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WASHINGTON—U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, Vice-Chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, today issued the following statement regarding his support to help pass H.R. 6331, the Medicare Improvement for Patients and Providers Act of 2008. Unfortunately, immediately prior to the vote, the Democratic Majority blocked consideration of the Ensuring The Future Physician Workforce Act of 2008, (S.2729) a long-term solution to this problem, which Senator Cornyn introduced in March and sought to pass this afternoon.
“This has not been Congress’ finest hour. Once again, the Democratic-majority has done nothing more than kick the can down the road, avoided the tough decisions, and delayed consideration of a long term solution for yet another day. Congress should be embarrassed to have doctors and seniors come to Washington hat-in-hand every six months or twelve months or eighteen months. It puts people in fear that Congress will not act and it also provides opportunities for the type of partisan, political gamesmanship that we've seen in abundance over the last few weeks.
“Unfortunately, it’s clear we have run out of time on this particular debate. I do not support harmful cuts to doctors and patients, and will not allow these cuts to go forward. No one wants to fix this system and do away with the annual cuts that threaten doctors and beneficiaries more than I do. I am the only member of the Senate who has introduced a long-term fix to the broken repayment system this year. That is why I deeply regret the missed opportunity by the Majority to address the critical issue of protecting Medicare for future generations.
“I will continue to push for a permanent fix. Seniors, physicians and the American people deserve real solutions.”
Sen. Cornyn serves on the Armed Services, Judiciary and Budget Committees. In addition, he is Vice Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Ethics. He serves as the top Republican on the Judiciary Committee’s Immigration, Border Security and Refugees subcommittee and the Armed Services Committee’s Airland subcommittee. He served previously as Texas Attorney General, Texas Supreme Court Justice, and Bexar County District Judge.