Rep. John Kline (R-MN), the top Republican on the U.S. House Education and Labor Committee, issued the following statement today after Speaker Pelosi and congressional Democrats rushed through their massive $1.3 trillion overhaul of America’s health care system.
“Faced with the highest unemployment rate in almost three decades and a Washington spending spree that will saddle our children with insurmountable debt, Speaker Pelosi has put forth a government takeover of health care we cannot afford and do not need in order to fix what ails our health care system. The sheer size and scope of what congressional Democrats have proposed – more than 2,000 pages of new regulations, mandates, and tax hikes – make it clear that this is not about reforming health care but rather seizing control over one-sixth of the American economy. We need to look no further than the enormous power being bestowed upon the ‘Health Choices Commissioner’ – a new super-bureaucrat armed with unprecedented authority over the health care of all Americans.
“America’s small businesses will pay a particularly high cost, bearing the burden of Speaker Pelosi’s latest Washington power grab. On top of the hundreds of billions of dollars in new taxes and the unending maze of new bureaucracies and regulations, small businesses will now be subject to whatever Washington bureaucrats decide is ‘acceptable’ health insurance coverage. Should they be unable to afford what the Democrats demand, small businesses will be punished – an absurd notion that will kill jobs and further endanger our nation’s economy.
“At the core of Speaker Pelosi’s government takeover of health care are two false assumptions: the federal government – not patients and their doctors – should be the arbiter of health care decisions and there is no other means to reform our health care system. Common sense tells us the first is untrue. And proving that there is a better way, Republicans have offered a strong alternative to Speaker Pelosi’s government takeover. We have been steadfast in the pursuit of reforms that will lower the cost of health care, lower our nation’s debt, and save American families from additional taxes and mandates.”
NOTE: As part of the Pelosi government takeover of health care, congressional Democrats will impose:
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A 5.4 percent surtax on small businesses
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An eight percent payroll tax on all but the smallest businesses that do not provide coverage that meets Washington’s standards
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A taxpayer-funded, government-run plan that will increase health care costs for private employer-provided coverage and force millions of Americans to lose their current coverage
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$500 billion in cuts to Medicare – including $170 billion from Medicare Advantage that will disrupt health care coverage for millions of senior citizens
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118 new boards, commissions, offices, and programs that will build a bureaucratic maze Americans will have to navigate
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has reported that the Republican health care plan will lower Americans’ health care coverage premiums by up to 10 percent and reduce the deficit by $68 billion over the next decade. This plan will expand access to quality care by addressing the runaway cost of health care – the primary goal of health care reform.
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