Henry Waxman

Mr. WAXMAN

Mr. WAXMAN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself 1\1/2\ minutes. I rise in strong support of H.R. 2, as amended by the Senate. This is the same bill, by and large, that we passed in the House by an overwhelming bipartisan majority a few weeks ago. The opportunity before us today is to make basic health insurance available to 11 million low-income children who would otherwise have no insurance. We know that without health insurance many children go without the health care they need to grow, to learn, to compete, and to contribute. The bill before us will extend the current program for 4\1/2\ years, ensuring that States will be able to maintain coverage for the 7 million kids now enrolled and to extend coverage to an additional 4.1 million uninsured low-income children. The bill is fully paid for. It will cost $33 billion over the next 5 years, fully offset by a 62-cent per pack increase in the cigarette tax. The Senate made a few minor changes, adding a new option for CHIP to provide dental care for privately insured children and creating a new commission to evaluate provider payments and access in CHIP and Medicaid. The Senate did not retain the House provision closing a loophole in Medicare that allows physicians to refer patients to hospitals where they have ownership interest. We will continue to work on that matter. While this bill is short of our ultimate goal of health reform, it is a down payment, and it is an essential start. We need to pass this bill. We need to do so now. I urge my colleagues to vote for this bill and send it to the President for his signature. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. WAXMAN. Madam Speaker, I still continue to reserve our time.

Mr. WAXMAN. Madam Speaker, I'm pleased at this time to yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Washington State (Mr. McDermott).

Mr. WAXMAN. Madam Speaker, I am pleased at this time to yield 1 minute to the distinguished majority leader of the House of Representatives, the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer).

Mr. WAXMAN. Madam Speaker, I yield to the chairman of the Health Subcommittee and the author of the SCHIP bill in the House, Mr. Pallone from the State of New Jersey, 1 minute with an option for more.

Mr. WAXMAN. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the Speaker of the House, without whom we would not have this legislation before us today, who has been tireless in pushing forward the agenda to make sure that no child in this country goes without health insurance, the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Pelosi).

Mr. WAXMAN. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to a member of the Energy and Commerce Committee and a member as well of the Health Subcommittee, the gentlewoman from Illinois (Ms. Schakowsky).

Mr. WAXMAN. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlelady from California (Ms. Eshoo).

Mr. WAXMAN. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the vice chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee and a longtime member of the Health Subcommittee, the gentlelady from Colorado (Ms. DeGette).

Mr. WAXMAN. Madam Speaker, I am pleased to yield to the gentleman from Washington State, a member of the Energy and Commerce Committee, Mr. Inslee, for 1 minute. (Mr. INSLEE asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. WAXMAN. Madam Speaker, I am pleased to yield to the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Butterfield), a very important and distinguished member of the Energy and Commerce Committee, 1 minute.

Mr. WAXMAN. Madam Speaker, at this time it is my great honor to yield to speak on this legislation to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Dingell), who has been the author of this bill for child health insurance in the last Congress. Unfortunately, the bill was vetoed by President Bush. But we all have to recognize his strong commitment and leadership on this issue, and so I want to yield to him 1 minute to be able to speak in favor of the legislation. (Mr. DINGELL asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. WAXMAN. Madam Speaker, I wish to yield the balance of our time to the gentlelady from Colorado (Ms. Markey). (Ms. MARKEY of Colorado asked and was given permission to revise and extend her remarks.)

Mr. WAXMAN. Madam Speaker, we wish to reserve our time to close the debate.

Mr. WAXMAN. Madam Speaker, Members of the House of Representatives, this bill is going to pass by an overwhelming bipartisan majority, as it passed in the last Congress as well, at least twice. But the difference is, this bill will be signed tonight by the President of the United States. President Bush vetoed this children's health bill twice. And it is interesting to review the arguments he gave for rejecting the legislation. First of all, he said, there's no problem for children getting health care when they need it. They can always go to an emergency room of a hospital. Of course, the care in an emergency room of a hospital is the most expensive care, and it often means that the child has gotten sicker than otherwise would be the case and is forced to go to that emergency room as the only option. And the second reason he gave for vetoing the bill is, to me, one of the most astounding. He said, why should taxpayers subsidize parents for their children's health insurance if the parents could afford to buy a private health insurance plan for their own children? Well, many parents just can't afford it or will not have that as an opportunity because of a pre-existing medical condition. But think of that argument. Suppose the President of the United States said, we ought not to have public schools for children whose parents could afford to send them to private schools. I find that a remarkable argument for him to have made. We, in this country, should value the opportunity for every child to succeed to the fullest extent of his or her ability, and that means education for all children and health care when those children need it. We will see the President of the United States sign this bill tonight because election results make a difference. And we will have a President who will sign this bill into law, along with a bipartisan majority in the House and the Senate. And that will be a happy day for America's children.

Mr. WAXMAN

Mr. WAXMAN. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself 3 minutes. Members of Congress and those who are watching our deliberations today, this is an important bill. We have 7 percent of the country unemployed, and that number is going up. So in this legislation, we are trying to put funds to help people get jobs and move our economy to a stronger position. The Committee on Energy and Commerce has three important areas where we have made a contribution to this legislation. We have investments in building out a new broadband infrastructure. This will allow rural and other underserved areas to join the global economy. This legislation also provides $27 billion to accelerate deployment of smart grid technology, fund energy efficiency investments and establish a new loan guarantee program for renewable energy. These will provide new jobs. They will reduce our dependence on foreign oil. And they will protect our environment. This bill contains important health provisions. The bill will help those people who lose their jobs by providing temporary health insurance. We do this in two ways. The COBRA program, which allows people to keep their insurance from their former employer, will be subsidized for those who want to hold on to that private insurance. It will also have a component to provide funds under the Medicaid program to cover the unemployed Americans who do not have COBRA coverage. Secondly, the bill would accelerate the nationwide adoption of health information technology. This investment will create high tech jobs, reduce medical errors and improve care. And thirdly, the bill will provide a temporary boost for State Medicaid programs facing surges in caseloads at the same time that the State has fewer resources in revenues. This is called the FMAP, the Federal Medicaid Assistance Program, and it would provide additional funds for States with particularly high unemployment. In this bill, when it was reported out of committee, we had a sensible provision to allow low-income women better access to family planning services, one of the most important preventive health services we can provide. It also would allow women to stay in the workforce. Unfortunately, this provision has generated a firestorm of misinformation and unfounded criticism from the Republican members. I have spoken to President Obama about this provision. He strongly supports this cost-saving policy. He is committed, as I am, to seeing this provision become law. But we don't want this provision to become a distraction from the other legislation.

Mr. WAXMAN. I yield myself an additional 20 seconds. So in order to keep the spotlight focused on the important task at hand, this provision will be removed from the bill. We will get it into the law in some other legislation later in the year. We in this bill have an important down payment on programs that lead us in the right direction. I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 1.

Mr. WAXMAN. Mr. Chairman, I'm pleased at this time to yield 1 minute to the very distinguished gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Space), a new member of our committee who has played a very constructive and important role in the development of this bill.

Mr. WAXMAN. Mr. Chairman, I ask that the balance of our time be managed by the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone).

Mr. WAXMAN

Mr. WAXMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of S. 328, the DTV Delay Act, which passed the Senate yesterday by unanimous consent. This legislation extends the digital television transition date and makes improvements to the converter box coupon program. In 2005, Congress mandated that as of February 17, 2009, all television stations shut off their analog broadcasts and transmit in digital only. The transition from analog to digital will offer better pictures and sound, more programming choices, and interactive capabilities. It will also serve an important public safety purpose by freeing up spectrum for first responders for nationwide interoperable communications. Finally, it will provide consumers with new and innovative commercial wireless services. Unfortunately, we are not prepared for this transition. The prior administration assured the Committee on Energy and Commerce repeatedly that the transition effort was on track. But on December 24, 2008, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, NTIA, notified Congress that the converter box coupon program would run out of funding the first week of January and that it would need an additional $250 to $350 million to meet projected demand. The President's Transition Team asked Congress to extend the deadline for a brief period. This is not a step that anyone wants to take. But we have no good alternative. Without a short, one-time extension, millions of households will lose all television reception. The DTV converter box coupon program is supposed to ease the financial burden of the transition. But it has ground to a halt. There are currently over 1.7 million households on the waiting list. In addition, the FCC has not adequately planned for call centers and other assistance for consumers who will face technical problems after the transition has occurred. The measure before us extends the date of the transition to June 12 and extends the coupon program date until July 31, 2009. It will also allow those who hold expired coupons--or never received their coupons because of problems with third class mail--to reapply. Moreover, the economic recovery package that the House is considering includes $650 million to fix the coupon program and intensify consumer education and support. S. 328 also takes steps to lessen the impact on other affected parties, including public safety, broadcasters, and wireless licensees. I am pleased that this bill now has broad support in the public safety community, including the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials-International, APCO, the International Association of Chiefs of Police, IACP, the International Association of Fire Chiefs of Police, IAFC, and the National Emergency Number Association, NENA. It has the support of the two biggest winners of spectrum that will be vacated as a result of the DTV transition--AT&T and Verizon. And, it has the support of a number of public interest groups. S. 328 gives the new administration the resources it has told us it needs to fix the coupon program and better prepare consumers for the transition. Unfortunately, our time to act on the legislation is short. If we do not pass this measure, it is likely that there will be no extension of the February 17 transition. Time will have run out for the administration to implement the changes necessary to fix the problems. I urge Members to support this bill.

Mr. WAXMAN

Mr. WAXMAN. Madam Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman from New Jersey, a very able chairman of the subcommittee of the Energy and Commerce Committee, for his authorship and managing this bill today. This is an important bill, and I want to commend Chairman Emeritus John Dingell for all the work he has done on this legislation. This bill and everything that's in it has already passed the House in the last 2 years; so we're not talking about anything new. What we are talking about is legislation that President Bush vetoed twice even though there was a strong bipartisan majority in the House and the Senate to try to get this legislation into law. The original program was a bipartisan program adopted in 1998, and it's going to be expiring; so we need to reauthorize it. This bill is a down payment, a down payment on health care for all Americans. But at least we will start covering millions of low-income children, children who are right above the poverty line. I urge support for the legislation. Ten years ago, a Democratic President and Republican Congress worked together to pass a landmark program to provide health care to children who had fallen through the cracks of our health care system. That program--CHIP--expires in less than 3 months. This bill extends and improves that program and makes the largest investment in children's health since the original CHIP law was enacted. It provides new outreach tools and bonus payments to states that find and enroll these children. The bill provides a new option to cover pregnant women in CHIP. It provides states the ability to ensure that children don't have to wait 5 years for health care just because they are legal immigrants residing in this country. This bill is not the end but the beginning of a health reform effort that will ensure all children and all Americans will have health care coverage. I urge my colleagues to support this bill. Let's send to incoming President Obama legislation that will make all the difference in the lives of millions of children across this Nation.

Mr. WAXMAN. Madam Speaker, I reserve a point of order.

Mr. WAXMAN

Mr. WAXMAN. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding. Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of H. Res. 34, a resolution that expresses solidarity with Israel in its efforts to defend itself from Hamas. The resolution also calls on the President to work for a durable and sustainable ceasefire, stresses the need to address the humanitarian situation in Gaza and emphasizes the importance of protecting innocent civilians to the maximum extent possible. The Hamas leadership has held the Palestinian people hostage to its terrorist aspirations. Peace negotiations have been stalled by its bloody coup against Fatah and Gaza is now in shambles because of its relentless rocket fire against Israel. If Israel is unable to stop Hamas from rearming again, hope will continue to fade for achieving an enduring two state solution with a democratic Jewish Israeli state living beside a viable, independent and democratic Palestinian state. In the summer of 2005 Israel disengaged from Gaza entirely, unilaterally removing settlements and military installations at a great financial and political cost. One year later Israel went to war with Hezbollah, despite the Israeli Army's complete disengagement from Southern Lebanon six years earlier. The Israeli people face a grim reality that Hamas and Hezbollah seek their destruction despite Israel's overtures of peace and tranquility. Although that does not mean Israel will not continue to take risks for peace, it is imperative that Israel and the United States continue to take all measures necessary to fight these terrorists and safeguard Israel's security.

Mr. WAXMAN

Mr. WAXMAN. Madam Speaker, I thank Representative Towns for bringing this bill to the floor. The outgoing Bush administration has an obsession with secrecy that has led it to weaken many of this country's open government laws. Our consideration of H.R. 35, the Presidential Records Act Amendments of 2009, is one important step toward undoing that damage. The bill revokes a Bush executive order, issued in November 2001, which gave broad new authority to Presidents and former Presidents to prevent the release of Presidential records. The order gave former Presidents the ability to pick and choose the records viewed by historians and to shape their legacy through the selective withholding of information. Under the Presidential Records Act of 1978, these records belong to the American people, not to the president who created them. Today's legislation restores the original intent of the Act and will lead to greater openness and improved understanding of presidential decision- making. This is not a partisan issue. Similar legislation was first introduced in 2001 by Rep. Burton. And two years ago, I introduced H.R. 1255 with Reps. Burton, Towns, and Platts. I thank them for working with me. The House passed that bill with a strong bipartisan majority. I urge all of my colleagues to support this bill today.

Mr. WAXMAN

Mr. WAXMAN. Madam Speaker, I thank Representative Towns for bringing this bill to the floor today. H.R. 36, the Presidential Library Donation Reform Act has a simple purpose. It requires that the organizations created to raise money for presidential libraries and their affiliated institutions disclose information about their donors. The lack of any such requirement creates opportunities for abuse. Under current law, anybody can give to these organizations anonymously, even while the President is still in office. These donations could be used to influence presidential decision-making with no public disclosure. This is not the first time this bill has come before the House. In 2001, Representative Duncan introduced similar legislation. I thank him for his early leadership on this issue. And in 2007, I introduced H.R. 1254 with Representatives Duncan, Clay, Platts, and Emanuel. That bill passed the House with an overwhelming majority in the last Congress. I urge my colleagues once again to support this straightforward legislation.