The bill ensures that higher education is more affordable at no additional expense to taxpayers — in fact, it saves money. More students will go to college, they will graduate with less debt, and the federal loan initiatives that they and their families depend upon will be strengthened for decades to come. The legislation will generate almost $100 billion in savings over the next 10 years that will be used to increase Pell Grant scholarships, keep interest rates on federal loans affordable, and safeguard federal student loan access for families. Dr. Jill Biden discusses how the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act makes college more affordable:
Speaker Pelosi on today’s signing:
Health insurance reform represents remarkable progress for the American people. Today, with President Obama's signature, health care becomes more affordable for the middle class, we begin closing the prescription drug donut hole, and we demand accountability from the insurance industry.
Health insurance reform is fiscally responsible for the budgets of America's families and the federal budget. It strengthens Medicare and improves benefits for our seniors. It will create millions of jobs and strengthen our economic security by keeping America competitive and igniting innovation and entrepreneurship.
This legislation is about expanding opportunity for millions of Americans, and essential to opportunity is higher education. This legislation contains the largest investment in college aid in our nation's history by lowering the cost of student loans, expanding Pell Grants, and investing in community colleges and the institutions that traditionally have served minorities. It is fiscally responsible, ending years of government subsidies to banks, making available $68 billion for college loans and deficit reduction.
I salute the efforts of the Members of Congress, particularly Chairman George Miller and many of our newer Members, who led the charge for reform, and President Obama, whose visionary leadership made this progress possible.
This afternoon, Speaker Pelosi met with President Nicolas Sarkozy of France. President Sarkozy signing the Speaker’s guest book:
The note:
Speaker Pelosi and President Sarkozy in the Speaker’s office at the Capitol:
Transcript of their press availability prior to meeting:
Speaker Pelosi: Good afternoon. Once again, it is an honor to welcome the President of the French Republic to the Capitol of the United States. We all remember with great pride his beautiful speech to a joint session of Congress.
We are all reminded there are only two paintings in the chamber of the House of Representatives–one of the father of our country, George Washington, the other of the Marquis de Lafayette. Our friendship goes back a long way, and the President's visit then and now reinforces that friendship.
I look forward to our conversation regarding the security of our countries: whether it relates to stopping the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and the situation in Iran relating to that; our cooperation in Afghanistan; and the issue of regulatory reform and our economic security. I would be interested to hear the President's thinking on that subject. I know he has been a strong leader in that regard as well. And then of course, the issue of climate change, in which France and the European Union have lead the way.
So I am delighted to receive once again, President Sarkozy to the Capitol in friendship and again, with great recollections of his excellent speech to the Congress now almost two and a half years ago when he was a new President of the French Republic.
Mr. President.
President Sarkozy: [Translated from French] I am so happy to be back in the Capitol. Thank you for your kind words about my speech. I, believe you me, I have not forgotten that moment, which was a memorable one in my life.
We will cover the wide range of topics you mentioned. I have much admiration for you, Madam Speaker. It is a great and wonderful symbol that there be a woman Speaker, in this, the world's number one power.
This visit to the United States is very important to me. This afternoon with President Obama, I will be talking about the joint work of France and the United States.
In a letter to Karen Ignagni, President of America's Health Insurance Plans, Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced today that she will be issuing regulations in the weeks ahead to reiterate that beginning in September 2010 (six months from enactment of our legislation):
Children with pre-existing conditions may not be denied access to their parents' health insurance plans
Insurance companies will no long be allowed to insure a child, but exclude treatment for the child's pre-existing condition
The Secretary issued the letter following reports that the industry “may be seeking to avoid or ignore a provision in the new law that prohibits insurance companies from excluding children with pre-existing conditions from coverage.”
The Secretary concluded by writing:
The American people debated and discussed health insurance reform for more than a year. Congress and the President have acted. Now is not the time to search for non-existent loopholes that preserve a broken system. Instead, we should work together to do the hard work of improving the affordability, quality, and accessibility of our health care system.
Last week, the three House Committee Chairs with jurisdiction of the legislation affirmed that “under the legislation that Congress passed and the President signed yesterday, plans that include coverage of children cannot deny coverage to a child based upon a pre-existing condition.” As they wrote, “the concept that insurance companies would even seek to deny children coverage exemplifies why we fought for this reform effort and will continue fighting to ensure all Americans have access to high quality, affordable care.”
Read Secretary Sebelius’ full letter:
March 29, 2010
Ms. Karen Ignagni
America's Health Insurance Plans
601 Pennsylvania Ave., NW
South Building, Suite Five Hundred
Washington, DC 20004
Thank you for inviting me to address your members earlier this month to discuss health insurance reform. I appreciate all opportunities to discuss how this comprehensive, historic legislation will improve the health care system for all Americans.
Following the enactment of this legislation, our Department has begun work to quickly and carefully implement the provisions of the new law. As we move ahead, we look forward to working with you and your members as well as the public and other stakeholders interested in helping us fulfill the law's potential.
Unfortunately, recent media accounts indicate that some insurance companies may be seeking to avoid or ignore a provision in the new law that prohibits insurance companies from excluding children with pre-existing conditions from coverage.
Health insurance reform is designed to prevent any child from being denied coverage because he or she has a pre-existing condition. Leaders in Congress have reaffirmed this in recent days in the attached statement. To ensure that there is no ambiguity on this point, I am preparing to issue regulations in the weeks ahead ensuring that the term “pre-existing condition exclusion” applies to both a child’s access to a plan and to his or her benefits once he or she is in the plan. These regulations will further confirm that beginning in September, 2010:
o Children with pre-existing conditions may not be denied access to their parents' health insurance plan;
o Insurance companies will no longer be allowed to insure a child, but exclude treatments for that child's pre-existing condition.
I urge you to share this information with your members and to help ensure they cease any attempt to deny coverage to some of the youngest and most vulnerable Americans. For too long, parents across the country have struggled as pre-existing conditions have prevented their children from accessing affordable, stable health insurance coverage. Health insurance reform eliminates this tremendous source of worry and helps ensure children have the care they need.
The American people debated and discussed health insurance reform for more than a year. Congress and the President have acted. Now is not the time to search for non-existent loopholes that preserve a broken system. Instead, we should work together to do the hard work of improving the affordability, quality, and accessibility of our health care system. I look forward to working with you to achieve that goal.
The House passed the bill last night, completing the second of two bills on comprehensive health insurance reform, by a vote of 220 to 207; the Senate passed it yesterday afternoon by a vote of 56 to 43. Speaker Pelosi explained it “is with great pride and even more humility that we come together today to enroll this important legislation”:
Transcript of the Speaker’s remarks:
“Good morning. It is with great pride and even more humility that we come together today to enroll this important legislation. In doing so, Congress will act as others before us did to do something very important for the American people, very significant to their daily lives.
“Others before us brought forth Social Security, Medicare, the Civil Rights Acts, some of the landmark legislation in our country's history. And today, we have the opportunity in the House to sign this legislation to enroll this important legislation to send to the President of the United States for his signature.
“We calmly reviewed the events of the last week or so, which brought us to victory in passing the base bill, the Senate bill. Essential to its passage was the passage of a second bill, which would make significant improvements on the Senate bill. Only then would we be able to pass the Senate bill. A matter of trust between the House and the Senate — we were able to pass the Senate bill here knowing that the Senate would pass the House improvements. Senator Reid did a remarkable job keeping everyone together — we were thrilled yesterday to see very substantial victory yesterday for these improvements.
“What happens now is the result of the work of many people. You have heard me sing the praises of our leadership over and over again, and of course, the President of the United States. But the victory that we have is largely attributed to our newest Members of Congress. We've had generations of working on this legislation. Mr. Dingell, what an honor it is to serve with you. You have been our inspiration. [Applause.] And his father before him — my father served with Mr. Dingell's father — his father before him introducing every term in Congress, universal health care for all Americans.
“And that legacy, that tradition was reinforced with the election in 2006 and then in 2008 to increase our ranks, to strengthen a Democratic majority, to pass this legislation. Not only was it about the numbers, more important than that, it was about the significant improvement in the legislation. Because of some of the Members who are here and their colleagues in the class of '06 and the class of '08, the legislation we enrolled here today makes this health care reform more affordable for the middle class.
“It makes it more accessible to many more people. It has more equity for the states by removing the Nebraska arrangement — state equity. It holds insurance companies more accountable by improving the reforms that were in the original legislation. It changes because of the work of the '06 and '08 classes. It changes the pay-for, making it fairer again to the middle class. It closes the donut hole for seniors, closes the donut hole for seniors. And that is really very important. If you are not a senior, as I am becoming even more and more by the minute, the donut hole is the disparity and the inequity that seniors face in terms of paying for their prescription drugs.
“So again, more affordable for the middle class, more fairness to the states, more accountability for the insurance companies, better pay-for in terms of the middle class, closing they donut hole.
“Something that captures why this is so important came home to me last night when I was reading some letters. Listen to this, Cindy Mercer Jones Wynne wrote: 'My beautiful daughter, Courtney Leigh Huber, 23 years old, died on January 5, 2010, just a matter of weeks ago. She was an insulin diabetic who was kicked off her father's insurance the day she graduated from college. She wasn't able to find a job that provided insurance or even a reasonable income to buy her medical supplies. I helped her financially as much as I could, but being a teacher and single mother of five, my income was also limited. To try to conserve her insulin, she attempted to wean her off her nighttime insulin dosage, resulting in ketoacidosis. She slipped into a coma and never woke up.' 23 years old, no health insurance, unable to afford her full insulin supply.
“Now when this legislation is all signed, sealed and passed and into the law, Courtney Leigh Huber would be able to stay on her father's insurance policy until she was 26 years old. This makes a tremendous difference in the lives of the American people.
“Another important part of this — and we passed the President's budget last year–two of the pillars of his economic stabilization and job creation were investments in education and investments in health care. When we did the reconciliation it was on a dual-track. And thanks to the leadership of George Miller and members of the Education and Labor Committee, many of whom are present here today — this education piece is in this reconciliation.
“On any given day, this would be an enormous victory for the American people — lower the cost of student loans, 8 million families affected, improving the Pell Grant for many, many people who need Pell Grants, assistance for community colleges and historic — $2.5 billion for minority-serving institutions — making college more affordable for the middle class and reaching out to make it more accessible for many, many more people. It's about training our workforce in our community colleges. It's about, again, reducing the cost of student loans.
“It's important to note, and Steny [Hoyer] would want me to make this point very strongly — that all has been, every step of the way in the education piece, we save $10 billion for the taxpayer. Overall, we save over $1.3 trillion for the taxpayer. So this is about improving affordability and access. Again, more affordability for the middle-class in terms of health care and education, but to do so in a way — but to do so in a way that saves the taxpayer money.
“And when it comes to our seniors, we protect Medicare and make it solvent for nearly a decade longer. We close the donut hole. And we have a better situation for preventive care in the legislation.
“So if you're young, if you're middle aged, if you're middle class — whatever your situation, this legislation affects you very directly. If there were not — only one reason to do the bill — fiscal soundness. This bill fills the bill. The President has said that 'health care reform is entitlement reform.' We cannot — family budgets and the federal budget cannot sustain the current system. He also said, 'we will measure our success here by the progress that is being made by America's working families.' With this legislation, which is relevant to their lives, we hope that they will be able to reach their aspirations, liberated from the weight of health care cost, free from the high cost of education, so they can honor the vows of our founders: 'Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.'
“And now I'm very honored to sign this legislation, which we will then send over to the President of the United States. So the wonderful ideas that we had will go from being ideas, to legislation, to the law of the land, to make a difference in the lives of the American people.
“But first I want to acknowledge — I mentioned that Steny was here — I'm going to introduce — Xavier Becerra, Chris Van Hollen — who else of our leadership? Our Chairman Sandy Levin, George Miller, I acknowledged. Mr. Waxman is not here. Now, a part of our leadership — Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro. Have I mentioned all of our leaders yet? They are well known to you and you see them frequently at these sessions.
“But, as I said, this day would not be possible without the vision in leadership, without the President of the United States, the inspiration of Senator Kennedy who has been with us every step of the way, including right now. But the difference — all the difference in the world and all the difference for America's working families was made by our class of '06 and '08 — our newest Members bringing their fresh-thinking, their tireless energy, and their deep commitment to the American people to bear on this legislation. Paul Tonko of New York, Steve Cohen of Tennessee, Mary Jo Kilroy of Ohio, Carol Shea-Porter of New Hampshire, Peter Welch of Vermont. They're mostly members of the committee — Ron Klein of Florida right here. Any other of our freshman?
“All of these young people back here who helped because actually all that we want to maneuver and win votes in the Congress is not possible without the outside mobilization of people who understand the impact of the legislation and make their voices known to the Members of Congress. Remember: nothing is more eloquent to a Member of Congress than the voice of his or her own constituents.
“So, many of our colleagues have already gone home to talk to their editorial boards, to see their families, and to meet with their constituents on this legislation.
“I thank our class of '06 and '08 who are here in their own right and as representatives. So let's hear it for our newest members. [Applause.]
“A couple of days ago I signed the big bill. This is a much smaller bill that we are signing now.” [Signing the bill.]
Rep. Rob Andrews explains we can finally say “every American has affordable access to health insurance”:
Chairman George Miller closed debate on what he described as “the last leg of a long journey”:
Speaker Pelosi gaveled the vote to a close:
Speaker Pelosi’s statement on passage:
Tonight, the House of Representatives voted to strengthen health insurance reform, invest in our nation's students, and secure a better future for all Americans. In passing this bill, we have truly completed what the late Senator Edward Kennedy called 'the great unfinished business of our society.'
With this legislation in place, families will have access to even more affordable care than the reform the President signed this week. Seniors will see the prescription drug 'donut hole' close faster, and they will start paying less for their prescription drugs this year. Taxpayers will not pay for special deals that favor one state over another, and primary care doctors will receive fair pay for providing critical services to low-income Americans.
In securing affordable, quality health care for all, we have also made the largest investment in college aid in our history. This bill makes borrowing more affordable for nearly 8 million students. It increases the size of Pell Grants and strengthens workforce training initiatives at community colleges. We will make key investments in historically black colleges and universities and other minority-serving institutions. Taken together, these measures are the single largest deficit reduction effort in nearly two decades.
This vote represents a triumph for the health and economic stability of America's families, the security of America's seniors, and the future of America's students. The Congress of the United States finished the job of health insurance reform today; in doing so, we made history and progress for the American people.
Following the President signing of comprehensive health insurance reform legislation into law this week, opponents of reform continue to spread myths about the bill, including claiming that Americans who don't buy health insurance could face jail time or harassment from the IRS.
MYTH: “The IRS will hound taxpayers, confiscate property, or put you in jail if you do not have health insurance.”
FACT: The bill specifically prohibits the IRS from confiscating taxpayer assets, from using liens or levies, or imposing criminal penalties of any kind — including jail time — because of a lack of health care coverage.
MYTH: “The IRS may need to hire as many as 16,500 additional employees to investigate and collect billions in new taxes.”
FACT: This number is a fabrication — and the fact is that any new IRS employees would be hired to help deliver the more than $500 billion in tax relief provided under this bill: ensuring that individuals and businesses are aware of the tax incentives and how to claim them, answering taxpayer calls, building online self-help tools, and performing other outreach services.
Health insurance reform provides the largest middle-class tax cut for health care in American history — and the IRS makes it easy for Americans who qualify for help by paying a significant portion of their premiums up front — so they never have to pay the full bill.
The claim that IRS agents would be dispatched to quiz Americans citizens on the intricacies of their health plan is FALSE. Insurance companies will automatically report health care coverage that they provide to both taxpayers and the IRS.
Representative Kind:
Dr. Boustany raised the issue of the health reform bill and I think there is a lot of misinformation, a lot of misperception, about the role that IRS will play in the implementation of the recently passed health care bill.
So let me ask you a series of questions and as much as you can just answer them yes or no to clarify some questions that I have about the exact role that the IRS will play.
Representative Kind:
The health care bill that was just signed by the President will not fundamentally alter the relationship between the IRS with the American taxpayer, will it?
IRS Commissioner Shulman:
No.
Representative Kind:
You said that right now you are moving forward doing calculations of costs and staffing needs that the IRS has but you haven't made any of those final determinations yet have you?
IRS Commissioner Shulman:
That is correct.
Representative Kind:
And IRS agents are not going to go out and auditing taxpayers to verify if they have obtained acceptable health insurance, will they?
IRS Commissioner Shulman:
No.
Representative Kind:
In fact it's going to be the insurance companies that will merely be certifying whether or not an individual has obtained health care coverage and they will be certifying that to the IRS?
IRS Commissioner Shulman:
Yes, it's probably worth me being very clear because I think there have been some misconceptions out there. The way we envision this working is that HHS, the Department of Health and Human Services and the exchanges will be working with the insurance companies to determine what is acceptable coverage.
All that will happen with the IRS is similar to a current 1099 where a bank sends IRS a statement that says ‘here's the interest’ someone owes and they send it to the taxpayer. We expect to get a simple form that we won't look behind that says this person has acceptable health coverage. There are not going to be any discussions about health coverage with an IRS employee.
Representative Kind:
In fact I envision that the major role the IRS will play is trying to get information into the individuals' hands and businesses about the various tax incentives that the health reform bill has and how they can best access those incentives and utilize them, is that correct?
IRS Commissioner Shulman:
Yes, I mean, the role of the IRS is going to be again, the tax portions of this, not the health portions of this, and what we are going to try to do is make sure that people are educated, that there is information, we process payments quickly. We also will make sure there is no fraud and abuse in the system as we always do.
Representative Kind:
So the IRS is still going to pick up the phone and answer questions in regards to the tax incentives in the health care bill?
IRS Commissioner Shulman:
Yes
Representative Kind:
And I assume that the IRS will try to build some type of online education service too for people to access as far as what they are eligible for?
IRS Commissioner Shulman:
Absolutely.
Representative Kind:
And that you will probably be performing some additional outreach services with businesses and taxpayers about the health care bill?
IRS Commissioner Shulman:
Absolutely.
Representative Kind:
And as you indicated earlier to Mr. Etheridge, you are already moving forward on a 35% tax credit that small businesses are going to be getting this year already with enactment of the health care bill?
IRS Commissioner Shulman:
That is our first move.
Representative Kind:
And no taxpayer is going to be subject to any IRS liens or levies, or jail time, for failing to disclose insurance requirements to the IRS?
IRS Commissioner Shulman:
That is what the legislation calls for, yes.
Representative Kind:
And as soon as your internal review is done, I assume you will come back and report to Congress what type of resources you'll need for staffing or for additional funds in order to implement the health care bill?
IRS Commissioner Shulman:
Yes, I do want to be clear as I was with Mr. Boustany, we will need resources to implement the tax provisions of this legislation and we will look forward to working with Committee to make sure we have the proper resources to serve the American people.
SMALL BUSINESS TAX CREDITS–Offers tax credits to small businesses to make employee coverage more affordable. Tax credits of up to 35 percent of premiums will be immediately available. Effective beginning for calendar year 2010. (Beginning in 2014, small business tax credits will cover 50 percent of premiums.)
IF YOU ARE A SENIOR:
BEGINS TO CLOSE THE MEDICARE PART D DONUT HOLE–Provides a $250 rebate to Medicare beneficiaries who hit the donut hole in 2010. Effective for calendar year 2010. (Beginning in 2011, institutes a 50% discount on brand-name drugs in the donut hole; also completely closes the donut hole by 2020.)
FREE PREVENTIVE CARE UNDER MEDICARE–Eliminates co-payments for preventive services and exempts preventive services from deductibles under the Medicare program. Effective beginning January 1, 2011.
HELP FOR EARLY RETIREES–Creates a temporary re-insurance program (until the Exchanges are available) to help offset the costs of expensive health claims for employers that provide health benefits for retirees age 55-64. Effective 90 days after enactment.
IF YOU HAVE PRIVATE HEALTH INSURANCE:
NO DISCRIMINATION AGAINST CHILDREN WITH PRE-EXISTING CONDITIONS–Prohibits health plans from denying coverage to children with pre-existing conditions. Effective 6 months after enactment. (Beginning in 2014, this prohibition would apply to adults as well.)
NO RESCISSIONS–Bans health plans from dropping people from coverage when they get sick. Effective 6 months after enactment.
NO LIFETIME LIMITS ON COVERAGE–Prohibits health plans from placing lifetime caps on coverage. Effective 6 months after enactment.
NO RESTRICTIVE ANNUAL LIMITS ON COVERAGE–Tightly restricts new plans' use of annual limits to ensure access to needed care. These tight restrictions will be defined by HHS. Effective 6 months after enactment. (Beginning in 2014, the use of any annual limits would be prohibited for all plans.)
FREE PREVENTIVE CARE UNDER NEW PLANS–Requires new private plans to cover preventive services with no co-payments and with preventive services being exempt from deductibles. Effective 6 months after enactment.
NEW, INDEPENDENT APPEALS PROCESS FOR NEW PLANS–Ensures consumers in new plans have access to an effective internal and external appeals process to appeal decisions. Effective 6 months after enactment.
MORE FOR YOUR PREMIUM DOLLAR–Requires plans to put more of your premiums into your care, and less into profits, CEO pay, etc. This medical loss ratio requires plans in the individual and small group market to spend 80 percent of premiums on medical services, and plans in the large group market to spend 85 percent. Insurers that don't meet these thresholds must provide rebates to policyholders. Effective on January 1, 2011.
NO DISCRIMINATION BASED ON SALARY–Prohibits new group health plans from establishing any eligibility rules for health care coverage that have the effect of discriminating in favor of higher wage employees. Effective 6 months after enactment.
IF YOU DON'T HAVE HEALTH INSURANCE:
IMMEDIATE HELP FOR THE UNINSURED WITH PRE-EXISTING CONDITIONS (INTERIM HIGH-RISK POOL)–Provides immediate access to insurance for Americans who are uninsured because of a pre-existing condition – through a temporary high-risk pool — until the Exchanges up and running in 2014. Effective 90 days after enactment. (Beginning in 2014, health plans are banned from discriminating against all people with pre-existing conditions, so high-risk pools would phase out).
EXTENDING COVERAGE FOR YOUNG PEOPLE UP TO 26TH BIRTHDAY THROUGH PARENTS' INSURANCE — Requires health plans to allow young people up to their 26th birthday to remain on their parents' insurance policy, at the parents' choice. Effective 6 months after enactment.
GENERAL REFORMS:
COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS–Increases funding for Community Health Centers to allow for nearly doubling the number of patients served over the next 5 years. Effective beginning in fiscal year 2010.
MORE PRIMARY CARE DOCTORS–Provides new investment in training programs to increase the number of primary care doctors, nurses, and public health professionals. Effective beginning in fiscal year 2010.
HEALTH INSURANCE CONSUMER ASSISTANCE–Provides aid to states to establish offices of health insurance consumer assistance to help consumers file complaints and appeals. Effective beginning in FY 2010.
A NEW, VOLUNTARY, PUBLIC LONG-TERM CARE INSURANCE PROGRAM–Creates a long-term care insurance program to be financed by voluntary payroll deductions to provide benefits to adults who become functionally disabled. Effective on January 1, 2011.
And in 2014, once the exchanges have formed, more insurance reforms go into effect, including:
NO DISCRIMINATION AGAINST ADULTS WITH PRE-EXISTING CONDITIONS
BAN ON HIGHER PREMIUMS FOR WOMEN
PREMIUMS BASED ON AGE CAN ONLY VARY BY A MAXIMUM OF 3-TO-1 RATIO
CAP ON OUT-OF-POCKET EXPENSES for private health plans
Our presence here today is remarkable and improbable. With all the punditry, all of the lobbying, all of the game-playing that passes for governing in Washington, it's been easy at times to doubt our ability to do such a big thing, such a complicated thing; to wonder if there are limits to what we, as a people, can still achieve. It's easy to succumb to the sense of cynicism about what's possible in this country.
But today, we are affirming that essential truth — a truth every generation is called to rediscover for itself — that we are not a nation that scales back its aspirations. (Applause.) We are not a nation that falls prey to doubt or mistrust. We don’t fall prey to fear. We are not a nation that does what's easy. That's not who we are. That's not how we got here.
We are a nation that faces its challenges and accepts its responsibilities. We are a nation that does what is hard. What is necessary. What is right. Here, in this country, we shape our own destiny. That is what we do. That is who we are. That is what makes us the United States of America.
And we have now just enshrined, as soon as I sign this bill, the core principle that everybody should have some basic security when it comes to their health care. (Applause.) And it is an extraordinary achievement that has happened because of all of you and all the advocates all across the country.
Watch President Obama’s speech and the signing:
The Speaker’s statement after President Obama signed the bill into law:
On Sunday night, the House of Representatives made history for our country and progress for the American people. Today, with the stroke of his pen, President Obama completed what the late Senator Edward Kennedy called ‘the great unfinished business of our society’ by signing historic health insurance reform into law.
For our country, these acts mark one more step forward in our drive to realize the promise of ‘life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness’ enshrined in our Declaration of Independence. For America's families, this means greater access to more affordable care; greater accountability to end the worst practices of the insurance industry; greater innovation and competitiveness in our economy; and greater stability and security for seniors, students, workers, and entrepreneurs and small business owners.
Health insurance reform will stand alongside Social Security and Medicare in the annals of American history. But our fight is not over yet. In passing this legislation, the House took action to improve and strengthen the bill. I look forward to the Senate vote on these changes in the coming days and to finishing the work of reform for all Americans.
We have one more leg of this journey to complete. The Senate has worked closely with the House to make this good bill even better, and we plan to finish our work as soon as possible.
Speaker Pelosi, House Leaders, and Committee Chairs held an enrollment ceremony in the Capitol today to sign the Senate health insurance reform bill and send it to President Obama for his signature:
Transcript:
Good afternoon. Last night, we made history. We honored the vows of our founders who in the Declaration of Independence talked about life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. We believe the legislation that we have gives all people in our country the liberty to have healthier lives, the liberty to pursue their passions, their talents, and to have happiness.
Today, I will sign, enroll the Senate bill, which will go the President immediately which will go the President for his signature. And it will enable the Senate now to take up the corrections — right, Mr. Hoyer? — the corrections that we passed last night. Corrections that make the insurance reforms more solid, that make more equity for the states, that close the donut hole for our seniors, make the subsidies more affordable for the middle class and to change the pay for in the bill. That is the difference — not much. As you can see, this is a very big bill, and most of it is in common with the House bill that we passed last year. All that needs to be done are the corrections in the Senate.
I don't want to sign this bill without mentioning Senator Edward Kennedy, who up until his last days had an influence on this legislation in the most positive way. He said this is 'the unfinished business of our society.' He said having health care reform was about 'the character of our country, not the provisions of any particular bill.' And in his honor, we all have to be prayerful and feel very blessed that we could all be here for the passage of this legislation.
Mr. Clyburn said I could say it is on par with the passing of the Civil Rights Act. I know it is on par with passing Social Security and Medicare. And now we are making history and progress for the American people by passing health care for all Americans. It is now my honor to sign this legislation.