INSLEE asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. PALLONE. I yield myself 15 seconds. Mr. Speaker, I heard the gentleman from Louisiana say that Members of Congress were not in the exchange, and that is simply not the case. And I don't want to hear it repeated from the other side of the aisle. This current bill that we passed says that Members of Congress have to go into the exchange and have the same health care benefits through the exchange as any other American. So don't keep repeating that because it is simply not true. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Wisconsin (Ms. Baldwin).

Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I yield myself 15 seconds. Madam Speaker, I would just like to point out again--we've said it over and over again--that the CBO, which gives the official estimate, says that over the next 10 years the health care reform saves $230 billion, and after that, for 10 years, over $1 trillion. The Republicans can't get away from the fact that if they repeal this bill, all that is going to do is increase the deficit significantly, because our bill, the current law, actually reduces the deficit.

Mr. PALLONE

Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commemorate the brave individuals of the United States Army Transport Dorchester. While participating in a naval transport, on February 3, 1943, USAT Dorchester was attacked, sending 676 men to their graves in the icy waters of the Atlantic Ocean. On January 23, 2011, the Middletown VFW Post #2179 and Ladies Auxiliary will gather to commemorate the brave individuals who lost their lives on this tragic day. The honorable actions of the World War II soldiers are undoubtedly deserving of this body's recognition. Previously a luxury coastal liner, the USAT Dorchester was converted into an Army transport ship and immediately called up for service in World War II. Departing from St. John's, Newfoundland on February 2, 1943, the Dorchester was filled to capacity, carrying 902 service men, merchant seamen and civilian workers on their way to an American base in Greenland. The ship's captain, Hans J. Danielson, was aware of the dangerous mission as he instructed the ship's crew to sleep in their clothing and life jackets. Traveling through the treacherous and chilly Atlantic Ocean waters, the USAT Dorchester was spotted on the morning of February 3, 1943 by a German submarine. Torpedoes were soon fired, striking the starboard side of the ship. The attack quickly eliminated all power and radio contact with nearby coast guard escort ships. The attack violently awoke soldiers, killing scores of men and injuring many others. Despite the panic and chaos, four chaplains, George Fox, Alexander Goode, Clark Poling and John Washington, immediately jumped into action, calming frantic soldiers and tending to the wounded. They swiftly began opening storage lockers, distributing life jackets. With an insufficient amount of supplies, the four chaplains removed their lifejackets and distributed them to others. Their decisive and heroic actions assisted in the swift survival of 229 men. Along with 672 other men, the four chaplains tragically lost their lives while assisting others as the USAT Dorchester slowly sank into the Atlantic Ocean. Mr. Speaker, please join me in commemorating the USAT Dorchester, as the members of the Middletown VFW Post #2179 and Ladies Auxiliary honor the lives of the four heroic chaplains and the other 672 men who lost their lives aboard this transport ship on February 3, 1943. The soldier's gallant actions and resilient efforts aboard the USAT Dorchester are positive examples of what dedication and commitment to their comrades and their love for their country can accomplish.