Harvard Med Dean Fails Health Care Bill

Floor Speech

Harvard Med Dean Fails Health Care Bill

Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, here is what Jeffrey Flier, dean of Harvard Medical School, has to say about the administration's health care bill: ``..... The people who favor the legislation are engaged in collective denial.

``Speeches and news reports can lead you to believe that proposed congressional legislation would tackle the problems of cost, access and quality. But that's not true.

``..... There are no provisions to substantially control the growth of costs or raise the quality of care. So the overall effort will fail to qualify as reform.

``Whatever its shape, the final legislation that will emerge from Congress will markedly accelerate national health care spending rather than restrain it ..... The legislation would do little or nothing to improve quality or change health care's dysfunctional delivery system.

``Worse, currently proposed Federal legislation would undermine any potential for real innovation in insurance and the provision of care.''

Dean Flier has good advice: Congress should start over and do it right.

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