|
|
U.S.
Senator Member: Agriculture, Energy, Veterans' Affairs, Ethics and Aging Committees |
|
|
|
||
|
For Immediate
Release May 12, 2006 |
CONTACT: Cody Wertz – Comm. Director 303-455-7600 Andrew Nannis – Press Secretary 202-224-5852 |
|
|
Washington, D.C. – “Health Care is our Nation’s number one domestic issue. Nearly 800,000 Coloradans are uninsured, and all families struggle with increasing costs for health care, even when they have access. Yet, over the years, Washington has done little to solve the problem. “I want to provide quality health insurance to Coloradans, including those who work in small businesses. However, as written, I cannot support S. 1955 because it throws out state consumer protection laws and leaves employees without vital health care coverage for mammograms, prostate cancer screenings, diabetic supplies, emergency care and well-baby care, and without basic health care services they need when they get sick. Indeed, 41 Attorneys General urged vigorously that the Senate oppose S. 1955. Those Attorneys General included many of my esteemed former Republican and Democratic Attorneys General. “I will continue to work on this issue to find the right solutions for small businesses’ health insurance. For example, yesterday I convened a meeting on the issue with several organizations supporting the bill, including the National Federation of Businesses, the National Association of Realtors, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the associated Builders and Contractors, the National Retail Federation and the Coca Cola Bottler’s Association. My goal is to find a common ground solution that would enable small business employees to obtain quality insurance that truly protects them when they get sick and provides important preventive measures that keep people well and save money. “The Congress and the President must continue to work to find comprehensive solutions, not band-aid approaches that fail to provide health care that saves peoples’ lives. To help break the logjam in Washington, I am working on a national commission, like the 9-11 Commission, to undertake a fresh review of health care in the U.S. with one goal: finding the best ideas for real solutions for the millions of Americans trapped in this Nation’s health care crisis.” ###
|
||
