Visiting with families around Greater Arizona, I’ve heard again and again that the rising cost of health care is one of their top concerns. Congress has made health care reform a high priority, and we need to be sure that whatever reforms we make are done the right way.
America is unique in so many ways, and we need a uniquely American health care plan that will acknowledge and build on what makes our country great. We cannot simply copy a system used somewhere else and expect it to work for us. We need to keep the parts of our current system that work and fix the parts that don’t, so that working families can continue to choose their own doctors and their own insurance without rising costs pricing them out of getting the care they need. We must also push insurance companies to live up to their end of the bargain and cover pre-existing conditions.
In addition, we need to make sure that our new system works for everyone, including our rural communities who are so often underserved under the current health care structure.
To serve these goals, I have decided to vote for H.R. 3962 - the health insurance reform bill that is currently being debated on the House floor. For more information, please click here to read my announcement. In an effort to help folks understand the impact of H.R. 3962 and my vote in favor of the bill, I have posted a series of summaries on how the legislation will affect Greater Arizona. You can view those summaries by clicking here. I also wanted to give you all a chance to see the bipartisan improvements that have been made to the current health insurance reform bill-please click here to find a side-by-side comparison.
You can join me in reading the full text of various health insurance reform bills currently being considered by Congress, which are posted below:
Read the text of H.R. 3962 - Affordable Health Care for America Act as Introduced
Read the text of the Manager’s Amendment to H.R 3962
Read the text of further amendments to H.R. 3962.
Read the text of H.R. 3961 - Medicare Physician Payment Reform Act of 2009
Read the text of H.R. 3590 - Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act
I know that many folks in the district are eager to discuss this issue further with me. That's why I held a tele-town hall in which almost than 1,800 Arizonans participated on July 27, and another on August 20 in which more than 3,300 listened in. and I will continue to get feedback from people back home and help turn your opinions into good policy. You can e-mail me with your questions and comments on health insurance reform here.
