>> senator bingaman, would you yield? >> yes. >> this is largely the debate we had the other night, and there was a vote, and the vote was pretty decisive, same issue. it is an attempt to move from a birth certificate or a gnatization certificate as proof of citizenship to government-issue photo i.d. you only have to show a place of residency in a county and that will get you an i.d. much at all with the g.a.o. report that reviewed six state medicade programs in 2007 and found that verification rules had cost the federal government an addition $8 million, and they caught only eight undocumented imgrants? so in other words, according to the g.a.o. report, the federal government spent $8 million to save $11,000. for each dollar the federal government saved, we had to spend $755. are you familiar with that report? >> i am. i believe it was a review of the list of requirements that the deficit reduction added. >> $8 million spent to catch eight undocumented immigrants, saving $11,000, spending $8 million to save $11,000. that

we have a circumstance in which we have an employer-based system and the questions that senator bingamanof this amendment or was that an analysis of the bill? >> it was an analysis of just this amendment. i would say to colleagues that the analysis of this amendment -- i wrote a piece of legislation, i was interested in a different approach. yet, what i said when the chairman chose a different routes, i would work within that framework. i have done that. we have had many amendments, i supported ideas from both sides of the aisle and spent the better part of 10 days and did not once mention the original bill. i do believe that it is possible to import a choice in to the employer-based system. there's something in between blowing the system up and saying that we will tell other people to what they have even though it is a crummy products. that is what we are same. -- saying that we will tether people to what they have a. that i what they aris what we ae saying. we have this safety valve of risk adjustment and reinsurance where this doomsday scenario is something that would have to be done

bingaman. >> no, by proxy. >> mr. schumer. >> no, by proxy. >> ms. cantwell. >> pass. >> mr. menendez. >> no, by proxy. >> mr. grassley. >> aye by proxy. >> mr. hatch. >> aye. >> mr. kyle. >>aye. aye. >> mr. roberts. >> aye by proxy. >> mr. corn anin. >> aye by proxy. >> mr. chairman. >> no. >> mr. chairman, the final tally -- >> i have not requested it yet. the clerk will tally the votes. >> the result is 10 ayes, 13 nays, and one pass. >> [unintelligible] >> mr. chairman, i would like to call my amendment d11. this amendment is to avert horn a portion of medicare regulations that significant cut reimbursement on radiation oncology services based on what i believe is a faulty assumption. in its national physician fee schedule released this year, vms reap balances in the reimbursement to physician. i recently was joined by 31 senators in sending a letter to the administration expressioexpe had concerning the assumption is determined -- assumptions for determining the payment rate. mr. chairman, the cms rule changed payments in a budget- neutral way so that any primary care sp

. >> the senator bingaman. and >> mr.chairman, i am reluctantly compelled to speak against the amendment and vote against it. i do agree with senator rockefeller that there are all kinds of abuses that have been amply demonstrated by the industry and i believe this legislation will correct the worst of those abuses. and developing a forum for the legislation in the future, but i think the legislation does a good job of identifying the abuses we know about and correcting them. in addition, as i think his amendment points out, there is a requirement in the chairman's mark for health plans to report the proportion of premium dollars that they spent on items other than medical care for their medical loss ratios, and i think that is a very good provision and i hope that information is taken by the secretary and widely publicized and that it will help people to choose which companies to purchase insurance from to the extent that they decide to purchase insurance from private sources. but the proposal to put in law a strict limi