Medicare Improvements For Patients and Providers Act of 2008

Floor Speech

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Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding and also for his leadership on this issue.

Mr. Speaker, today's vote is about maintaining access to health care for seniors and people with disabilities. Although this bill stops cuts to physician payments, it is not about how much we pay doctors. This bill is about access to health care for patients, people that need medical attention.

The data are convincing. Over 60 percent of California physicians would leave Medicare or stop taking new Medicare patients if these cuts are implemented. In rural California, like rural America, we are already facing a physician shortage crisis. The impact on seniors would be devastating if Medicare beneficiaries lose access to thousands of physicians in California because of this cut.

Fortunately, we can prevent those cuts and further strengthen Medicare through expanded preventive health services, enhanced low income protections and other improvements to help people in need of care by passing H.R. 6331.

There may not be bipartisan support in this House for this bill, but there is bipartisan support across the country for this bill. I urge everyone to vote for it.

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