about who will have the power to shape our children for the next four years of their lives. it's also about the kind of country we want to be and what we want to leave behind for future generations. people have to decide, are we going to make our economy work for everyone or just those at the top? are we going to bring people together or pit americans against each other and rip our country apart? are we going to work with our allies to keep us safe or are we going to put a loose cannon in charge who would risk everything, generations of americans worked so hard to build? now, i have a lot of confidence in the american people and in our country. my opponent keeps running us down saying we're weak, a disaster, an embarrassment. every time he says things like that i think about janelle and her strength in the face of

cancer, or martha and sarah in the face of their health challenges and that little boy in flint who gets up every day and goes to school even though he can't drink the water. see, my opponent has america all wrong. there's nothing we can't do when we come together as one nation. set a goal and pursue them. [cheers and applause] secretary clinton: and the american dream -- the american dream is big enough for everyone to share in its promise. so if you believe the minimum wage should be a living wage, that no one who works full time should have to raise their children in poverty, join us. if you believe that every man, woman and child in america has the right to affordable health care and women should be free to make our own health decisions, join us! [cheers and applause]

secretary clinton: if you believe -- if you believe your working mother, wife, sister or daughter deserves equal pay, then join us! get involved these last 55 days. go to hillaryclinton.com or text join, j-o-i-n, to 47246. we need volunteers right here in north carolina. we can't do this without you. and remember, the presidential race isn't the only one this fall. we have got a lot of important statewide races. let's come together and send deborah ross to represent the people in the senate. starting on october 20, you can register and vote early at the same time at any one-stop early voting site in your county. so the heat is on. spread the word.

tell your friends, your family, your neighbors. if you share our vision for america's future, come be part of helping us shape it. we do not have a minute to lose. we have so many blessings. now it's our job to deliver on those and to make sure every single person and particularly every child, no matter who they are, what they look like or who they love is part of the american dream now and way into the future! [applause] secretary clinton: let that be our message, let that be our mission. please come out and help us fight, fight for you, fight for our children, fight for our family, let's make america all that it should be. thank you and god bless you. [cheers and applause]

>> ♪ i feel good i knew that i would so good so good i got you i feel nice like sugar and spice i feel nice like sugar and spice so nice so nice ♪got you ♪ ♪ when i told you in my arm i know that i can do no wrong and when i hold you in my arm my love will do you no harm and i feel nice like sugar and spice

i feel nice like sugar and spice so nice so nice i got you ♪ ♪ ♪ when i hold you in my arm i know that i can do no wrong and when i hold you in my arm my love can't do me no harm and i feel nice like sugar and spice i feel nice like sugar and spice so nice so nice i got you i feel good i knew that i would now

i feel good i knew that i would so good so good i got you so good so good i got you ♪ so good so good ♪got you ♪ [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2016] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] ♪

secretary clinton: it is great to be back on the trail, back in north carolina. greensboro to give a positive personal speech about my vision for the future of our , and why i so strongly believe we are actually stronger together, because i want to give a americans something to vote for, not just something to vote against. with all the noise and distraction, it is important to focus on what really matters, and the real choice in this election. this is about the kind of country we want to be, whether we will make the economy work for everybody, and not just for those at the top, whether we will think people together or americans against each other, whether we will work with our allies to keep a safe or a loose cannon in charge who would risk everything. i am going to close my campaign

focused on kids and an opportunity for families. it has been the cause of my life and will be the passion of my presidency. we are offering ideas, not insults. plans that will make a real difference in peoples lives, not prejudice and inouye. as you know, -- and paranoia. as you know, my opponent is running a very different kind of campaign. is a pastor inet flint, michigan, who respectfully asked him to not use her that for political attacks. he called her a nervous mess. it is not only insulting, it is dead wrong. she is not a nervous mess, she is a rock or her community in trying times. she deserves better than that, and flint deserves better. in fact, sodas america. i am going to keep working -- so does america.

i honestly believe there is so much more that unites us than divides us. i believe with all our hearts that the american dream is big enough for everyone to share in its promise. i am determined to be a president for democrats, republicans, and independents, for all americans to release -- to really roll up our sleeves and make a positive difference in people's lives. with that, i would be happy to answer your questions. reflecting are home these last three days, [indiscernible] is there anything you should be doing differently? secretary clinton: i have always said this was going to be a tight race. i have set up from the beginning -- when i was up, down, it didn't matter. i think those are the kinds of presidential elections we have in america. at this point in our history.

i am out of of the campaign we have put together. proud like we are -- i am of the campaign we have put together. what matters is the people who register to vote and are mobilized and motivated to turn out to vote. i'm going to keep doing everything i can to deliver my message on what is at stake in this election. my campaign will work hard to turn out every voter we possibly can. that is our goal, and that is our strategy. clinton, the deal go shaded in sierra -- negotiated for the cease-fire in syria seems to be in trouble. i think that i want to know if canthink the agreement hold, and what the next step for the united states should be. secretary clinton: this has been such a terrible conflict, and

the humanitarian cost is incalculable. i really applaud secretary kerry's system effort to try to reach some kind of -- secretary kerry's persistent effort to try to reach some kind of agreement to have a. of cessation of hostilities to get humanitarian assistance into a and other aleppowithin syria -- and other places within syria. i think whether this works is up to the russians. it is up to whether vladimir putin decides whether it is time to do with the russians can do to bring this conflict into a -- forwhere they can be there can be the beginning of political discussions, a hope hopedst a hope for -- a

for protected zone for people who are under relentless assault from the air. am going to watch this closely , but the end of it is going to be determined by whether or not the russians decide it is in their interests to pursue this agreement. it appears that your running mate, tim kaine, my net debt might not have been aware of your pneumonia on friday. if you did not inform him on friday, what does that say about what your relation it would be with him in the white house, on what you would know of the minute to minute decisions of your ministration. informationinton: was provided. that manyn ailment people just power through, and

that is what i thought i would do as well. i did not want to stop, i did not want to quit campaigning. i certainly did not want to miss the 9/11 memorial. at the time, i consider it a sacred moment, and i was determined to get there. , so i got work out the antibiotics up and going, got the rest of that i needed, and we are going on from there. >> [indiscernible]

secretary clinton: i communicated with tim. i talked to him again last night. he has been a great partner, and he is going to be a great vice president. we communicated. we have communicated. i am not going to go into our personal conversations, and i feel very comfortable and confident about our relationship, and i really look forward to working with him. >> can you be a little more specific about what those defenses are that you are referring to? -- aoters get a sense glimpse and that in your behavior surrounding your illness over the weekend? secretary clinton: my campaign

has said that i could be fast -- that we could be faster, and i agree. i expect them to be as focused and as quick as possible. from myo say perspective, i thought i was going to be fine, and i thought there was not really any reason to make a big fuss about it. i should have taken time off earlier, i didn't, but now i have an i am back on the campaign trail. [inaudible] >> why are you making that sort of calculated choice to take time off of the campaign trail? secretary clinton: i think it is constantlyo be

reaching out, listening to, , and i wasom leaders pleased to be able to find the time to meet with several of them, which i intend to do. to hear firsthand their perspective about what they see happening in the world today. to answer their questions from what i think is happening, whether it is in syria, or anywhere else. there is a lot going on in the world. i have a long-standing set of nottionships that go back only to secretary of state and senator, but back to first lady, and i think it is important to tend to those relationships. i won't have as many meetings because of the press of the campaign as i have had in prior years, but i'm looking forward to the ones we are scheduling. thank you all. for therow on the road

white house, donald trump will appear at his new hotel at washington, d.c., the trump international, just blocks from the white house. 10:00 a.m.e that at eastern on friday on c-span. michelle obama will stump for hillary clinton. she will speak in fairfax, virginia for the democratic nominee very what's that their clock p.m. eastern -- nominee. 3:00 p.m. eastern. this afternoon, hillary clinton to travel -- hillary clinton traveled to washington dc and joined heller -- and when president obama in addressing the his amick caucus -- the hispanic caucus. ♪

[applause] president obama: it is always great to be here with one of the , maybe a little caucuses in congress. give it up for your outstanding chair.

president and ceo domenica lynch , and all the incredible public service that we have tonight. amen? is that what i heard? amen. that i'mt to admit having trouble accepting that this is my final year as president. but on the bright side, michelle is -- is not having trouble accepting it. i love you too. it is hard to believe that it was eight years ago that i came here as a candidate for this office. hair, i said that we could create opportunity not just for those at the top come a but everybody that is willing to work hard, so they can afford

health care and college and retirement, and give their kids a better life. that "hopey-alled changey" stuff. tonight i am back here as president to say thank you. thank you for your support, thank you for your friendship, thank you for your tireless efforts to deliver on that promise. [applause] secretary clinton: 4 -- president obama: for all the places we have fallen short, and for all the work that remains to tonight i am back here more optimistic about the future of america than i have ever been. and why not? together, we fought our way back from the worst recession in 80 years. we turned around an economic freefall, we helped lift our auto industry to set new records

, our businesses have created more than 15 million new jobs. today, health care is not a privilege but a right for everybody. we have secured health insurance for another 20 million americans, including 4 million hispanic americans. our high school graduation rate is at an all-time high and more hispanic students are graduating high school and college than ever before. we have strengthened our relationship mexico and central america, and opened up a new chapter with the people of cuba. [applause] we broughtbama: nearly 200 nations together around a climate agreement that could save our planet. that love has no limits and marriage equality is now the law of the land. [applause] just this week,

we discovered how much our efforts are starting to pay off in ways that really matter to american families. thanks, obama. [laughter] president obama: we learned that race,ear, across every across every age group of america, income rose and poverty fell. incomeical household $2800, which is the biggest one-year increase on record. we lifted more people out of sincey that any year 1968. the number of americans without health insurance continues to fall, and in each of these areas, latino americans made some of the largest gains.

the fastest income drop -- the fastest income growth, the greatest gains in insurance coverage. all, hispanicl in families are feeling more optimistic about their prospects today than they did eight years ago. [applause] by so manybama: measures, our country is stronger and more prosperous than it was when we started this journey together. we could not have done it without the congressional hispanic caucus, who has been with me every step of the way. none of this was easy. there were some tough years and there. fiscal showdowns and government shutdowns and pandemics and oil spills and pirates. dear member the pirates -- do you remember the pirates? the i think you haven't had a deal with his asteroids, aliens. -- the only thing you haven't

had to deal with is asteroids, aliens. shouldn't have mentioned the aliens. [applause] secretary clinton: -- president obama: we overcame all that. ,hange doesn't happen overnight it doesn't happen in one term, it doesn't even happen in the course of one presidency. change is possible, progress is possible. we are here again tonight because we know that we have more work to do, but we know that if we put in the effort, change can happen. you know firsthand the ,hallenges we still face challenges that often affect latino communities harshly. when governors refused to expand medicaid, that hits latino communities harder than most. when governors block raises to

minimum wage and refuse to pay that- the family leave, hits the pocketbooks of latino families. we need to make sure this reaches all americans. we have to help more students not just get to college, but finish college. we have to reform our criminal justice system, and we have to protect our children from the madness of gun violence. yes, we have to finally make meaningful, effective immigration reform a reality in this country. [applause] president obama: i am proud of the executive action i have taken to modernize our system. i am proud of the work we have done to show the more than 700 740,000were's -- dreamers that they are worthy of this country's blessings, just

like your kids, just like my kids. [applause] president obama: but if we are truly going to fix this broken system, then we are going to have to back together against buster and falsehoods and promises of higher walls. we need a solution that works for our families and businesses, that grows our economy, that enhances our culture. upholdsan approach that us as a nation of immigrants and a nation of laws, and it is possible to do that. it is possible to exist on an orderly system, but still seeing families and students not as criminals, but as people came here to work and to build a better life. [applause] president obama: look,

throughout this political season , the talk around these issues has cut deeper than in years past. it is a little more personal. i little meaner, a little uglier. folks are betting that if they apart,ve us far enough and if they can down enough of us because of where we come from or what we look like or what religion we practice, then that may pay off at the polls. but i'm telling you that they are going to lose. kind ofseen this ugliness and anger in israel before, that kind of politics may carry the day in the short term. a lot of folks have this notion of what the real america looks includes aow it only few of us.

decide -- going to tot to -- but who is going decide what the real america is? who is to determine that in this nation of immigrants, in a nation where, unless you are a native american, you came here from someplace else -- [applause] secretary clinton: that's president obama: that you have a greater claim than anyone here. so we cannot let that brand of politics win. if we band together and if we organize our communities, if we thever enough votes, then better angels of our nature will carry the day and progress will happen. but it will take all of us. this is not something a president can do alone.

not something the next president will be able to do alone either. no matter how tough she is. [cheers] we have to work to get a congress that is willing to act on immigration reform. that means we need more than just the people in this room. we will need some fresh faces under the capitol dome. it is going to take work on all of our parts. i have faith. every time i have fallen short or faced doubts or been taught a tough lesson or expansion loss, what got me through it has been you. you have picked me up. it is knowing i have allies like linda and rubin and charlie fighting tooth and nail on the hill and back in the home states even on tough votes. it is knowing that you are fostering the next generation of leaders, including more than 40

of your fellows that have helped lead the way in my administration. [cheers] it is knowing through doing -- you are doing folks like diego -- giving folks like diego a chance. [cheers] there he is, back there. when he was seven years old, he moved to arkansas from mexico with his parents. his dad took a job preparing and building wooden pallets. which is a lot of hard work. his dad opened up his own business a few years later. diego was waking up at 5:00 a.m. working through high school. they do not have a lot of money but they had belief. if you come here and work hard, eventually you will succeed. today, thanks to daka, diego is

the first in his family to graduate college. [cheers] now he is a fellow here at chci and one day he was to go into government himself and make things that are for not just latino kids, but every single person in the united states. it is young people like that could keep me going. folks who prove that immigrants aren't changing the american character, but they are the american character. [cheers] the dreamer is full of optimism. moms and dads working long hours to give the kids a better shot. entrepreneurs who came here to start new businesses and put americans to work. the teachers and nurses and lawyers who wake up at the crack of dawn to get ahead. the folks who clean up after us

and the folks who care for our grandparents. [applause] the folks who are so proud of this country that they carry a pocket constitution in their breast pocket. that is the america i know. thank you for picking me up every step of the way. thank you for making this country great. we have more work to do. we will keep on making progress and create a brighter future for everybody. in this country that we love. si se puede. thank you. thank you, chci. god bless you and god bless the united states of america. [cheers] ♪

>> ladies and gentlemen, to guest, pleasew welcome back, congresswoman linda sanchez. ♪ >> good evening. are you having a good time? [cheers] excellent. tonight, i have the privilege of introducing a truly inspiring leader. a woman that i have great respect and admiration for. someone who exemplifies what it means to be a modern woman. simply put, she is bad ass. [cheers] from providing health care to

millions of children and fighting public schools -- segregation, hillary clinton worked relentlessly to achieve meaningful progress. she has done all of this and much more under a constant barrage of petty attacks from those who are intimidated by her intelligence and ability. [cheers] throughout it all, her commitment to a better future of this country has never wavered. she believes that our country's best days are ahead of us, not behind us. her health care bill for children helped cover countless latino children and think to that law, our kids are stronger and healthier. her support of immigration reform opens a past to the american dream for all people in this country to work hard and

contribute to their communities everything a day. -- every single day. hillary clinton has helped laze trails and rejected the status quo for women all across the country. she has empowered the next generation to dream bigger and achieve more. soon, latinas like my nieces will see the highest glass ceiling come crashing down when we swear in our next and first female president. [cheers] that is why i'm with her. hillary clinton's vision of success does not discriminate. that is something that cannot be said about her opponent. her opponent has ignorantly and relentlessly attacked our community. his poisonous rhetoric inspires in all the wrong ways encouraging kids to bully latino students.

he has not gone just after immigrants, he went after it distinguished american judge who was mexican. in his eyes, we will never be american enough. i believe the results of this election will impact the trajectory of our country and have lasting impacts for the latino community. the choices could not be clearer. democracy is not a spectator sport. we must get in the game. join me in welcoming back our friend, hillary clinton. [cheers] ♪

mrs. clinton: hello! [cheers] hello, chci. [cheers] it is so great to be back here with so many friends and to see so many young people here because that fits the theme this year, educate, engage, vote.

i can't think of better merchant -- marching orders for the next 54 days. anyone who just heard the congresswoman know that we cannot be on the sidelines. this is the most consequential election in our lifetime. i want to recognize the institute for all that you did to inspire the next generation of latino leaders. [cheers] last year, i had the chance to spend time with some of the chci interns and fellas. it was like seeing the future of america in one room. i can't wait to see everything that they achieve and i can't wait if i'm fortunate to be president to put some of them to work. [cheers] i want to thank all of my friends in the congressional hispanic caucus. you fight every single day to lift up the latino community.

when the cameras are rolling and when the cameras are off. at home in your districts and inside washington. no one understands better than you the pivotal moment we are at. not just for latinos but for our country. my friends in the caucus have traveled to every battleground state. registered voters. you stay focused the matter what kind of outlandish comments we have heard from my opponent and his supporters. by the way, i personally think a taco truck on every corner sounds absolutely delicious. [cheers] here is a confession, running for president is never easy.

it should not be. right? tonight, i have the ultimate challenge, speaking after president obama. he is always a tough act to follow. in more ways than one. i for one don't think the president gets the credit he deserves for rescuing our economy from another great depression. [applause] think of what we've achieved these last eight years. american businesses have created 15 million new jobs since the recession. 20 million americans have health coverage. no one has seen a bigger drop in uninsured rates under the affordable care act them latino americans. [applause] we got more good news this week.

a report came out showing that poverty is going down and incomes for american families are going up and latino families have seen the biggest increase of all. that does not mean we rest on our laurels by any stretch. our work is far from finished. i am more confident than ever that our best days are still ahead. i believe with all my heart that the american dream is alive and it is big enough for everyone to share its promise. [applause] that does not mean that lots of people are still not hurting. because i know they are. when you hear a presidential candidate doing bigotry and hate, it is easy to get discouraged.

we are here because we know the election is a choice between not just two people, that two very different visions for america's future. either we are going to make our economy for for everyone or just those at the top. either we're going to fear our differences or embrace and celebrate our diversity. either we're going to pit americans against each other and deepen the divide were going to be stronger together. [cheers]

today, as you know, we are in the midst of hispanic care tips month. in classrooms across america, children will study cesar chavez, joaquin castro, justice sotomayor, roberto clemente. gloria estefan and countless others. [cheers] names we know and things we may not know. every one of whom has enriched this country for generations. whether you are mexican, puerto rican, latin american, afro latino, whether your family just arrived or has been here since the united states even existed, you are not strangers.

you are not intruders. you are our neighbors, colleagues, friends, families. you make our nation stronger, smarter, more creative. i want you to know that i see you and i am with you. when we invest in the community and make it possible for latinas to get the health care you need, the education you desire, compete for jobs, start new businesses, pursue your dreams, all of america benefits. as i said this afternoon, we are in the final stretch of the election. i intend to close my campaign the way i began my career. fighting for kids and families. that has been the cause of my life and it will be the passion of my presidency. [cheers] tonight, i want to mention two

things i will do. help families every corner of america. first, we need to create an economy that works for everyone, not just those at the top. there is something wrong when latinos are 17% of our country's population but hold only 2% of the wealth. we have to work together to connect more latinos with good jobs that pay good wages. with more opportunities to get the skills they need to go to college, to launch new ventures, to build wealth that can be passed on to your kids and grandkids. we are going to make in my first 100 days the biggest investment in new, good paying jobs since world war ii. jobs and infrastructure, manufacturing, technology, clean energy. we are going to cut red tape and taxes and expand access to capital for small businesses,

including the latino owned small businesses that create so many jobs and so much growth to communities everywhere. [applause] i want to give a particular shout out to latina small business owners. [cheers] not everyone knows this, but you are among the fastest growing group of entrepreneurs in america. we are going to put families first with new solutions that reflect the way people live and work today. supporting families with paid family leave, earned sick days and affordable childcare. it is not a luxury, it is a necessity. when families are strong, america is strong. that brings me to another important family issue.

in those first 100 days, i will send a proposal for comprehensive immigration reform to the congress. [cheers] my proposal will keep families together and it will include a path to citizenship. i know this is not the first time you have heard it. people have been making the same promise for more than a decade. i believe that some things are too important to give up on. i have been called a lot of things, i've never been called a quitter.

in this election, we have a chance to show that comprehensive immigration reform isn't just the smart thing to it is what the american people demand. you know how we will show that? i hope to have a democratic congress next january. [applause] on my first day in office, i will reach out to republicans and say, this is your chance. this is your chance to help millions of families and show that your party, the party of lincoln is better than donald trump. [cheers] while we are fighting for comprehensive immigration reform, we are going to keep families together. when the deadlocked supreme court put dapa and put daka on hold for immigrants, but the court did not rule on the

substance of the case. as i have said, repeatedly, i believe dapa and expanded daka are within the president's authority. i will protect them and keep fighting for them. in addition to defending them, there is more we can do. we need to have a simple, straightforward system where other people with sympathetic cases who are contributing to their communities can make their case. and be eligible for deferred action. people with experience and report extreme labor abuses. we will not stop there. we are going to end family detention, close private detention facilities and stop the raids and roundups. [cheers]

no child should have to say goodbye to their parents every morning not knowing if their mom or dad be there when they get home. here is the bottom line, comprehensive immigration reform will not only be the right thing to do, but it will add $700 billion to our economy and enable america to be what it has always been, a place where people from around the world can come to reunite with families, start new businesses, pursue their dreams, apply their talents to the growth of america. this has been a long road and we would not be where we are today without your persistence and the quiet courage of families in every state of our union. we certainly would not be here without the bravery of the young women and men who have risked a very place in the united states by coming forward and fighting for their future and the future

of millions of others. they helped change the conversation. when president obama created daka, it changed their lives. 750,000 undocumented young people are going to school working and planning for their future. they are dreamers. much more than name. i have met so many come i have listened to the stores. they have done everything we have asked of them. they made our country stronger in return. when donald trump promises to rip that all away on day one, when he promises to round up and deport all of the 16 million people living and working among us, including american citizen children who were born to do parents who were undocumented, these are the faces i see. i picture astrid silva who i met in las vegas.

many of you know her story. she came to this country from mexico at the age of four with nothing but a doll. now she is in her 20's. advocating for the rights of immigrants everywhere. i picture a young man i never met. whose high school teacher wrote to me a few months ago to share his story. his teacher told me that this former student was funny, enthusiastic and patriotic. he played the drums in the school marching band. after graduation, he proudly enlisted in the u.s. army. before shipping off to iraq, he stopped by the school so everyone could see him in his uniform. he was, as respectful and

optimistic as any student who entered my classroom, said the teacher. he was also a dreamer. brought here as an document the -- brought here as an undocumented child. he hoped one day to earn his citizenship. in april, 2007, while on a mission in baghdad, he was killed by improvised explosive device. he was just 19. the army called him a hero and he was posthumously granted the american citizenship he'd always wanted. all these years later -- [applause] his teacher still treasures his memory.

this teacher wanted me to know, he wanted me to know that despite what donald trump may say, immigrants are not rapists and criminals. the truth is -- [cheers] this young man may not have been born here, but he represented the best values of our country. [cheers] we teach our children that america is one nation, under god, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. not just for people who look a certain way or worship a certain way, for all. everywhere i go, people tell me how concerned they are by the extreme policies and divisive rhetoric they've heard from my

opponent. the racist lie about mexican immigrants that launched his presidential campaign. his racist attacks on a federal judge. every time we think he has hit rock bottom, he sinks even lower. his target, a minister in flint, michigan who respectfully asked him not to use her pulpit for political attacks. he called her a nervous mess. how insulting. how dead wrong. she is not a nervous mess. she is a rock for her. community. she deserves better and so does america. [applause] again, today, he did it.

he was asked, one more time, where was president obama born? and he still would not say hawaii. he still would not say america. this man wants to be our next president. when will he stop this ugliness? this bigotry? he has tried to reset himself and his campaign many times. this is the best he can do. this is who he is. we need to decide who we are. if we just sigh and shake our heads and accept this, then what does that tell our kids about who we are? we need to stand up and

repudiate this divisive rhetoric, we need to stop him conclusively in november in an election that sends a message that even he can hear. we need to set the kind of example we want for ourselves and children and grandchildren. parents and teachers are already worried about what they are calling the trump affect. bullying and harassment are on the rise in our schools. especially targeting students of color, muslims and immigrants. at a high school basketball game, white students held up trumps signs and taunted latino players on the opposing team with chants of build the wall and speak english. donald trump is running the most divisive campaign of our lifetime.

his message is that you should be afraid. afraid of people whose race or ethnicity is different or whose religious faith is different or who were born in a different country. there is no innuendo. it is all right out there in the open. we have got to come back twice as strong and twice as clear. just this week, a mother in florida wrote to me about her 11-year-old son, francisco. he is proud to be american, ecuadorian and puerto rican. [cheers] as he calls it, a potluck of hispanic heritage. francisco has been following the election very closely. he wears his love trump hate pain every day and refuses to take it off.

when his father warned him that that might make him a target for bullies, francisco looked his father in the eye and said, i was always told to stand up for myself and what i believe in. i believe trump is wrong. good for you, francisco. that is what we have to do in the election. [applause] that is what so many of you have done already. stand up to the bullying and bigotry wherever it comes from. we must send a resounding message and we need to inspire a level of turnout that will help us win up and down the ticket. we set an ambitious goal of registering and committing 3 million people to vote in this election that would not have

otherwise voted. we can't do it without you. nearly half of latinos in america are under 35 and we need you to show up and make your voices heard in this election. [applause] we are going to keep asking for your help. keep hitting the campaign trail. please come and talk to your friends, your neighbors, the community. everyone you see between now and november 8. tell them to go to hillary clinton.com or text join to 47246. this election is too important for anyone to sit on the sidelines as we have heard from congresswoman sanchez. let's stand up for a future where we put families first, where we build bridges, not walls. together, we can prove that love trumps hates. thank you all very much. [cheers] ♪ [applause] ♪

>> c-span's washington journal, live every day with news and policy issues that impact you. coming up this morning, a look at hillary clinton and donald

trump campaign donations, medical histories and more with campaign legal policy center director maryland mcgehee. will talk about donald trump's global financial web and the finances of the global clinton initiative. join the discussion. several state insurance commissioners visited capitol hill yesterday to talk about rising health care premiums and the consolidation of insurance companies. they testified before the homeland security commission. this is about two and a half hours.

>> good morning. order.ting will come to the subject is the state of the health insurance markets. of ourto thank all witnesses for your thoughtful testimony and for traveling here. we have beautiful weather here. i really do appreciate you coming here on a very important subject. the truth of the matter is the run for decided to united states senate was because of the health care law. i come from the private sector are. i understand marketplaces and what works and what does not. i was concerned about the harmful effect on real people that the affordable care act would have. problem that all of us have had in evaluating the affordable care act is the complexity of the data. there is not just one overall

metric you can point to and say -- it is not working. there are some metrics, some powerful ones. so, absent that very simplistic type of metric to evaluate the success or failure, i think probably the best way of doing this is the way you would evaluate any kind of product or program. i come from the private sector. managers would say -- this is what we can expect if we invest this kind of money. the best way to take a look at this will be to start with my opening statement. i would like to enter it into the record. it is literally to take a look at what the promises that were made and how those promises -- were those promises fulfilled or not? there were three primary promises made before considering, debating, discussing, and finally passing the patient protection affordable care act.

the first one was pretty famous. this was from president obama. he made this promise 31 times. if you like your health care plan, you will be able to keep it. you will be able to keep it. well, there are all kinds of figures, how many millions of americans actually lost their health care plans. i have seen it as high as 8 million. but let us go conservative and stick with the urban institute. their most recent study says about 2.6 million americans lost their health care plan. in wisconsin, we had something called the high risk pool. everyone involved in the writing of the patient protection affordable care plan new that high risk of would be eliminated. there are more than 20,000 citizens of wisconsin in the high risk pool. the authors of obamacare new

those individuals were going to lose their health insurance plans. i had a couple early on, this was in fall of 2000 eight, called me in a panic. his wife had stage for lung cancer and he was being treated for prostate cancer. they obviously weren't losing their high risk pool plant. $700 for theirg insurance which was very competitive. they try to get on healthcare.gov almost 40 times and could not. that was a disaster. they finally called our office seeking help. we did guide them to some insurance companies that were going to be on those exchanges. the cheapest plan they could find was $1400. that couple lost their health

care plan contrary to president obama's repeated promise that that would not happen. the second guarantee -- that means that no matter how we reform health care, we will keep this promise to the american -- if you like your doctor, you will be able to keep your dock your. -- you will be able to keep your doctor. i don't think anyone would stand up to say that is true. we had a couple in marionette who lost their doctor. i want to read a quick quote. affordy plan they could under obamacare meant they would for the doctor they had had over 15 years. and their quote was -- now, i have to see a physician i have never even met. broken promise number two. the third most famous promise

was as a candidate, president obama repeated -- in an obama administration, we will lower to $2500 for a typical family in a year. 2008, according to kaiser foundation, the average family was paying about $12,680 a year. the latest figure shows an paying overly $5,000 more. since the president made that promise. you can look year by year that was the largest increase. but even from 2013, the implementation, it was 16,351. there is still almost a $2000 increase across the board. the average family has not seen

$2500 per year reduction in the health care i have specific examples. janice from spooner, wisconsin wrote to me and said prior to obamacare, she was paying $276 per month for health care. her latest quote was almost $900. -- a youngung woman mother who was a nurse. her husband operated in the hvac industry. they both were working and loved their jobs but because of the increase in premiums -- they went from $500 a month to $1200 a month. the only way they could afford insurance, they were having to buy it on the individual market. the only way they could afford insurance was if she quit her job to lower their income and of so they could qualify for the subsidy.

broken promise number three. the really sad part about this is that this was known. authors, the people who supported obamacare had to know that those promises could never be cap. ofant to quote the number quotes by jonathan gruber who was certainly one of the individuals involved in the authoring of obamacare. architects ofmany obamacare. about theking cadillac tax. here is his quote. the insurance company, they pass on higher prices and that offsets the taxes. --e is the important quote ofis a basic exploitation the lack of economic understanding of the american voter. he went on to talk about the catlike tax.

he said americans were too stupid to know the difference. he also said the lack of transparency is a huge political advantage. and called the stupidity of the what was critical to get the thing to pass. that is a pretty sad state of affairs. but that is the truth. that is what happened. wonder -- we have got some agencies in the federal government. one set up under dodd-frank, called the consumer financial protection bureau. we also have the ftc. to take a look at consumer fraud. trying to protect consumers. whatt wonder -- i wonder

kind of enforcement action they would take against an insurance company that sold a product and said -- once you buy this thing, it you will be able to renew this forever. if you like this plan, you can keep it. and then in the fine print, that is not true. in addition, they said this insurance plan allows you to keep your doctor. -- in the fine print says not if that doctor is not part of the network that we will cover. and if you buy this health care plan, whatever you were paying will gor, your premium down $2500 and instead it went up $1700 or $5,000. i just wonder what these federal regulatory agencies would do. let me be clear about what this administration did. it was a massive consumer fraud.

obamacare was a massive consumer fraud. we will be taking a look at that today. i will be asking the deputy commissioner of insurance from wisconsin. i want to thank the witnesses for coming. this should be very interesting. law is costing american taxpayers a lot of money. we all want people to be covered by health care. we all want people to have access and get high quality insurance. but we did not have to completely remake the insurance and health care markets to fill that gap. and help those individuals who we all want to help. i think we will see that this is not working and those promises were not lived up to. then, i want to thank witnesses and so i will turn it over to senator carper. senator carper: welcome to one and all.

ohio? from i used to think delaware was north of columbus and then i learned it was a state. you all today. after noon today, a handful of senators, republicans and democrats will gather in a room. something we do almost every thursday we are in session. take part in a bible study led by a guy who used to be rear admiral in the navy. he is our senate chaplain. democrats and republicans amazingly sit there, and read, the scripture. we pray together. we share things together and talk about all kinds of things. during these conversations, chaplain lack will ask how our

faith should guide us. in the work that we do here and at home. it is a good question. it is a really good question. usost every week, he reminds of the two greatest commandments -- love our neighbors as ourselves, treat other people the way we want to be treated. he reminds us of matthew 25 which reminds us to focus on the least of these in our communities. when i was hungry, did you feed me? when i was naked, did you close me? when i -- clothe me? when i was a stranger in your land, did you take the in? -- did you take me in? matthew 25 does not say however the following things -- when my

only source of health care was a crowded emergency room, did you help me? 25 does not say -- when i turned 22 and can no longer be covered by mike p or its health care, were you there for me? it doesn't say when i could not afford the medicine that would enable me to hold down a job, did you lend a helping hand? and it does not say -- when i was denied health insurance, because i was a woman of childbearing age, the insurance covered and -- cost an arm and a leg. have an obligation to treat other people the way we want to be treated and we also have an thesetion to the least of that live on among us.

i believe that, and i think most of these colleagues believe that. and because our nations budget it it isas gone down, still too large and we need to meet our responsibility to the least of these in ways that are fiscally responsible. just about every american president since harry truman has thought ways to do just that. they believed in their hearts that when people were self -- were sick, they ought to be able to see a doctor within a reasonable period of time. i am sure that most americans believe that. do?does it prove so hard to it reminds me of what my mom and dad said -- the hardest things to do are the things most worth doing. this is a really hard thing to do.

our efforts can be turned into a 32nd commercial and used as political weapons against presidents or members of congress. i will be the first to a knowledge of the affordable care act is not perfect. i am not perfect, none of us are. this locking clearly be improved. when the election is over, we need to go to work to do just that. stop carping about that. carping is one of my favorite verbs. [laughter] wayst to mention a couple how obamacare has saw to help americans. by participating in large purchasing pools, not unlike

those that federal employees have participated in four decades. it helps ease marketplaces grow. and insurance companies are not left with a pool of people to ensure. room today, there are witnesses and members of congress who represent among others delaware, washington, wisconsin, and more. the rate of people without insurance in our states has grown i almost half since the respective target places have opened. these life-changing effects are not only being felt in our states. the affordable care act, has allowed 20 million americans have health care that did not have it before. less thanred rate is 9%. americans have access to free,

preventive services like cancer screenings. the vast majority of people in the marketplace purchase their insurance for less than $100 a month. been realizedhas by extending at the same time the light of the medicare trust fund by 11 years. i find it more than a little ironic that we have been deadlocked for many years over a built on a couple of sound republican ideas. health insurance marketplaces and the individual mandate. to my friends on the other side of the aisle, your willingness to walk away from the policies that your party once championed is dumbfounding to me especially when the same policies were enabling us to make a positive difference in the quality of life are so many americans. a quick refresher. republican presidential nominee governor mitt romney revolutionized health care in ansachusetts by creating

insurance marketplace and requiring citizens to eventually obtain coverage. these ideas go back further. in 1993, republican senator john chafee introduced legislation that proposed in individual mandate and the establishment of insurance purchasing pools. they look a lot like the affordable care act. there were some republican -- 20 republican cosponsors in the senate. that was in 2009. instead of coming to the table, pursuing a productive discussion about how we could expand access to health care for millions of americans in the end, senate republicans as we chose not to engage. the president and the rest of us soldiered on and we finally passed this law that we at knowledge is not perfect but better than doing nothing. adjustments are going to be needed to be made.

we have had a hard time finding -- somewilling effort of us here created the medicare drug program. we fixed it. we made it better. we created medicare advantages. there was a lot of blowback. we fixed it. we made it better. we do that together. that is not what we have done in respect to the affordable care act. republican friends have locked desk have blocked funding. i think common sense improvement. republican governors in 19 states have refused to extend -- not johnn-jot kasich, leaving millions of americans uncovered. a sad state of affairs when it seems that sometimes the only all caps votes are the ones that

repeal the affordable care act completely leaving americans with no place to turn. i will close with these words, in a couple of months thankfully americans will go to the polls, select a new president and members of congress. i talk almost every day with delaware he ends who wait in anticipation for that day to arrive. once that day has arrived, a new congress as well as president have taken their oaths, we need to go to work to make a good idea even better, like we did with medicare advantage. we can do that. communicate,brace compromise and collaborate. we also need to embrace the words in the preamble and -- preamble of our constitution. "we the people of the united mores in order to form a

." we need to get to work making the affordable care act better. i know we can. with the right leadership, i think we will. we will in the words of mark twain, "confounded our enemies and amazed our friends." >> it is 54 days, but who is keeping track echo -- keeping track? sen. mccain: i would appreciate if my -- i was entertained by my statement best -- by the statement from my friend. somehow now call upon republicans to work with you to fix this disaster after, on the floor of the the united states senate you do not allow a single

.mendment by the republicans is the first time an entitlement program has ever been enacted without -- honestly partisan basis. you had your 60 votes. you ran with 60 votes. now that it has been a failure, you want us to come and bail it out. we want to replace it it we don't want to fix it, we want to replace it does it has been a failure in my state. my state is the best example that i know of. we now have 14 of our 15 counties with one provider. remember if you like a doctor, you will be up to keep your doctor. if you like your health plan, you'll be up to keep your health plan. no matter what. of course that turned out to be a lie. and since americans have been hit by broken promise after promise. less choices, greater uncertainty and poor quality of

care. let me tell you, my home state of arizona is hurt. nexte talking about november 1, seeing as much as 65% increases in premiums for our average citizens could we are talking about young people who are now opting clearly to pay a fine, rather than to see these increasing costs. the cost of health care continues to skyrocket, all done on a pure partisan basis. i remember the victory dance that you guys performed after passing obamacare over without a single republican vote. so now the chickens have come home to roost, so now the answer is want the republicans enjoyed with us? and fix this problem? give me a break. we need to replace it and fix it and go back to the fundamental principles of economics which is not take money from healthy young people in order to take

care of unhealthy older people. that was the fundamental premise , and now of course, i guarantee you the next step will be that you guys are going to want to go to a government run health care system. whichill be your answer is in europe, it is a two-tiered system between those who are wealthy and those who can afford their own health care and those who are not who will have a substandard level of care. >> mr. chairman, i would have my statement included. the people in my state are hurting. we have 15 counties -- 14 of them, there is only one writer -- one provider. we had a county with no providers. now blue cross blue shield has moved in. is what is happening in my state -- is that if you like your policy, you can keep your policy? it you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor,.

no one will take away your health care? we have people scrambling all the time. these providers have hundreds of millions of dollars in losses. they can't afford to stay in the affordable health care business. i thank you for holding this hearing. i think the witnesses. andhe senator from delaware his democrat friends want to join together with us, yes, let's throw it where it belongs, in the trashcan and start all over again and give people an affordable health care system that they can live with and will not the the situation that exists in my home state of arizona. i thank you, mr. chairman. >> it is the tradition of this committee to swear in. if you would all rise and swear in with the right hand. the testimony will be

the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth so hope you got? please be seated. i think our first witness, mary taylor -- lieutenant governor? >> thank you, mr. chairman and i and think the we have mary taylor with us. she is a cpa first. cystine years in the private sector before she decided she wanted to get into this 16 years in the private sector before she decided she wanted into the public sector. she became our state auditor and the first state auditor to ever be a cpa. she transformed that office and was acknowledged nationally as having put together a cutting-edge, 21st century auditing office in ohio. in 2011, she was sworn in as our lieutenant governor of ohio. she has two other job, one on regulation which deals with making our regulation smarter which is been a big reason for

ohio's economic success during the kasich administration. theis the director of department of insurance. yet the cpa with this background -- you have this cpa with this background. you are going to hear from her on this. she's got some statistics, very specific numbers as to what is happening with our premiums. 91% with regard to obamacare exchanges, the number is a 13% increase in the year. who can afford that? this happened in our health care market in ohio. what was before and what is happened since. take you for letting me introduce my friend mary taylor. >> i knew there was something i like about you -- lieutenant governor? and distantjohnson list members of the committee, thank you for the opportunity to

testify before the senate. my name is mary taylor and i am the lieutenant governor of ohio as well as the director of the ohio department of insurance. i will testify about ohio's experience related to the affordable care act. as the director of the ohio department i am responsible for regulating ohio's insurance market. the seventh largest in the united states. ohio accounts for more than 200 insurance companies in the state representing $76 billion in annual premium could for years, we have taken pride in the competitive insurance market. leadership of democrat and republican administrations, we have been eight fair and thoughtful regulatory agency providing certainty and predictability industry is looking forward to be a successful which in turns

benefits consumers did you does our market is so competitive, the recent data shows ohio's auto and homeowners insurance premium is below the national average and ranked 12th and ninth. i'm here today to focus on health insurance and what is happening in ohio. ohio has benefited from a large selection of insurance carriers with more than 60 companies selling insurance product -- insurance products in ohio. the corresponding premiums to go with that coverage. unfortunately, since before the law was implemented, i and many others across the country including members of this committee pointed out the aca would not work as promised. studies conducted in ohio and my request showed premiums would grow up -- go up, consumers would lose choice and the market would suffer from a turbulent changes. fast forward to today and the

new aca era we live in. insurers soldalth products on ohio's federal exchange. next year in 2017, assuming all companies approved to sell on the exchange enter into contracts with hhs, only 11 companies will offer exchange products. this decrease in participation can be put into better perspective when looking at a county by county comparison in ohio. in two thousand 610, every one of ohio's 88 counties headed east foreign shores selling exchange products -- four ensures insurers selling exchange products. 28 counties will have just to. fewer options give consumers less opportunity to get the coverage they need. dramatically increasing idioms makes the problem worse. based on the final rates approved for 2017, the average

premiums for individuals buying on ohio's federally run exchange have gone up 91% since 2013. as insurance have fled the exchange, recent statements from hsf indicates everything is fine. unions are increasing but the responses, consumers are being shielded by tax subsidies which will offset the cost. the cost of those subsidies will continue to rise as premiums continue to increase and the americans must shoulder that burden. most of us agree americans should be able to purchase health insurance without facing barriers as of the existing conditions. we agree more can be done to improve the system to increase accessibility and promote better outcomes for patients. the aca is not living up to the promises made. in ohio, less than 250,000 people purchase health insurance

through the federally run exchange in 2016. if you consider there are 11.6 million people living in ohio, that means we have completely upended the health insurance market, force consumers to buy coverage they don't want or need, placed revelatory burden on job creators, all to offer taxpayers backed insurance to population that we need to increase access by reducing costs. if it are producing that instead of forcing everyone to buy coverage that they don't need or want. we need to empower states to design systems best suited for the populations instead of forcing one size fits all mandates. we need to decentralize the power of washington who quite frankly don't understand insurance or how to regulate it as my colleagues and my predecessors across the country do.

in ohio, we have ideas to help improve our health system without destroying the free market as the aca has done. we believe there is a better more inclusive way to design reforms that increase access but we need to ability. it is my hope -- but we need flexibility to do it. it is my hope to implement the power of change. i would be happy to answer questions. >> thank you. next witness is mr. j.p. why ski. commissioneruty since 2016. he served as the office of commission -- in both information officer. >> inc. you, chairman johnson -- thank you, chairman johnson.

week at church, we have the prodigal son was the parable that was discussed. as well as the parable of the lost sheep. one of the concerns that we have as a look at our insurance market in wisconsin, we did in fact take care of a lost sheep. we did take care of our folks. you highlighted our high risk pool. broaden care,pool subsidies for the sickest, as well as those who have medical conditions and they can choose any doctor. obamacare ended that. that was 20,000 people that were thrown into the marketplace that created additional problems. in our market, the individual market has grown to 272,000 people from 200,000. however with the 200,000 we had

in the market prior did not include our high risk pool, folks who were in our existing medicaid program where wisconsin had expanded beyond the federal requirements. we had a number of reforms in wisconsin, so we did not need the passage of obamacare. we had to move back our adult dependents because we had expanded to 27 in the state of wisconsin. our large group market dropped by 30,000 people since obamacare in 2013 to 2015. our large group market has 1.2 million people down to one million people. the largelyved into state unregulated space. we have a number of concerns with the way our market has been hit. on top of that, we have seen a

number of frustrations from a consumer standpoint regarding the rollout of obamacare and the continuing problems for consumers as we continue to regulate this market. we have had to delay the end of our high risk pool by seven months because of the disastrous rollout. we delayed the movement of folks off the medicaid program because of the rollout. on top of that, we are getting calls from consumers and complaints and our division that talked about the interference of the health care changes with folks in the private coverage, specifically when people wanted to terminate the coverage, make changes, add folks to their insurance plan, they no longer are able to just do that and call the insurance company may face changes. they have to call a bureaucrat and ask for permission to get that done. that takes time and creates errors and problems. we have seen a number of

regulatory issues. last year, i will highlight another issue we had a consumer who had an insurance -- and ensure contact us when the federal government asked them to take money out of all of their consumer accounts -- they had made a mistake and they under charge consumers. and chris was time, the federal government has ordered them to take money out of the accounts, pull it out in order to pay that premium. insurance regulators do not let insurance companies charge back consumers when they are under charge them. we had an issue in or to protect our consumers to prevent the direct pulling of the bank account information from consumers. at christmas time. on top of that, we see this auto reenrollment process which is illegal in the state of wisconsin. people in the

state who will be losing their coverage because -- not just government market withdrawals, those 64,000 people ought to be enrolled, forced to be sent to another carrier without their permission. their private information will be sent to another private medical insurance without their permission by the federal government. it is going to be a hugely fraudulent and problematic area for our wisconsin consumer. 64,000 of them who can see these numbers change. in short, we have seen a number of issues in the state of wisconsin. we felt we did an excellent job protecting consumers prior to the aca. we continue to try to protect them from the damage of aca. when we roll into 2017, there will be 200,000 people who will newly be on obamacare who were previously not on it.

the damage is not yet done. in short, wisconsin believes that the damage obamacare hopefully isn't permanent. we are looking for a solution that moves this problem back to the state for us to fix it. >> thank you. senator ernst like to introduce the next one. >> thank you mr. chairman. it is my honor to introduce the iowa insurance commissioner. he served our great state as commissioner since february 2013. we appreciate your service, commissioner. he serves on the national association of insurance commissioners executive committee. the administration credentials and professional background make him an excellent witness for us today to talk about this important topic. thank you for thinking -- thank you for traveling to washington to share your expertise. --r perspective on high was

on iowa's health insurance market. >> good morning. here to honor to be share our views in the state of iowa. on the duty of the insurance commissioner. , reallyembers of state a couple of highlights to fix some of these issues. i did give some written testimony which is much longer. as an insurance commissioner, we are pretty local. we know the folks these are impacting. the 75,000 iowans that are getting rate increases, i know a lot of these folks. i see them at church, grocery stores. a lot of them are friends. i want to share a story but a friend of mine. he had a good corporate job, he left that job it started a company in iowa. he has two children in third grade and second grade.

when he got his notice, he called me and was not very happy. i hope we are still friends. at the end of the day, he understands what is happening here. his wife looking at making a significant decision, go without coverage. i hope we can have some productive dialogue on fixes. on our state, we improved rate impactingup to 43% 75,000 iowans. in a state of 3 million people, that is a significant number. the rates have been up 100% since the implication this info for this implementation. i'm not saying it was working the great before. i think we had some ideas and solutions to make it better. what we're seeing is a high concentration of risk. we had a high risk pool that was functioning pretty well.

we have asked and medicaid a lot of these folks -- we have extended medicaid. a lot of these folks -- we have insurers working to ensure these folks. one claim is generating $18 million in costs. even with the discount for providers, that one claim is a 10% of the 43% increase. $808one claim cost about per member of that risk pull. you can see there is no protection from that kind of catastrophic claim. that claim would put them almost in default. we have experience withdrawals from the market. of the this date -- one first states to add to take over one of the failed takeovers. we had to take over a co-op, the first one to fail. that caused a lot of disruption.

folks are a little bit skeptical right now about the market. we will have 23 counties with one provider. will have half a county with two providers in the exchange. there are issues of less choice. products that are sing the most traction, so you have a concentration with one group of doctors. those plans are fine. my family would buy one if we had the option. it is a narrow network plan. we gained those to be appropriate. we don't know who is going to sign on the 23rd of this month. we will know that in a couple of weeks. i want to highlight a few fixes. we talk about the three ours. risk adjustment, reassurance. i would think we would want to keep it that way, it did not work very well could risk adjustment, there are some new rules. those look encouraging. i want the carrier to comment.

it did help stabilize the market. we want to encourage the committee and members to look at this idea of high risk pools and maybe push it back to the state. we are going to look at a waiver potentially to try and make iowa-based solutions for iowans. we think that is the best way to do it. once you have seen one health insurance market, you have probably seen one health insurance market. we feel pushing it back to the states to have more control makes a lot of sense. i would like to conclude that it is an honor to be with you all. thank you. >> thank you. is theal witness insurance commissioner for the state of washington. he previously served in the house of representatives from

sending washington's night congressional district -- 19 congressional district. >> thinking very much, members of the committee. i am the longest-serving insurance commissioner in the country currently. it is a position that means i have served 10 years before the formal care -- affordable health care act. i have been working to execute it to the full six that possible in the state of washington. it is quite frankly it has had a positive impact on the state of washington, not without problems. but overall, very positive. we need to look back at what it was like in the environment before health care reform. there were 7 million people in the state of washington, one million of them were uninsured, 14% of the population. we were expensing $2 billion a

--r and uncompensated care. in uncompensated care. other payers are exhorting that cost. we were a robust market at the time, some 11 insurers in the individual market, but if you look at the products, not in the individual market cover maternity or prescription drugs. for many people, they would find that serious shortcoming. 7.3%, we are down to uninsured, nearly a 50% drop since the affordable care act came into effect. billion --en a 2.3 almost 80% of the people inside of our exchange -- we're looking at 300,000 people, of those individuals -- wanted to 70,000 people inside the exchange -- a couple number on the outside,

80% of them are receiving a subsidy. today, we're looking at for 2017, 13 insurers in the market, 154 plans that will be offered to consumers for 2017. the rates they came and were higher than what we had of theired at 13.5% request. octoberknow better at what the final number will be. it is higher, and it is notthing that was unexpected when insurers started in 2013 in cementing their plans, they had no idea exactly what they should wind up charging. it was a dramatic change. now they cover maternity and drugs. it was a real change. we are in a learning phase here. the double-digit rate increases are not a surprise. it is something that we saw much

more so before the affordable care act. -- 2014 as i said, it was really just a guess at that point in time. no one wants to see rate increases going forward, least of all if you are a a statewide elected like i am. i have to have direct accountability to the people of the state of washington. one of the things we need to look at is the changes going forward as commissioner gerhardt was talking, one of the things we want to make it work better -- we got to make sure in your relief to consumers is something that is there an even more so than what we have currently. we need to stabilize the insurance markets going forward. number one task for us was to get everybody covered. that was the first at.

-- first step. went to do a better job of helping to hold on health care costs. helping to stabilize that health insurance market. pulled downwould be the cost increases we are seeing in prescription drugs. that is the number one driver right now in the plans they came forward to us for 2017. another from a national perspective, make sure those 19 state that not expanded medicaid to so. in washington we have 5995 -- i would also say we got to make sure those states that have nonconforming plans out there so you have a breakup of the risk pool by virtue of nonconforming plans and conforming plans to the of what will care act, they all need to meet that same standard. washington is