Frank Pallone

Mr. PALLONE

Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I would like to honor a friend and colleague William H. Lewis, Jr. of Neptune, New Jersey who passed away on Monday, January 28. Bill was a remarkable man who dedicated his life to public service. He will be greatly missed by his family, his friends and the entire New Jersey community he served. After a second valiant fight with cancer, Bill died at the Jersey Shore University Medical Center. Born in New York City on November 27, 1939, he lived a fulfilling and diversified life in which he found great successes in so many areas. Bill was an enthusiastic educator for almost 30 years. Along with his wife, Bill started teaching in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, before they would move back to New Jersey to his childhood roots, where he then taught at Shore Regional High School, in West Long Branch. He was also an adored football and track coach and a local advocate at the West Side Community Center in Asbury Park. During his days at Shore Regional, Bill would become a local Monmouth County Education Association president, working hard to protect teacher's rights. When Bill retired from teaching 18 years ago, he would continue advocating for children in New Jersey outside of the classroom. He became a full-time activist for the New Jersey Education Association, where he worked to advance and protect the rights, benefits, and interests of its members, and promote a quality system of public education for all students. It was in this capacity that I had the honor of working closely with Bill. Together we worked to help New Jersey students achieve excellence. Bill is survived by a son, William David Lewis and a daughter, Michele Lewis, as well as other loving extended family members. His loving wife, Laura Oxley Lewis predeceased Bill, whom he lost almost 6 years ago to her own bout with cancer. Madam Speaker, Bill Lewis was a devoted advocate for children and public education. He was a strong champion for New Jersey's children, working tirelessly to provide them with better opportunities and life choices. My thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends during this trying time.

Mr. PALLONE

Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Sarbanes).

Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise to urge support for this bill which was developed jointly by the Energy and Commerce Committee, the Ways and Means Committee, and the Education and Labor Committee. This bill would extend the Mental Health Parity Act of 1996, the first-ever Federal parity law. Over 10 years ago, Congress passed and President Clinton signed into law legislation that required partial parity by mandating that annual and lifetime dollar limits for mental health treatment under group health plans offering mental health coverage be no less than that for physical illnesses. This legislation was authorized for 5 years, and has been extended every year with bipartisan support since its initial authorization expired. The bill before us would extend the Mental Health Parity Act for another year. I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support its passage. Madam Speaker, let me also say that while the 1996 law was a good first step, we clearly have much further to go before we can achieve full mental health parity. That is why it is imperative that we pass H.R. 1424, the Paul Wellstone Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2007, introduced by my colleagues Representative Patrick Kennedy and Representative Jim Ramstad. I want to congratulate and thank both of them. Mr. Kennedy will be speaking shortly in favor of his legislation. In spite of the 1996 law and widespread recognition that mental illness and substance abuse are treatable illnesses, there still exist glaring inequities between health insurance coverage for mental health and that for other medical conditions. As we all know, these inequities can have dire consequences for friends, families and society in general. H.R. 1424 will take our Nation one step further to ensuring that every American can access the mental health, substance abuse and addiction treatment that they need to live healthy, happy and productive lives. Madam Speaker, by putting mental health on par with medical and surgical benefits, we will be improving the availability and affordability of health care for those who suffer from mental health illnesses and addiction diseases. This will not only reduce the pain and anguish of many of our constituents and their families, but will benefit our Nation as a whole. So let's extend the good work that has already been done and work together to build upon the framework so that we can improve the lives of millions of Americans. I reserve the balance of my time, Madam Speaker.

Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson-Lee).

Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Rhode Island (Mr. Kennedy), who has probably done more to address the issue of mental health parity than any Member of Congress. He actually came to my district, we had a hearing on the issue, and I really appreciate all that he has done on the issue.

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

Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 4848) to extend for one year parity in the application of certain limits to mental health benefits, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. PALLONE

Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I thank the chairman. I am just amazed at what's going on here on the Republican side of the aisle because I know how difficult it's going to be to get the votes to override the President's veto. Last year at this time, we had all the State health officers coming here, many of them from Republican States, you know, where the Governor was Republican, demanding the fact that we needed to provide more money for SCHIP in order to expand coverage because they did haven't the funds. They were taking kids off the rolls, and so we responded. We put together this bill to try to increase the number of kids to 10 million at a cost and paid for it with what I consider a very reasonable way to go about funding the program. Now, a year later, we're still hearing Republicans on the other side saying, well, we don't need this; it's not necessary. And the situation is only getting worse. The economy's on a downturn. I'm hearing more and more every day from my Governors, my Governor and Governors on both sides of the aisle, about what the economic downturn is going to mean that more people are unemployed. They need Medicaid, they need SCHIP, because they're not going to have health insurance for their kids. So the demand is even greater. Whatever problem existed last year that we were trying to address with this legislation, and it was dire, is going to be aggravated even more over the next few months and the next year. So, I do not understand those who object to this legislation. In addition to that, the administration issued this directive in August, August 17, that makes it even more difficult to enroll kids and for States to have flexibility. In that directive, the President actually says you have to be off health insurance for a year before you can apply and get on the SCHIP program. So, here we have the Republican administration making it more difficult for States to cover children as at the same time that the need becomes greater every day. It is an absolute disgrace, in my opinion, that this bill was vetoed. It should pass today because of the need. And I call upon the administration to stop this negative effort to continue to make it more difficult for kids to get coverage.

Mr. PALLONE

Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor the life of Turkish Armenian journalist Hrant Dink. One year ago, Hrant Dink was brutally gunned down outside his office in Istanbul, Turkey by a self-proclaimed Turkish nationalist. The world lost a great human rights advocate and his tragic death was an attack on democratic ideals and values. Dink was first charged with treason for upholding an irrefutable historical fact about the Armenian Genocide. He was convicted for his writings in 2005 for violating article 301, a law that makes it a crime to ``insult'' the Turkish state. This law continues today to be used to persecute, prosecute, and incarcerate those who attempt to exercise their universal human right of freedom of speech. Mr. Speaker, Turkey uses intimidation to deny its citizens their right to freedom of expression. It lobbies for its so-called rightful role in the international community and a place in the European Union. Yet it does not live up to democratic principles and standards. Hrant Dink is not the only one who has suffered from the consequences of this Turkish penal law. Anyone who refers to the events of 1915 for what they were, genocide, is targeted within Turkey. In addition, our own country is seeing the effects of this denial as Turkey continues to oppose human rights legislation condemning the Armenian Genocide here in this House. Mr. Speaker, I remain deeply concerned with Turkey's failure to adopt standards and practices of both domestic and international conduct that would reverse and overturn the climate of intolerance, prejudice, and repression, as exemplified by article 301 of the Turkish penal code. It was this penal code that precipitated Mr. Dink's murder. Hrant Dink was guilty of nothing more than having the courage to defend freedom of the press and promote human rights and tolerance in Turkey. He was a man of conviction and principle who believed in democratic ideals and peaceful change. I urge Turkey to honor his name and repeal article 301.

Mr. PALLONE

Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Lowey).

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

Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, this bill is the result of Republican intransigence. This is a Band-Aid. And I would remind my Republican colleagues who seem to think that this is good legislation, that every day that goes by, more kids are going to get off SCHIP. They put out that directive of August 17 that says that if a kid's parents lose their job, they would have to wait 1 year before they could get SCHIP coverage. So the bottom line is more kids are going to go off SCHIP. We're just barely paying for the kids that are on it now. They're not willing to do anything. They said that they were willing to negotiate. Well, we had negotiations, our majority leader said, for over 100 hours, and they still could not come up with an agreement. The President refuses to fund anything. He won't pay through a tobacco increase, the only tax increase. The only thing he says he will do is cut programs to pay for expanded SCHIP that would even make it harder, like cutting Medicare. So the fact of the matter is we are stuck with this lousy bill that was negotiated between the White House and the Republicans in the Senate. We don't like it. It's simply a temporary measure, and we as Democrats are committed to the fact that in the beginning of next year we're going to take up SCHIP again. We're going to take up the issue of Medicare to try to prevent the privatization that takes place under the current program. We're determined to correct these programs. But it won't happen if the Republicans continue their intransigence, both at the White House and here in the House of Representatives. There is no reason to believe, based on what they've done in the last 6 months, that this Republican minority wants to work with us to achieve a better result. So we are stuck with this bill today. It is a Band-Aid approach. We have to pass it so we can continue with the existing programs. But every day that goes by, Medicare suffers because fewer and fewer doctors are likely to take Medicare and fewer and fewer kids are going to get coverage because they're going to have to go to the emergency room because they can't see a doctor on a regular basis. That's not the way to operate. And I have to say that it's totally due to the fault, in my opinion, of the President and the Republicans here in the House of Representatives. I hope this changes in the next year.

Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I just want to inquire if the other side is prepared to close or has any additional speakers.

Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the Senate bill (S. 2499) to amend titles XVIII, XIX, and XXI of the Social Security Act to extend provisions under the Medicare, Medicaid, and SCHIP programs, and for other purposes.

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

Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Solis).

Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I yield 10 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Stark) and ask unanimous consent that he be allowed to control that time.

Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, when this Congress was first gaveled into session by Speaker Pelosi, she declared it the Children's Congress. With that in mind, we set out to enact an ambitious agenda that included legislation to provide health care to 10 million low-income American children. But we were forced to go it alone. Instead of working with us, the President and his Republican foot soldiers in Congress chose to fight us tooth and nail. We were not deterred by the President or the opposition that we faced from congressional Republicans. Earlier this summer, the House passed the CHAMP Act, which would have strengthened the Children's Health Insurance Program, CHIP, and helped secure health care coverage for 10 million American children, 4 million of which are presently uninsured and come from hardworking families. The CHAMP Act also included dramatic improvements for beneficiaries and providers under Medicare, which, if enacted, would have put the program on a more stable financial footing and ensured that seniors have access to the medical care they need and deserve. The CHAMP Act would have also protected Medicaid from harmful regulations which are now about to go into effect and will cut billions of dollars in critical services for low-income and disabled citizens of all ages. Now, some may see the defeat of the CHAMP Act this year as a great victory for the President and his Republican allies in Congress. But they may have succeeded in being nothing more than obstructionists. No one has gained anything from these actions by the President or my Republican colleagues, least of all the people who rely on these programs for their health care. This year, we had a chance to strengthen our Nation's health care safety net and improve the lives of our most vulnerable citizens, the elderly, the young, the poor and the disabled. Instead, both the administration and congressional Republicans are content on leaving here this year with doing the bare minimum on CHIP and Medicare when we could have accomplished so much more to improve the health of millions of Americans. So now, Madam Speaker, we are left with a package that addresses the most immediate concerns, but leaves any real health care improvements for another day, and I think that is very unfortunate. But with the current President and the current Senate, sadly, this is the best we can do. But I will say, Madam Speaker, the Democrats are determined in the next year to revive the CHAMP Act and the provisions that we care so much about, because we know that that is the best for the American people. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. PALLONE

Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, today is the last day of this year of the session of Congress, and I just wanted to take the opportunity to thank my press secretary, Heather Lasher Todd, who is actually leaving today and going back to St. Louis, where she is from, with her husband. Both of them used to work for Congressman Carnahan, who was here before on the floor. Many of my colleagues on the Democratic side of the aisle see Heather on a daily basis when she is down here with me trying to get Members to do 1-minutes and other message opportunities, and also worked very hard to have our weekly message meetings and come up with timely topics and people who would speak. I am going to sorely miss her. I know that many of my colleagues will as well. I just want to wish her and her husband a great future back in St. Louis where they are from.

Mr. PALLONE

Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, at the beginning of this year, the Democratic Congress proposed a 2008 budget that was both fiscally responsible and reinvested in long-forgotten domestic priorities. All year President Bush has stubbornly said that he will not sign any appropriations bill that was higher than his budget request. So after months of working with our Republican colleagues, we approved an omnibus spending bill last night that fits into the President's funding levels, but addresses important Democratic priorities. At a time when crime rates are increasing all around our country, we invest $1.2 billion over the President's budget to help local communities make their neighborhoods safer. At a time when significant infrastructure improvements are needed to prevent more bridges from collapsing, we invest $1 billion to make our bridges safer. And as Americans continue to pay record prices at the pump, we invest an additional $486 million in renewable energy and energy efficiency. Mr. Speaker, this final omnibus bill invests in critical priorities that were ignored in the President's budget.

Mr. PALLONE

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

Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I just want to reiterate and contradict some of the things that the President said in his veto message today. He said that this is the same bill that we sent him that he previously vetoed. And it's simply not true. We made substantial changes to it to allay concerns about higher income families enrolling, adults being enrolled, or even undocumented immigrants being enrolled. I just want to point out some of the flaws with the President's message in closing. First, the President says that our goal should be to move kids into private coverage and not into public programs. That is exactly what the CHIP program does, Mr. President. CHIP provides money to States, which in turn contract with private insurance companies to provide insurance coverage to kids. It's not socialized medicine, it's not government-run health care, and the President should know that. Second, the President says his proposal to reauthorize CHIP would increase funding by 20 percent. What he doesn't tell you is that his plan would not help provide coverage to the 6 million kids who are uninsured and eligible to enroll in either CHIP or Medicaid. I would point out that the Senate Finance Committee in July received a letter from the CBO where they said that they estimate between 5 million and 6 million children who are uninsured are eligible for Medicaid or SCHIP. So there are a lot of kids out there, almost twice as many that are in the program now, that could be insured. And then the President said that we allow adult coverage. Well, let me say our bill phases out adult coverage faster than the President would do by just disapproving his waiver renewals. Fourth, the President says we don't focus on the lowest income kids, and that's not true. We provide financial resources for States to go out and find the lowest income kids first. Finally, the President has said he's been willing to work with us to reauthorize SCHIP, and the Republicans in the House said the same thing. Well, the fact of the matter is that, as our majority leader said, we have reached out. We have had hundreds of hours of meetings. We have reached out to the President. It's simply not true that we haven't reach out, and the fact of the matter is that the President has been unwilling to budge even 1 inch from where he wants to go with the SCHIP legislation. Instead of working with us to provide health insurance to 10 million kids, he's given us two vetoes now. All I can say, Mr. President, the holiday season is upon us, but you are basically becoming the Grinch who stole Christmas from these 10 million kids, in this case at least 5 or 6 million, that don't have health insurance. It's a shame that we have come to this position today, and I would urge my colleagues to cast a vote to override the President's veto. Announcement by the Speaker Pro Tempore

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

Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, let me say it really pains me to listen to the minority leader say that no attempt has been made to resolve the differences on this legislation. I can't think of a single bill in this Congress where the Democratic leadership has been reaching out to the Republican side of the aisle on a daily basis. There have been so many meetings. I mean, there have literally been hundreds of meetings trying to reach out to the Republican side in the House to try to reconcile differences on this bill and come up with a consensus piece of legislation. The Republicans in the Senate have always been willing. They have been out there to meet. Some Republicans here in the House have been as well. But the leadership on the Republican side has not been. So I think it is very unfortunate that, as stated today, that that has not been the case. We have been reaching out constantly, and I defy anyone to say differently. Madam Speaker, today for the second time this year President Bush turned his back on the health care needs of 10 million children. It was just 2 months ago when the President vetoed the Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act, which had passed both the House and the Senate with overwhelmingly bipartisan support. After that first veto we came together once again, Democrats and Republicans, and wrote a different bill that addresses many of the President's concerns, including enrolling lower income children first. Today, President Bush vetoed the second effort, saying that it was almost identical to the first bill. And I would say it was not, and the President knows better. The President's second veto of CHIP legislation is a slap in the face not only to this Congress but to the millions of children who, without this bill, continue to be uninsured, or worse, basically lose the insurance they currently have. Every day the parents of more than 9 million children worry when their kids have an earache, toothache, asthma, all this before they finally have to take them to the hospital emergency room. And the President seems satisfied with the status quo. In fact, in the past he has stated that every American has access to health care because they can always go to the emergency room. Let me tell my colleagues, this fall I visited an emergency room in my district and it was not a great place for a kid to visit. It is the scene of trauma. Children are forced to share space with people who have overdosed on alcohol or drugs. Most emergency rooms are overwhelmed with real emergencies and have few resources to treat people who need regular family care. The beauty of CHIP is that children get to see a doctor on a regular basis. And the President is deluding himself if he doesn't think this veto is going to hurt millions of children. And those Members voting to sustain the President's veto are just as guilty of turning their backs on millions of children who will be denied regular visits to see a doctor. I urge my Republican colleagues to vote their conscience. Let's override the President's veto so that we can ensure that 10 million children receive the health care they need to grow up healthy and strong. This is the right thing to do for our country. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.