Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Mike Enzi, R-Wyo., issued the following statement on the latest Reid health care bill:

“The Democrats are playing ‘Let’s make a deal’ with trillions of your hard-earned tax dollars.  You and all the American people should know that the Majority Leader is buying his votes with your money.  The Reid bill gives sweetheart deals to a few states and the rest of the country will foot the bill.  Making unfair deals like this is the wrong way to legislate and the American people know it.

“Under the Reid bill, the states face billions of dollars in unfunded mandates, except for Nebraska.  In addition, a select few states get special deals that reduce their Medicaid contributions.   Most seniors on Medicare Advantage would see their benefits cut unless they live in Florida. 

“The new Reid bill doubles the tax penalty on Americans who don’t buy the health insurance that Washington dictates.  The new bill includes $1 trillion in Medicare cuts and tax increases.  The latest language would still force taxpayers to pay for abortion services.

“The Senate Democrats are trying to jam through a vote during Christmas because they don't want to go home and face their constituents.  We have been kept in Washington over the weekends, because the Senate Democrats don’t want to go home and face their voters.  The Senate Democrats are not listening to the American people.  The American people have figured out that this bill would drive up their costs, raise their taxes and cut their Medicare benefits, and they don’t like it.”