Shadegg-Coburn
"Compromise" Is Little More Than "Dingwood II" FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 9, 1999 CONTACT: Richard Coorsh (202) 824-1787 The following statement was released today by Chip Kahn, President of
the Health Insurance Association of America (HIAA): The well-honed Capitol Hill art of "positioning" is alive and well
within the so-called compromise bill introduced today by Representatives
John Shadegg (R-AZ) and Tom Coburn (R-OK). Despite the sponsors’
transparent attempts to position their measure as a "moderate proposal,"
this bill is little more than "Dingwood II," and is as politically
motivated as all of the other so-called "patient protection" bills
currently before Congress. Make no mistake: the chief beneficiaries of this legislation would be
trial lawyers – not to mention politicians on both sides of the aisle
grandstanding for their own short-term benefit. The dirty little secret behind the Shadegg-Coburn bill, the "Dingwood"
bill, and other so-called "patient protection" measures is that consumers
and employers once again would be stuck with the tab, and would struggle
somehow to shoulder higher health care costs. Currently, more than 44 million Americans don’t have any health
coverage at all – in most cases, because they cannot afford the cost. In
response, Reps. Shadegg and Coburn – along with sponsors and cosponsors of
other so-called "patient protection" bills – would raise costs,
thereby raising the number of uninsured Americans. The "logic" behind
these harmful proposals makes sense only if one recalls Will Rogers, who
once asked, "If ‘pro’ is the opposite of ‘con,’ what is the opposite of
progress?" Sadly, the Shadegg-Coburn bill – like all of the other so-called
"patient protection" measures – cynically relegates consumers seeking
affordable health coverage to the back of the pack. Providing health
coverage to the millions of Americans who desperately need it should be
"job one." Instead, Reps. Shadegg, Coburn, Dingell, Norwood, and their
cosponsors would raise the bar for the uninsured and further enrich trial
lawyers in the process. Consumer Information | Insurance Education | Publications Copyright © 1999 Health Insurance Association of America |