. >> let me introduce a physician from huntsville, alabama, parker griffith. >> thank you. this does require a bipartisan effort. every year that goes by without a health care reform bill, without access for every american, we lose 18,000 american lives needlessly. this requires a bipartisan effort. a partisan bill will not get through the legislative process. we either work together, we recognize that we've got strong polarization on many issues, but this should not be one of them. the access to affordable health care is something that we are all agreeing on. we're all agreeing on the diagnosis. we're not agreeing on the treatment. but we have to come together in order to do that. and i think that we will. i think the effort of this group and we have many more downstairs that are in agreement with us, that despite our party differences, this is a must for american business and it is a must for the health care of america. so i appreciate the opportunity to voice that. i don't think that we can retreat back into our r and our d homes. i think we need to get out front, get it

they're joined by republicans parker griffith of alabama and joanna emerson of new jersey. >> thanks for being here. sorry about all the crazy votes today. i'm jim cooper from nashville, tennessee, a democrat. right off the bat i want to be clear, i support health care reform. i support health care reform this year, as does everyone on this stage. we all share the goals laid out by the president in his june 2 letter. i believe that every american should have high-quality, affordable health care. and i believe that reforming health care should be congress' top priority. let me repeat that. health care reform should be congress' top priority. we should get it done this year. we are not here to slow it down. so don't believe the phony talking points that you're being circulated with that are saying we're trying to somehow slow down the the process. that's not true. the process, unfortunately, is already creaking under its own weight and we haven't even seen many of the bills yet. so don't take my word for it. just read your own publications. what we're trying to do is ensure that reform