"Every conservative member of Congress
should vote for this Medicare bill.
...If you are a fiscal conservative who cares about balancing the federal budget, there may be no more important vote in your career than one in support of this bill.
...Although some conservatives may complain about the cost of the drug benefit, this benefit was designed within the framework of the budget resolution. The Medicare drug benefit is a necessary improvement to a Medicare system that was designed before modern pharmaceuticals became a key to staying healthy. Does anyone believe it makes sense to pay billions for kidney dialysis and not pay for the preventive care drugs that lets people keep their kidneys healthy for only pennies per day? Let's face it, a Medicare drug benefit is inevitable.
...Conservatives now have a chance to pass a sound Medicare drug benefit...
...President Bush, Speaker Dennis Hastert, and Majority Leader Bill Frist, working with Chairmen Bill Thomas and Chuck Grassley and Democrat Senators Max Baucus and John Breaux, have produced a Medicare bill that provides a drug benefit for seniors, choices for the baby boomers, and the opportunity for a major shift toward health savings accounts for all Americans.
Obstructionist conservatives can always find reasons to vote no, but that path leads right back into the minority and it would be a minority status they would deserve."
Conservatives Should Vote "Yes" on Medicare
Newt Gingrich, senior fellow at AEI
Wall Street Journal, November 20, 2003
No comments:
Post a Comment