Pete Stark

Mr. STARK

Mr. STARK. Mr. Speaker, I would like to yield 1 minute to the distinguished gentleman from California, a member of the Ways and Means Committee (Mr. Becerra). Pending that, I would point out that he is well aware that the National Hispanic Medical Association has endorsed the bill, and I would like to submit their endorsing letter into the Record. NHMA, National Hispanic Medical Association, Washington, DC, July 25, 2007. Hon. John Dingell, Chairman, House Committee on Energy and Commerce, House of Representatives, Washington, DC. Dear Chairman Dingell: On behalf of the National Hispanic Medical Association (NHMA), a non-profit association representing 36,000 licensed Hispanic physicians in the United States, we write to express our strong support for the Children's Health and Medicare Protection Act, H.R. 3162, which will allow the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), Medicare, and Medicaid to expand enrollment of Hispanic children and elderly. Since one in five Hispanic children are currently uninsured and only 10 percent of Hispanics eligible for Medicare are enrolled, these programs are vital to increasing access to health care. The mission of NHMA is to improve the health of Hispanics and other underserved populations. We support the SCHIP section that allows states to cover legal immigrant children and legal immigrant pregnant women, covers dental care and mental health care, provides state performance bonuses if they can demonstrate that they have enrolled new children who are currently eligible, but not enrolled, and creates the Children's Access, Payment and Equity Commission, that will examine issues of health disparities. We support the Medicare section that calls for reducing health disparities through demonstrations for language services reimbursement and targeted outreach, new quality data relating to disparities, expands the Low Income Subsidy and Medicare Savings Programs, and mandates a report on Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Standards use by providers. We do not support total elimination of Medicare Advantage with a Hispanic enrollment of 21 percent receiving comprehensive care management and with Puerto Rico covering dual eligibles. Finally, we support the Medicaid section that increases funds for transition to work, disabilities, family planning, adult day care and Puerto Rico. In summary, the National Hispanic Medical Association supports the Children's Health and Medicare Protection Act, H.R. 3161, because it will increase access to health insurance for Hispanics and will, thus, improve the health of all Americans. Sincerely, Elena Rios, M.D., M.S.P.H., President and CEO.

Mr. STARK. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the distinguished member of the Ways and Means Committee, a member of the Health Subcommittee, the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Lewis). Pending that, I would explain that he knows that the NAACP, in a letter of endorsement, has said that this legislation fills a much- needed gap that currently exists in health care services for some of the most vulnerable citizens, low-income children, seniors and the disabled.

Mr. STARK. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Much has been said by the distinguished chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, by the distinguished chairman of the Ways and Means Committee on how this bill helps Americans. Five million kids will receive medical coverage insurance that they don't now have. Seniors will receive preventative care with no copayments. They will receive mental health care at parity. Rural benefits will be extended to the rural communities that need assistance for access to their population. Low-income seniors will receive assistance in paying for their co-pays and their premiums. This bill is fully funded over 10 years, something my Republican colleagues never did in the past. I want to remind my colleagues that there are many myths being floated around here today. It is important to note that 83 of my Republican friends in 1997 voted for an identical bill. The bill that they voted on has the exact same income eligibility that was passed in 1997. The minority leader, the ranking member of the Ways and Means Committee, the ranking member of the Health Subcommittee on the Ways and Means Committee, all voted for this and included a cigarette tax to pay for it. And I might added that the reductions that they put in their Medicare bill were five times greater than the adjustments we made in the bill today. It included an increase in the Federal tobacco tax. Now I don't know what has changed. Maybe they have learned to hate children in the interim, but nothing has changed in the eligibility. It is the same bill. If it was good for you, then it is better now. And it does a fair thing. The public is sick of radical ranting. They want health care for kids and seniors, and the way to get that is to support the bill before us today. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. STARK. I continue to reserve, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. STARK. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. STARK. I object.

Mr. STARK. I think you have just touched on a misunderstanding. We had been led to believe that we would be rotating around among the various committees, and so that now we are kind of out of balance. Our understanding is that we would rotate back and forth between Energy and Commerce and Ways and Means for the full time. I apologize to the gentleman if we misled. Our concern was that we would be out of balance in the time between the two committees.

Mr. STARK. Mr. Speaker, I just remind the former Speaker that he voted for the same benefits in 1997, and nothing has changed since then. I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Levin), who remembers what happened in 1997. (Mr. LEVIN asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. STARK. If the gentleman would yield.

Mr. STARK. I object.

Mr. STARK

Mr. STARK. Mr. Speaker, I am delighted to yield 1 minute to the distinguished lady from Pennsylvania (Ms. Schwartz), who understands that the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare has overwhelmingly endorsed the 2007 CHAMP Act.

Mr. STARK. Mr. Speaker, at this time, I'm pleased to recognize the gentleman from North Dakota (Mr. Pomeroy) for 1 minute. Pending that, I would note that, as a former insurance commissioner, he understands that the endorsement of the National Association of Insurance Commissions is necessary to prevent fraud in the Medicare Advantage program.

Mr. STARK. Mr. Speaker, at this time, I am happy to yield 1 minute to the distinguished lady from Nevada (Ms. Berkley).

Mr. STARK. Mr. Speaker, at this time I am happy to recognize the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell) for 1\1/2\ minutes, and, pending that, point out that he recognizes that the hospitals and physicians in Pennsylvania overwhelmingly endorse this bill.

Mr. STARK. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume to respond briefly to the distinguished ranking member of the Ways and Means Committee, just to suggest that AHIP, representing America's Health Insurance Plans, wrote to us recognizing ``the ambitious effort will require significant resources. We believe that comparative effective research should be carried out as a public-private partnership, with funding from public sources and support from private sources, including health insurance plans, employers and manufacturers.'' And also to suggest that any recognition of children above the previously stated levels had to be done with waivers from the Bush administration to Governors requesting it. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. STARK. Mr. Speaker, I am happy to yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. STARK. Mr. Speaker, at this time, I'm pleased to yield 1 minute to the distinguished gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Fattah).

Mr. STARK. I object.

Mr. STARK. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume to respond to my distinguished friend from Arizona. And I have to admit, in honesty, that there are earmarks in this bill. There are 11 million earmarks, six million children whose names we now have and five million children to be added to the bill. And I'm proud to say those earmarks are in the bill. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 30 seconds to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Rangel).

Mr. STARK. Mr. Speaker, I'm pleased to yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Kind) who understands that the National Rural Health Association has endorsed the 2007 CHAMP Act as critical to rural children and seniors across the Nation.

Mr. STARK. Mr. Speaker, I'm happy to yield 1 minute to the distinguished lady from Ohio (Ms. Tubbs Jones). And, pending that, I suggest that she understands that the American Nurses Association has expressed their undying support for the Children's Health and Medicare Protection Act.

Mr. STARK. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, first of all, I take this opportunity before we have closing remarks to thank the ranking member of the Ways and Means Committee and the ranking member of the Health Subcommittee for their comity during all of our discussions and the hearings in the past. I also want to take the chance and take the time to thank our staff, Cybele Bjorklund; Debbie Curtis; Deb Mizeur; Jennifer Friedman; Chad Shearer; Dr. Gene Rich, one of the most overpaid physicians in the country; Drew Dawson; Dana Sun, our intern from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Karen McAfee; Ed Grossman; Jessica Shapiro; Mark Miller and the MedPAC staff. I would also like to thank Chuck Clapton, Joelle Oishi and Dan Elling from the minority staff. I would like to thank also the staff of the Energy and Commerce Committee: Bridgett Taylor, Amy Hall, Yvette Fontenot, Heather Foster, and Christie Houlihan. All of these people contributed to work to see that we could be as fair and as equitable as we could in drafting this bill. I think they can all be proud of both the work and their efforts to see that this bill was fair and equitable. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. STARK. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the distinguished majority whip, Mr. Clyburn.

Mr. STARK. I would like to do that if I may.

Mr. STARK

Mr. STARK. Madam Speaker, I object to the letter being introduced.