now, let me compare this to the president's proposal to use ipad, the unelected unaccountable bureaucrat board of political appointees for current seniors. here is the president's budget and wrap he is proposing. this is law, by the way. this is the law that is in the affordable care act. what it proposing for medicare's growth rate. let me do that again. i think i can -- so this is the republican budget. what it proposes, here is what the affordable care act in current law does for growing medicare. see much difference there? yet my friends on the other side seem to complain that this is draconian cuts to seniors. how can that be if our trajectories are the same? let's talk about the main difference between our approach and the affordable care act. the president's new health care law. it's not the proposed spending, you can see the paths are the sail. the difference is, who is in control. 15 bureaucrats or 50 million empowered seniors. that's the difference. now, look at what happens if th unlike cms, cbo thinks ipads will fail by the actuaries at cms tell us 40% of medicare providers under t

which is removingus from the me and putting in place this unelected board of 15 bureaucrats which wes necessary their plan, in your plan, because you've got to control costs because you don't trust people. when bureaucrats choose, lose. when bureaucrats choose, patients lose. that's the program you all have put in place. medicare andat it's important the chairman has eloquently outlined how we propose to do that. i would draw your attention to page 61 on the budget which goes through the four main points which is those in and near retirement will see no changes whatsoever. that for future generations they are provided a guaranteed health coverage, line five. guaranteea61, line five. in addition, as the chairman said, those with higher health challenges receive more assistance, and, finally, the fourth program puts medicare on a sustainable path and becomes solvent over the long term which the president's proposal does not and your proposal does not. i urge a rejection of the amendment adoption. >> i will yield the remainder of our time and recognize the gentlelady one minute for the p

will be this 15 member board of unelected bureaucrats, or will it be patience? the other side has said that there will be changes ever budget is adopted and put in law. you are right. will in the raid on medicare and we will in the 15 member unelected board of bureaucrats to be able to decide what kind of care seniors are able to get from the physicians to be paid for. this specific amendment talks about the donut hole. and the donut hole provision of the new law actually has had the effect of increasing drug prices. chairman in his wisdom as the cbo to determine what's the cost increase cost worth. and i will quote from a letter that's a bill to all of us quote, the increase in prices would make federal cost of medicare drug benefit and the costs faced by some beneficiaries higher than it would've been in the absence of those provision. the legislation also imposes an annual fee on manufacturers and importers of brand name drugs. cbo expects that you increase the price of drugs purchased through medicaid and the prices of newly introduced drugs purchased throug

contraction or shrinking of individual freedom in making health care choices, and instead, a 15-member unelected board of bureaucrats are going to decide weather your medicare is worth it or if the federal government will choose not to pay for it because in the cost benefit analysis it isn't working. i'll turn it over to senator hutchinson for this point. >> thank you. we've seen the early arguments today. especially. if it looks like a duck and walks like a duck and quacks like a duck. it's a duck. which means it's a mandate. it's telling every business in america they have to subscribe to a government-run health care plan or they can't offer the premiums. it is a mandate unsustainable in the constitution. and we hope they will come to the right decision. there's no question that two-thirds of the american people believe this is an encroachment on their freedom, and i hope that we can change it some day by law. but i hope that we can start all over and have a good health plan for more access by americans to an insurance that they can afford and that they want? and now i'll turn it over to senator mar

this is a board of 15 unelected, unaccountable and not necessarily health care experienced individuals who will have more power than even congress itself when it comes to deciding what care every american will receive. the board members will not be under congressional oversight and will not answer the phone when you call to complain. americans agree by 57% to 38% margin obamacare and ipab should be fully repealed. so far democrats have been unwilling to listen to the outcry from the american people. they will have another chance to respond to we the people's by voting with republicans to repeal ipab and hopefully willing to repeal obamacare in its entirety when it is brought up for a vote in the future. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. for what purpose does the gentleman from tennessee rise? mr. roe: i ask ask the house to address the house for one minute and revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. roe: we begin to debate a bill that would eliminate the ipab. this denial of care board is comprised of 15

to give an unelected board to cut further from the medicare program is something we don't need and it'sental to american seniors. i don't think i've seen anything worse for american seniors than the 15 years i've practiced heart surgery. >> supporters are saying, that this panel will only step in if costs overhaul or exceeded the budget expenditures, what do you say to that. >> that's true. we need to drive down the overall costs so that doesn't happen. the other thing is, the medicare system needs to be restructured. house republicans proposed ways to do that and other proposals on the table. and we know that by 2030, double the number of seniors that we have today will require medicare services and we know it's on a fiscally unsustainable path. and the fact of the matter is, if we do nothing, they'll he have to cut and have no choice because the costs are going to continue to go up based on sheer numbers. the people that are proposnts of this are short sighted and want to keep their heads in the sand and not look at what we really need to do. what we need to do is protect this program

americans are unfamiliar with, but buried in section 3403 of obamacare, there is a powerful board of unelected bureaucrats, so-called independent payment advisory board, whose sole job would be to save money by restricting access to health care for medicare beneficiaries. that's the purpose. ipab is required to achieve specific savings in years when medicare spending is deemed to be too high and will lead to rationing and take medical decisions out of the hands of doctors and patients and will reduce patient choice. furthermore, obamacare doesn't even require that ipab do all of this in the public domain. there is no requirement that ipab hold hearings or meetings, consider public input or make its deliberations open and to the public. unaccountable washington bureaucrats meeting behind closed doors to make decisions that should be made by patients and doctors is unacceptable in this ipab must be repealed. you know, it was two years ago that we passed this government takeover of health care into law and important to note that the first act in this congress in january of 2011 was a full repeal

medicare bankruptcy and an unelected board deciding the care of medicare beneficiaries or doctors and patients deciding and defending the right of the care that they receive? the future of american health care should not be left up to this board, to to this panel. it's an aloof arbitrarier of health care who depend on health care. i'll just leave you with a quote from the american medical association. it puts our health policy and payment decisions in the hands of an independent body with no accountability, major changes in the medicare program should be decided by elected officials. from the american medical association. i yield back. the chair: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from california. mr. waxman: mr. chairman, i am pleased at this point to yield to my colleague from california, one of the key people in the authorship of the affordable care act, george miller, for three minutes. the chair: the gentleman from california is recognized for three minutes. mr. miller: i thank the gentleman for yielding. mr. speaker, i came to congress in 1975 and since that time i'

well, it's an unelected board, it's an unelected board that will make decisions on where medicare isut. so the president has had an opportunity to propose reforms to the way medicare works, so that we can innovate and change it to save it for future generations, reform it, upgrade it, do things better. but instead the president's approach is simply to cut the levels of spending but leave the overall functioning of medicare the same. so no new approach, no reform. just cut when we run out of money. well, what does that result in? it results in seniors not getting the care they need and not just because services are reduced, but because a lot of doctors won't take medicare patients. this is already a problem today. today there are seniors looking for a doctor to help them with their particular problem and doctor after doctor says, i'm sorry, we don't take medicare. that problem is only going to get worse if the ipab, the independent payment advisory board, that's in the president's health care law, if it does what it is scheduled to do. and what are we doing about it here in the house?

republicans think that handing congress's power to a board of unelected officials, they don't like the idea that they would have to give it over to somebody else. and it's really a big part of president obama's plan to fix medicare and keep medicare spending down, which we all know is a big issue this year. >> congressman paul ryan this week unveiling his own budget blueprint. we're going to get more specifics tomorrow from the chairman of the house budget committee. but he has been talking on the house budget committee website about the issue of medicare making some significant changes overall to the medicare program to try to stop the -- the stem of spending that we've been seeing in this country and bring down the deficit. >> that's right. he really wants to make that a contrast to the ryan plan, a republican, house republican plan, as opposed to president obama's plan for medicare which they say is ipab. that's really another showdown this week that we're going to see in the house. >> one of the specifics from the ryan plan, and he has the support of congress, senator ron wyden of

this single provision -- this board of 15, unelected, unaccountable bureaucrats what would the power to impose price controls that would cut senior access to care. to make it worse, this board would not have to meet in public or listen to public input. amazingly, obamacare leaves the door wood open for ipab members to receive gifts from lobbyists. the public has no right to talk to members of ipab but those showering them with gifts do. this will solve the problem? it doesn't. it restricts payments to doctors that provide health care. it is already the case that 12% of doctors will not take medicare patients due to the unreliability of government payouts. that is twice the number of doctors who refused to see medicare patients in 2004, with is a frightening statistic on how quickly that is rising. a recent survey showed that 60% of doctors will have or will restrict their medical practices as a result of obamacare, and those doctors, 87% said they would be fworsed to restrict the amount of care they offer to medicare patients. obamacare ignores the laws of economics in this instance.

the president's plan is through his law currently is to put into place the payment advisory board. 15 unelected bureaucrats who have the power without appeal to deny services for seniors. american people understand this. the work that was done between last year and this year allows senior, will allow seniors the opportunity to stay on the current medicare program if that's what they desire or to voluntarily move to a different program. so the american people are brighter than democrats give them credit for. it is unlikely to get anywhere with the democrats in control of the u.s. senate. reaction from the other end of pennsylvania a knew with press secretary jay carney. >> some house democrats are finding some positive elms in the ryan plan, things they think are grounds for further talks. for instance, the example they gave was the elimination of the alternative minimum tax proposal because it hit so many middle class americans. is the president and the white house believe that there are some positive elements in the plan today that are food for thought and talks down the road? >> the idea that

these are unelected board members, 15 of them appointed by the president, tasked with finding savings and making recommendations. unfortunately, because the limitations what the board can cut, the majority of spending reductions will cutting reimbursements from doctors and those who care for medicare patients. the ultimate result will be fewer options for patients who are driven out of the medicare system. -- when doctors are driven out of the medicare system. we were told when the affordable care act was passed that it would lead to a reduction in premiums. it's done exactly the opposite. this kind of board and these kind of decisions made by un elected officials will simply drive the costs up further, and we cannot afford to do that. my only regret in today's action is that we are not repealing the entire act, and i hope that comes soon. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from california rise? >> madam speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recogniz

one of the greatest things that a victory since problem with with is the ipab board, unelected bureaucrats. and it really limits it on two fronts. one is the board can decide what type of treatment can be given. the other that is a spoken about so much what needs to be discussed is cuts, the cuts that happen in the coming any savings that happen only happened by reducing the amount is paid out to physicians. uncaring doctor after doctor, physician after physicians think i can no longer take any new medicare patients. i have to limit the number of medicare patients i have. so what good is a foursome that medicare when have no doctor will be able to see them? that is limiting care. when you turn it around to we need to do the right thing and fix medicare for our seniors, for our future. that is the work that ought to be done. this was the wrong direction. i think there's an important step we take this weekend that is addressing the real problem of lawsuit abuse and the high costs have inflicted because of lawsuit abuse against doctors, against hospitals, and the amount of defensive medicine

to cut costs in medicare republicans say that is a federal over reach why would we have this unelected boardfficials telling us what to do with medicare. there is democratic support for that but senate unlikely to take it up because there is more resistance to getting rid of this board. think will talk about ways to chip away at the health care law majority of americans want at least part of that law to go away if not all of it. >> democrats say the more people learn about it the more they like it. ed o'keefe thank you for coming in. >> yep >> allison. >> time now 8:21 a.m. on tuesday morning, secretary of state hillary clinton, wading into the amelia earhart mystery details coming up next on fox 5. >> later this hour, time for spring cleaning but where to begin, holly morris is getting some valuable tips for us all we will be right back  whatcha lookin' for hon? ah, these new jeans i want. i've been looking everywhere. new blue jeans? oh, don't be crazy,i've got tons of. ank! frank! get my jean bin, new blue jeans? oh, sie wants my jeans. got tons of. no she doesn't. here we go. n

but moreover, you want to set up a board of 15 unelected bureaucrats that are going to ration our seniors' care, a board that's going to systemically reduce reimbursements to doctors, hospitals and clinics and in essence will impact the access in quality of care not of some future generation of seniors but of today's seniors. so when we talk about taking care of our seniors, let's have a plan that truly takes care of our seniors. which is the house plan. i mean, i hear about a guaranteed benefit that the democrats talk about for our seniors, there's no guaranteed benefit for our seniors. they're rationing it down to nothing. i think it's important we talk about a bold plan, bold leadership that's going to resolve the problems that we face in this country, a plan that is going to put us on a path to sustainability, that will balance our budget, that will pay off our debt, a plan that implements pro-growth policies so our economy can expand -- will the gentleman yield 30 more seconds -- seconds? mr. brady: yeah. i yield an additional 30 seconds. mr. duffy: a plan that will put us on a pro-g

board. unelected bureaucrats deciding the care that our seniors will have access to. we can tell from how this is written that it will absolutely limit access to care. it limits it on two fronts. one is the board can decide what type of treatment can be given. the other that is now spoken about so much buddies to be discussed is the cuts that happen and any savings that have been only happen by reducing the amount that is paid out to physicians. i am hearing doctor after doctor opposition after position seconal undertake any new medicare patients. i have to limit the number that i have. so what good is it for someone to have medicare when they have no doctor who will be able to see them? that is limiting access, medicare. many to turn it around and do the right thing and fix medicare for our seniors, our future. that is the work that out to be done. this was the wrong direction. melson think there is an import step we take, and that is addressing the real problem of lawsuit abuse and the high cost that is inflicted because of lawsuit abuse against doctors and hospital

let me compare this to the president's proposal to use ipad, the unelected, unaccountable bureaucrat board apppolitical . here is the president's budget and what he is proposing. this is law, by the way. this is the law that is -- here is what it proposes for medicare's growth rate. let me do that again. this is the republican budget, what it proposes to throw medicare at, here is what the affordable care act and current see much difference there? yet my friends on the other side seem to complain this is draconian cuts to seniors. how can that be if if our trajectories are the same? let's talk about the main difference between our approach and the affordable care act, the president's new health care law. it's not the proposed spending. as you can see they're the same. the difference is who is in control? 15 bureaucrats or 50 million empowered seniors? that's the difference. now look at ipad doesn't work because unlike cms, cbo thinks fail by 2021 because the actuaries tell us 40% of medicare providers under the of rdable care act are going to business. they're telling us the providers will

from the medicare program and put in place to control costs based on washington is a 15-member unelected board of bureaucrats. those 15 individuals, none of and can be actively practicing physicians by law, you cannot have a majority of them who has ever seen a patient by law. those 15 individuals will decide whether care for seniors will be paid for. that's the kind of solution the other side wants. we presume that status quo be able to continue. debt and trillion in it is increasing unless we change course. greece is not far away from our future. there are huge challenges we have been huge changes that must be made. we can do it now without putting an undue burden on those individuals who are currently counting on these social safety net programs but we have to reform them and strengthen them to make its of this country can allow for the american dream to be realized. >> here is a political question -- what are your thoughts? guest: he is doing a great job as chairman of the budget committee. he is a dedicated individual, an individual grounded in the fundamental principles of this great cou

of the 15 member unelected board that makes senior care even harder to access puts bureaucrats between their patients and their doctors. our plan for medicare offers a choice for seniors and they deserve a choice. we increase the competition between a guaranteed coverage option, and i want to repeat this, that it's a guaranteed coverage option and a traditional medicare and it allows seniors to choose and all of this would lower costs to the program while increasing the quality of care. this is the choice of two futures, both for our health care system and also the prosperity of our nation. now, we can continue to go down the path of obamacare where we see 1.76 trillion dollars in spending over the next 10 years and see billions of dollars in new taxes, fees, penalties on families and small businesses. or we can repeal this law and put in place policies that increase competition, decrease costs and assure that our health care system is patient focused. we can continue to explode the size and scope of the federal government as my colleagues on the other side of the aisle would like. and

board. this is an unelected, unaccountable board of bureaucrats empowered by this law to make additional cuts to medicare based on arbitrary cost control targets. as a result of this new board, 15 bureaucrats would now have the power without any accountability whatsoever to make changes to medicare. what's more, there is no judicial or administrative review of ipab personnel or recommendations. in other words, they are accountable to no one. ipab isn't answerable to voters, and it can't be challenged in the courts. its main role, as "the wall street journal" editorial board put it, will be the inevitable dirty work of denying care. the inevitable dirty work of denying care. in an effort to control spending, ipab will limit patient access to medical care. it's that simple, and frankly it's totally unacceptable. republicans recognize the problem of medicare spending and the need for reform. we also recognize that ipab isn't the answer. this is just one more reason obamacare needs to be repealed and replaced. that's why even democrats are cosponsoring a bill to repeal it over in the house, calli

board. this is an unelected, unaccountable board of bureaucrats empowered by this law to make additional cuts to medicare based on arbitrary cost control targets. as a result of this new board, 15 bureaucrats would now have the power without any accountability whatsoever to make changes to medicare. what's more, there is no judicial or administrative review of ipab personnel or recommendations. in other words, they are accountable to no one. ipab isn't answerable to voters, and it can't be challenged in the courts. its main role, as "the wall street journal" editorial board put it, will be the inevitable dirty work of denying care. the inevitable dirty work of denying care. in an effort to control spending, ipab will limit patient access to medical care. it's that simple, and frankly it's totally unacceptable. republicans recognize the problem of medicare spending and the need for reform. we also recognize that ipab isn't the answer. this is just one more reason obamacare needs to be repealed and replaced. that's why even democrats are cosponsoring a bill to repeal it over in the house, calli

board. this is an unelected, unaccountable board of bureaucrats empowered by this law to make additional cutsmedicare based on arbitrary cost control targets. as a result of this new board, 15 bureaucrats would now have the power without any accountability whatsoever to make changes to medicare. what's more, there is no judicial or administrative review of ipab personnel or recommendations. in other words, they are accountable to no one. ipab isn't answerable to voters, and it can't be challenged in the courts. its main role, as "the wall street journal" editorial board put it, will be the inevitable dirty work of denying care. the inevitable dirty work of denying care. in an effort to control spending, ipab will limit patient access to medical care. it's that simple, and frankly it's totally unacceptable. republicans recognize the problem of medicare spending and the need for reform. we also recognize that ipab isn't the answer. this is just one more reason obamacare needs to be repealed and replaced. that's why even democrats are cosponsoring a bill to repeal it over in the house, calling i

and then it puts a board of 15 unelected, unaccountable bureaucrats in charge of putting price controls on medicare which will lead to denied care for current seniors. we get rid of that. we get rid of the rationing board, we stop the rate of the medicare and we leave the benefit intact for people in and near retirement. but in order to cash flow this commitment to the current seniors we which these we should do, you need to reform it for the next generation. we're about the same age, it's not going to there for us when we retire. there's a bipartisan idea out there, called premium support, just like the plan that members of congress have that says let's give medicare beneficiaries a fee for medicare service included and let them pick around the competing plans like in many other areas of life and subsidize based on need. more for the poor and a lot less for the wealthy person. doing it that way which has bipartisan support saves medicare and helps us keep the commitment to today's seniors. i would think -- it took me five sentences to explain that though, that's the challenge. when you

instead, a 15 member unelected board of bureaucrats will decide whether your medical health is worthit, or whether the government will choose not to pay for it because of the cost- benefit analysis of bureaucrats. it is simply not worth it. i turn it over to senator hutchison at this point. >> thank you. i think we have seen these early arguments, yesterday especially where we were arguing whether it was a tax or a mandate. i thought justice robert certainly said, well, of course, we all know that if it is a tax, that makes congress have the capability to do it. he basically said, it looks like a duck and it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it is a doubt. which means, it is a mandate. it is an unconstitutional mandate and make this whole lot unconstitutional. i think when you look at what it is doing, it is telling every business in america that they have to subscribe to a government-run health care plan or they cannot offer the premiums. it is a mandate that is unsustainable in the constitution. i think the justices are beginning to get enough information that we hope they

medicare and the president's laws, turning the medicare to a board of unelected, and unaccountable bureaucrats, putting it price controls on medicare which will lead to deny care for current seniors, medicare under the current president's laws is half a trillion dollars from medicare to spend on his health-care proposal. we are saying to get rid of the rationing board and preserve the system. they have already retired or are about to retire and have organized their lives around this program, and we are saying that in order to save the system, have the choices of guaranteed options, including the traditional fee-for-service program, just like we do as members of congress for our health care choices. saving medicare it this way, which has a rich tradition of bipartisan support, it is the most humane, the most common sense, and bipartisan net way to save this vital program. let me turn it over to dr. price, an expert on this and a member of the ways in committee. >> the american people are smarter than the democrats give them credit for. they understand that the current program is broken. they un

medicare under the president's law is next year turning medicare over to a board of 15 unelected, unaccountable bureaucrats whose job is to circumvent congress and put price controls on medicare which will lead to denied care for current seniors. >> if i'm a senior, it seems like republicans are trying to scare seniors into supporting their bill. what's your sense? >> congress in washington has already altered med tearer. pennant by put into place an advisory board, which as a physician is to deny payment for certain care for seniors. we believe it's absolutely imperative and what the actuary for medicare is you've got to reform the system in a positive way. we think that can be done by allowing seniors to remain on medicare if they so desire or to move to a. pra, a health care coverage that may be more responsive to their needs. it's imperative we do that so the country doesn't continue to spend hundreds of billions of dollars it doesn't have. >> sir, you talk about reform. a recent kaiser family poll shows that when seniors trust democrats more than republicans to handle medicaring and 70% of

medicare under the president's law is next year turning medicare over to a board of 15 unelected, unaccountableob is to circumvent congress and put price controls on medicare which will lead to denied care for current seniors. >> to which nancy pelosi said, the american people have already rejected this plan before and this year will be no different. americans' priorities are clear, republicans must work with democrats to preserve and strengthen medicare and not dismantle it. we must act to create jobs is grow our economy. as far as how this plays out, let's unpack the christmas in march thing. i think it's interesting. my celebrity look alike luke russert tweeted that john boehner said this budget will not make it hard for gop house members to win in november. in other words, we're not going to give them any sort of unforeseen boon doogals as they march towards re-election. >> the reality is everybody knows this isn't going to become law, let's have it out to start with. this is purely for political -- >> optics. >> and to argue fundamental beliefs in spending and cutting. and in this case, in

this independent advisory board basically is charged -- has charged 15 unelected officials with making decisions about what's covered for both patients and -- below the age of 65, and medicare recipients. mr. bass: it is the affordable health care act's way of reducing costs, ie, telling doctors and patients -- i.e., telling doctors and patients what this he can -- they can and can't do. 15 unelected brewer cats in w.a.c., are going to tell what you you can do. they stand ahead of you and your doctor. now this bill did not make it to the floor last year. it has -- it will make it to the floor this year with bipartisan support. it costs $3.1 billion, which is made up with a tort law reform provision which has been added, but that shows that $3.1 billion is what's saved by denying americans access to health care that they've purchased or that they deserve. join me in repealing the independent payment advisory board. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the minority leader rise? mr. hoyer: i ask to speak for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. h

that is a board of 15 unelected bureaucrats who have the power, without appeal, to deny payment for services for seniors. american people understand this. they know that what we've been working on is strengthening and improving and saving the medicare system which is why the work that was done between last year and this year, allows seniors, would allow, will allow seniors the opportunity to stay on the current medicare program if that's what they desire or to voluntarily move to a different program through a premium support process. so the american people are brighter than the democrats give them credit for. >> briefly, if i can follow up, there are some on the other side of the aisle, you described, this mr. chairman as -- >> a portion of the press briefing on the republicans 2013 budget plan. you can see the rest of the briefing and the plan itself go to our website, c-span.org. we'll leave it at this point as federal reserve chair ben bernanke is taking a break from his day job this afternoon. he will teach a class at george washington university. this is the first of four, one-hour lect

don't have the rationing of health care for our seniors that this independent payment advisory board, 15 unelectedmocrats to impose price controls on medicare. we don't do that. we use the power of kcompetitiv markets, a transparent marketplace and bipartisan plan supported by senator wyden, a democrat. we are hopeful this is the plan that will work and not only safe health care but frankly save our nation from bankruptcy. >> who do you think will blank as we ged toward the end of the year on that claf? would you be okay with the sequester kicking in and bush tax cuts expiring? it's a huge wall that could hurt a fairly tepid recovery in that we're in already. >> i totally agree, joe. the president is proposing the single largest tax increase in american history, $1.9 trillion. but what's interesting, if you give the president every single tax increase, 40% of which is going to fall on small businesses, but if you give the president his entire tax increase, it's about 17% of the $11 trillion of additional debt he's placing on us. my point is you can't tax your way out of this problem and without sp

dollars from medicare to spend on his new health care program for other people and puts a board of 15 unelected unaccountable bureaucrats in charge of denying care by denying prices. it says you can go and cut reimbursement rates to providers, do whatever your value-based benefit design, which is what they propose, whatever that means, to affect current seniors. we reject the idea that medicare should be run by 15 unelected bureaucrats and want to preserve it for the current generation. with that, i yield five minutes to the chairman of the house republican conference, a former member of the budget committee, mr. hensarling of texas. the chair: the gentleman is recognized for five minutes. mr. hensarling: i thank the chairman for yielding and i thank him for his national leadership on this pressing issue of the national debt. mr. chairman, last week secretary geithner came up to capitol hill to warn of the threat to the american economy of the european debt crisis. mr. chairman, the american people know that the greater threat to the american economy is the american debt crisis. we face the abs

and to solve the whole thing, they have got a whole new board of unelected bureaucrats to make additional cuts to medicare to make it look like it's okay. and then there is the accounting sleight of hand. i'm one of the two accountants in the united states senate now, and you've got to pay attention to see it, but it goes back to the -- the fraud because if this same sort of thing were being done in the private sector, people would go to jail. there are a number of ways that we will bring out how that is not just budget gimmicks and not just sleight of hand but actually taking advantage of seniors. the chief medicare actuary said that medicare will go broke in 2024. that's five years earlier than last year's report by the chief medicare actuary. that's the guy that works for medicare. he doesn't work for us. and he has to figure out each year how much in the hole it is and what needs to be done to fix it, and my contention, of course, is that you can't steal $500 billion out of a program that's already going broke and expect it to be fine. and we warned about that as we were going through

first, it would eliminate obamacare's independent payment advisory board and thereby keep a board of unelected, unaccountable bureaucrats from restricting senior access to health care. it also brings medical malpractice lawsuits under control by capping noneconomic damages and limiting attorneys fees so more money will actually go to the victims rather than overzealous trial lawyers. these reforms will save taxpayers over $40 billion over the next decade. everyone knows that we need to do something about rising health care costs and this bill and taking care of the medical malpractice problems that we have will go a long way in getting those costs under control. this bill will give every member of this house the opportunity to be part of this solution and i urge my colleagues to vote yes on h.r. 5 and i yield back. the chair: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from michigan is recognized. mr. conyers: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield to a senior member of the judiciary committee, maxine waters of california, as much time as she may consume. water water -- the chair

president's plan, through his law currently, to put in place an independent payment advisory board, aboard a 15 unelected bureaucrats who have the power without appeal to deny payment for services for seniors. the american people understand this and other what we have been working on a strengthening and improving in saving the medicare system which is why the work that was done between last year and this year allows for seniors, will allow seniors the opportunity to stay on their current program if that is what they desire, or to voluntarily move to a different program through premier support. the american people are bridget and the democrats give them credit for. >> if i can't follow up, some on the other side of the i'll describe this as a rationing board. we have search -- heard it portrayed as a death penalty. are people going to say that this is just another shot? >> let's be clear, the independent image advisory board is aboard that is in current law that will be 15 individuals appointed by the president who without appeal will be able to deny payment for services that doctors would provide to seni

the independent payment advisory board is a classic example of what they did in obamacare. it delegated its authority to 15 unelected bureaucrats. and the worst thing about it to my colleagues, and mr. speaker, the worst thing about it, is that 15-member board is not subject to any open law requirement. they don't have to conduct their hearings in public. they don't have to conduct their deliberations with public input. it's 15 unelected bureaucrats that are making fundamental health-care decisions that should be patient-centered, relationships between a patient and a doctor, but yet under obamacare and what this congress did is delegate its authority to 15 bureaucrats to make the life and death zwigses. mr. duncan: i'm on the natural resources committee and we deal with the e.p.a. and others that make regulations regarding offshore drilling and can't do anything without some public comment period. they can't promulgate a regulation that isn't subject to a public comment period or an appeal process. this 15-member board can pass something in the back room without transparency, without public input, without a public

medicare under the present law is next year turning medicare over to a board of 15 unelected, unaccountabless and put price controls on medicare which will lead to did not care for current seniors. medicare under the president's half a trillion dollars to spend on his health care proposal. we say get rid of the russian board, stop the raid and preserve the system. not change benefits because they have retired or are about to retire and they have organized their lives around this program. we are saying, let people in the future, in order to save the system, have a list of choices of guaranteed options, including the traditional fee- for-service program from which to choose just like we do as members of congress for our health care choices. saving health care this way, which has a rich tradition of bipartisan support, this kind of medicare reform is the most humane, the most common sense and bipartisan way to save this vital program. let me turn over to dr. price who is an expert and a member of the ways and means committee as well. >> thanks. the american people are smarter than democrats gi

otherwise see the responsibility of -- cede the responsibility of congress to an unelected and unaccountable medicare rationing board. this measure is yet another facet of that commitment. thank you, mr. speaker, and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: under the speaker's announced policy of january 5, 2011, the gentleman from indiana, mr. burton, is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the majority leader. mr. burton: thank you, mr. speaker. i ask unanimous consent to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. burton: mr. speaker, last week president obama was in an oil field in new mexico and the president said that under my administration america is producing more oil today than at any time in the last eight years . he said that's a fact. that is a fact. he went on to say, you have my word that we will keep drilling everywhere we can and we'll do it while protecting the health and safety of the american people. and he said, a recent independent analysis showed that over the last 36 years, there has been no connection between the amount of oil that we drill in this cou

from reading through this law that it's unelected bureaucrats. 15 unelected bureaucrats with this so-called independent payment advisory board. people who will decide what hospitals would get paid for providing various services, so that in small communities, the hospital may say well, we can no longer offer that service. and i have heard my colleagues talk about the specific loss of the availability of hospitals to even stay profitable with some of the cuts, taking $500 billion away from medicare. again, not to save and strengthen medicare but to start a whole new government program for others. i mean, those are the things that we're dealing with and why at town hall meeting after town hall meeting, people continue to tell me they want this repealed and they want it replaced with patient-centered, patient-centered health care. not government-centered, not insurance-company centered, patient-centered health care. that's what people are asking for, and they get tired of all these broken promises that the president has made. i remember he said he's going to bring down the price of premiums by $2,500 per family per year. what fa

advisory board to determine medicare payments is a direct threat to the vital lifeline for seor, r budget emp 50 million seniors to choose a plan that best suits their needs. rather than allow 15 unelected, unaccountable bureaucrats to do medicare m.rtis reforms that will save and strengthen this program for american seniors. seniors will have an opportunity to choose a health care plan or traditional medicare, whichever fits their needs best. no changes are made for those in and near retirement. now, no doubt we will likely ti accusations today as we've heard in the past. in fact, we've heard them already. we'll hear that a defense of the broken status quo here in washington when what we need is a positive vision for our country's future, not more demagoguery. many would apparently prefer to ignore medicare's fiscal challenges and issue false criticisms and accusations. we believe it's our responsibility to bring ideas to the american people, honest ideas that engage in an honest and factual debate. there's no denying that our health care programs currently are unsustainable from standpoint. our budget is the answer to this looming crisis. and with a complete and full repeal of the pre

from reading through this law that it's unelected bureaucrats. 15 unelected bureaucrats with this so-called independent payment advisory board. people who will decide what hospitals would get paid for providing various services, so that in small communities, the hospital may say well, we can no longer offer that service. and i have heard my colleagues talk about the specific loss of the availability of hospitals to even stay profitable with some of the cuts, taking $500 billion away from medicare. again, not to save and strengthen medicare but to start a whole new government program for others. i mean, those are the things that we're dealing with and why at town hall meeting after town hall meeting, people continue to tell me they want this repealed and they want it replaced with patient-centered, patient-centered health care. not government-centered, not insurance-company centered, patient-centered health care. that's what people are asking for, and they get tired of all these broken promises that the president has made. i remember he said he's going to bring down the price of premiums by $2,500 per family per year. what fa

first time since the high amendment in 1978, to the ability of 15 unelected bureaucrats and what is called the independent in an advisory boards under medicare to deny care and a certain procedures to certain patients, threatening the ability of the disabled and the elderly to get access to the quality care they need. to the mandate on religious charities and educational institutions, schools and universities. forcing them to fund services that violates their conscience and directly contradict the teaching of their deeply held religious faith. this is not a minor issue. yes, it affects the catholic church. one in every 10 men and women in america live below the carver level is -- below the poverty level is catholic. one in every six is lying in a catholic hospital. this is not about to put together domination. this is about whether colorado christian university or ohio christian university in columbus, ohio or whether concordia university in wisconsin should be forced by the federal government to violate their own conscience and their own faith. my friends, this is -- this is a travesty. it is the supreme court -- if the supr