Statement of Congressman John D. Dingell, Ranking Member
Committee on Energy and Commerce

FLOOR STATEMENT
THE HONORABLE JOHN D. DINGELL
H. CON. RES. 95, THE FY2006 BUDGET RESOLUTION

April 28, 2005

Mr. Chairman, I rise today to speak out against this budget resolution. This budget provides $105.7 billion in tax cuts to the wealthiest Americans, above the $1.9 trillion already bestowed upon them since 2001. This additional fiscal irresponsibility in the face of huge deficits is ample reason to oppose the resolution.

But this resolution goes further -- it takes from the poor to give to the rich by shredding our healthcare safety net. This resolution will result in $10 billion in cuts to Medicaid, and possibly more because the instruction to the Committee on Energy and Commerce is for $14.7 billion, and the Committee might cut even more.

I agree with many of my colleagues that we need to consider every dollar we spend in these times of high deficits. This is exactly why our scarce resources should go to the most vulnerable among us. Medicaid provides healthcare to more than 52 million of the sickest and poorest Americans, including 25 million children, 14 million low-income adults (the majority of whom work), five million low-income seniors, and eight million individuals with disabilities.

A bipartisan majority of both the House and Senate have called for no cuts to Medicaid. The National Governors Association opposes the cuts. And nearly 1,000 state organizations and more than 800 national organizations have voiced opposition to these cuts.

Medicaid is not the problem. It has done a better job at holding down costs than private insurance by almost half. And Medicaid is absorbing the costs of care not covered by Medicare.

These reconciliation instructions will increase the number of uninsured, create job losses in the healthcare sector, and result in payment reductions to doctors and other healthcare providers who care for Medicaid patients. Such cuts will also undermine community health centers that depend so much on Medicaid to survive.

We must get our priorities straight. This budget resolution fails to do that. Two days ago, 348 Members said “no” to Medicaid cuts in a non-binding motion to instruct. I urge my colleagues to stick to their guns, and vote “no” on this budget resolution.

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(Contact: Jodi Seth, 202-225-3641)