Floor Statements

I move to strike the requisite number of words.

Thank you.

I invite the ranking member to enter into a colloquy with me on an important health issue for our military.

Taking more lives each year than breast, prostate, colon and pancreatic cancers combined, today's lung cancer death toll is beyond unacceptable. It is the leading cause of cancer death among men and women across every racial and ethnic group and has a very low 5-year survival rate of only 15 percent. And this situation can be attributed to both resource limitations in programs dedicated to lung cancer research and the absence of a coordinated and comprehensive plan to reduce lung cancer mortality in this Nation by focusing on the entire lung cancer screening, diagnosis, treatment, and care continuum.

Today, 80 percent of new lung cancer cases affect people who neither have smoked or those who have quit smoking, many of them decades ago.

This is true of smokers and nonsmokers, and those populations such as racial and ethnic minorities, women, and low-income Americans who are disproportionately affected by lung cancer. But it is especially the case for our brave men and women who defend this Nation and put themselves in harm's way to protect our freedom.

Veterans, whose service has put them at high risk for lung cancer, have lung cancer needs that have been and remain unmet. They also suffer from a higher incidence of lung cancer and mortality than nonveterans. Additionally, the rate of lung cancer is nearly twice as high among those in the military compared to the larger U.S. population.

As a physician, I know that success against lung cancer requires that we approach lung cancer comprehensively, just as we do other major illnesses. Prevention and wellness, coupled with early detection, treatment options, and research must be adequately funded and coordinated, just as we do for heart disease, breast cancer, HIV/AIDS, and others. That is why I introduced H.R. 1394, the Lung Cancer Mortality Reduction Act of 2011. We must coordinate activities that combat lung cancer in vulnerable populations, including our active military, and ensure that for them, as well as for others, that early detection, treatment, and research is adequately supported with benchmarks to gauge progress.

We owe it to our Nation's heroes to coordinate early screening, treatment, and care, and reduce lung cancer mortality among members of the Armed Forces and our veterans, whose exposure to carcinogens during active duty service is a known contributor to their increased lung cancer risk.

I would seek the help of the ranking member to pursue this work in the Defense Health Program within the Department of Defense.

I yield to the gentleman from Washington.

With that, I yield back the balance of my time.

Amendment Offered by Mr. Kinzinger of Illinois

Mr. Speaker, as the month of June draws to a close, I rise to recognize the celebration of Caribbean American Heritage Month. The past, present and future of the Caribbean is closely associated with that of this country, as our islands exist between two great continents and are affected by the social, economic and political decisions that are made by our neighbors to the north and to the south.The Caribbean, and Caribbean Americans were there at the founding of this great country and continue to be a part of its evolution into the 21st century.

As it relates to the territory that I represent, the U.S. Virgin Islands, from the rum trade that helped to fund the American Revolution, to the first salute of the colors of the newly declared nation to being the place where the young Alexander Hamilton spent his formative years, our contributions to the American story are well documented. Less known, is that our territory was purchased from Denmark almost 100 years ago in conjunction with the building of the Panama Canal as a means to defend that and other American interests in the region. Also less known are the contributions of our citizens who left the islands to live in this great nation and to contribute as average citizens who are teachers, doctors, and businessmen, and as standouts in the Harlem Renaissance and the civil rights movement in this country. The Virgin Islands and the wider Caribbean have contributed and continue to contribute soldiers, historians, activists, legislators and yes, Members of Congress.

Mr. Speaker, this year, the Institute of Caribbean Studies led by the indomitable Dr. Claire Nelson has recognized Members of Congress of Caribbean American Heritage who served in the past and who serve now. In addition to myself, the Honrable Barbara Lee, the Honorable Sheila Jackson Lee, the Honorable Yvette Clarke and the Honorable Frederica Wilson who proudly serve now, they also recognized former Members, the Honorable Mervyn Dymally and the late, great Shirley Chisholm. Caribbean American members continue to serve this country in every walk of life in entertainment, in law, in finance, in economic development. The countries in the Caribbean Basin continue to be friends and allies of our great nation. It is only fitting that Caribbean American Heritage be a relationship that is honored and recognized on an annual basis.

Madam Chair, I rise today to express my strong support for H.R. 1249--a smart bill that fixes an anomaly in the patent law by addressing the confusion around the deadline for filing patent term extensions. This bill--which has broad bipartisan support in both chambers--will ensure that if the FDA notifies a company after normal business hours that its drug has been approved, then the time that the company has to file a patent term extension application does not begin to run until the next business day.

I support this bill not only because it protects the rights of patent holders, but also because it will help inspire greater investments in the development of new drugs that not only could save millions of lives, but also could play a pivotal role in reducing racial and ethnic health disparities. Take, for example, a blood thinning drug that was proven very effective in treating and preventing stroke--the third leading cause of death in the nation, and a cause of death from which African American men are 52% more likely to die than white men, and African American women are 36% more likely to die than white women.

But for an unintentional one-day filing delay, the developer of this drug would have been entitled to secure a patent term restoration. And, with that term restoration, the company would have been positioned to invest the additional resources to qualify the drug for the treatment and prevention of stroke and for expanded use in heart surgeries. This medical advancement would undoubtedly have saved countless lives and improved the health and wellbeing of tens of thousands of Americans.

Absent the correction provided by this bill, however, none of what could have--and should have--happened ever did happen, and, as a result, a great medical advancement never came to fruition. This bill would ensure that the situation that occurred with the promising blood thinning drug does not happen

again. And, this bill fixes an anomaly that not only jeopardizes the development of life-saving drugs, but also jeopardizes the health and wellness of innocent, hardworking Americans. I urge all of my colleagues to be a key part of the solution to this problem by supporting this bill.

Offered By: Mrs. Christensen

Amendment No. 11: Page 124, after line 23, insert the

following:

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce the Derek M. Hodge U.S. Virgin Islands Public-Private Investment Act. This legislation would create an innovative pilot program to leverage private pension assets to raise approximately $250 million a year dedicated to the infrastructure of the U.S. Virgin Islands, while simultaneously raising an additional $500 million a year for the U.S. Treasury.

In short, the bill would allow taxpayers a onetime transfer of existing IRA, 401k, and other tax deferred investments--up to a total limit of $50 billion--into a special fund with no tax or penalties at the time of the initial transfer. The transferred funds would receive ``Roth'' like treatment at retirement if taxes are paid as follows:

For the first ten years, a 1.5 percent tax would be collected by the U.S. Treasury and divided 1.0 percent to the U.S. Treasury and 0.5 percent to the Virgin Islands.

During the second ten years, a 1.0 percent tax would be divided equally between the U.S. Treasury and the Virgin Islands.

After twenty years, a 1 percent tax would be continually collected only for the benefit of the U.S. Treasury.

The tax funds allocated to the Virgin Islands would be deposited in an escrow account. The Department of Interior would approve the release of the escrowed funds to pay for projects set out under an approved reconstruction plan.

Under my bill, the Virgin Islands would receive a twenty-year dedicated source of revenue that would enable it to build a modern infrastructure to move the islands toward self-sufficiency and reduce unemployment.

Mr. Speaker, the Virgin Islands has neither the tax base nor will it receive sufficient federal assistance to make the necessary investments in basic infrastructure like water, sewer, storm-water, roads, telecommunications, and electric grid. The current infrastructure is not ``hardened'' against frequent tropic storms, and therefore must be repaired often--further exacerbating the unwillingness of the private sector to invest in basic industries on the islands. These investments would substantially mitigate the federal government's cost for rebuilding after tropical storms and are essential to job creation and providing basic services to the citizens of the Virgin Islands.

Mr. Speaker, the legislation I introduce today is named in honor of former Virgin Islands Lieutenant Governor and former President of the Legislature of the Virgin Islands, Derek M. Hodge, who recently passed away. Derek was the driving force behind this bill and he dedicated the last several years of his towards its passage because of what it would mean for his beloved Virgin Islands. There would not be a more fitting tribute to his life's work than the enactment of this bill into law.

In these days of budget cuts and growing unwillingness to fund for essential infrastructure, my bill will ensure the necessary investment in the Virgin Islands through a wholly voluntary funding source--a win for the citizens of the U.S. Virgin Islands and the American taxpayers.

I rise today to commemorate the life of the Honorable Juan Francisco Luis, the third elected Governor of the U.S. Virgin Islands who passed away on June 4, 2011, at the age of 70. In office from 1979 through 1986, Governor Luis was the longest serving elected chief executive of our island territory.

Governor Luis served at a time of growth and change in the Virgin Islands. He was a popular governor known as a leader who was responsive to the needs of ordinary citizens, who was always willing to listen to their individual concerns. According to Profiles of Outstanding Virgin Islanders, he will be remembered for significant infrastructure development in the islands, in particular, the establishment of modern health care facilities on all three islands, the initial expansion and financing of the airports on St. Thomas and St. Croix, the construction of a new container port on St. Croix, acquisition of land on St. Croix for homeownership and agriculture and several capital construction projects.

Mr. Speaker, Governor Luis first ran for public office in 1972, when he was elected to the Tenth Legislature of the U.S. Virgin Islands and served as chairman of the Legislative Housing and Planning Committee, Vice Chairman of the Recreation Committee and member of the Committees on Finance, Public Safety, Health and Welfare, Labor and Veterans Affairs.

He was chosen by the late Governor Cyril King to be his running mate in the 1974 gubernatorial election. The two won, and when Governor King died unexpectedly in 1978, Luis became Governor of the Virgin Islands. Originally a member of the Independent Citizens Movement, and later as an independent, Luis was elected in his own right in 1978 and again in 1982.

Born on the neighboring island of Vieques, Puerto Rico, he moved with his family to St. Croix when he was two months old. He was the valedictorian of the then Christiansted High School in 1958 and went on to attend Inter-American University in Puerto Rico. He served in the U.S. Army and was honorably discharged in 1968 as a sergeant. He later taught at the then Christiansted Grammar School and worked for the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

I have two special recollections of personal interactions with him as Governor. He made time to meet with me when there was a controversy surrounding the naming of the park in Frederiksted. Several of us had decided to ask him to consider vetoing the bill as passed by the Legislature and he did. I don't exactly remember the details of his negotiations with the HESS refinery. But at the time it seemed to me that he was not getting the support he needed and so in an attempt to rise above party politics, I secured the signatures to call a special meeting to urge the Territorial Committee of the Democratic Party to support him during the negotiations. My efforts were not successful, but I know he appreciated the attempt.

I believe that history will be exceedingly kind to the memory of Governor Luis as we can see his contributions in the health care system, in education, in the economy and in other aspects that affect the daily lives of Virgin Islanders. His efforts were sincere and those of us in office today build on the foundations that were set during his tenure. With the passage of time people have the chance to assess the contributions of those who live their lives in service to the public. It can be said of Governor Juan Luis that he had a clear vision and that he worked diligently to accomplish his intended goals and that we the people, were better off for it.

Mr. Speaker, my family, staff and I extend our sincere condolences to his wife, Mrs. Luz Luis and his children Juan, Jr. and Carlota Amalia. May Governor Juan Francisco Luis rest in peace.

Mr. Speaker, It is with deep sadness that I rise to pay tribute to a lifelong friend and political colleague from my district, the U.S. Virgin Islands, our former Lt. Governor and President of the 16th Legislature, the Honorable Derek Michael Hodge who passed away on May 31, 2011 after a lengthy illness.

Mr. Speaker, Derek Michael Hodge is being eulogized as a ``man of integrity and enthusiasm, a brilliant attorney and politician,'' and I can testify that this is true of the man who spent his adult life serving his community in the public and private sector. After higher education at Michigan State University and Georgetown University Law Center, he returned to the Virgin Islands in 1972 and joined his brother's law firm, the legendary Hodge, Sheen and Finch. He entered the world of elective politics in 1974 and became District Chairman of the Democratic Party. He first ran for governor in 1982, and though unsuccessful, it was seen as a win for all of us who worked for him as it gave the Virgin Islands electorate a glimpse of his ideas and his intellect. Never one to give up, he successfully became the top vote getter in the race for the Virgin Islands Legislature in 1984. Although a freshman, his colleagues recognized his political and legal acumen, and elected him President of the 16th Legislature of the Virgin Islands. His skill and his love of the Virgin Islands was recognized by the late Governor Alexander Farrelly and he tapped Derek to be his Lt. Governor, a post that he held for eight years and to which he brought professionalism, innovation, efficiency and accountability. As Lt. Governor, he spearheaded efforts to improve the territory's infrastructure, improving the airport, health care facilities, and hazard mitigation projects. As Lt. Governor, Derek served as the territory's Commissioner of Insurance, Chairman of the Banking Board, Overseer of the Office of the Recorder of Deeds, Tax Assessor's Office and Corporations Division. He has been credited with reestablishing the territory's bond rating in the municipal bond market which bolstered the Virgin Islands capital improvement program. Throughout his lifetime, Derek wore many other hats, to include college professor, center on the Virgin Islands national basketball team, and President of the Virgin Islands Bar. His life was one of commitment to his beloved Virgin Islands.

Mr. Speaker, Derek's passing is a personal loss for me. He was ``like a big brother,'' as we grew up together in St. Croix and were political allies and friends who worked on many issues and campaigns together including each other's campaigns for office. I will miss his friendship, his counsel and most of all his sense of humor which could soothe and tickle as well as sting. I extend my condolences to his wife Monique, his children Marisol and Jonathan and the wider circle of his family and many friends. Derek lived with passion and integrity. His days among us were well spent and while we will sorely miss him, there are many memories that will make us smile, laugh and be glad that we are among the fortunate ones whose lives he touched along the way. May he rest in God's comfort and peace.

Mr. Chair, I rise today, fully disappointed that my colleagues on the other side of the aisle are trying to move forward with this bill. This bill has no merit; in fact, it is little more than a part of a larger, ill-conceived strategy to undermine the progress we have made and will likely continue to make as a result of the historic health care reform bill that was enacted last year.

While on its face it seems harmless, we all know the reality of what this bill will do. And, it is crucial that the very individuals who elected us to represent them--the large majority of whom will be directly and indirectly affected by this and in a very negative way-- also know that this bill does nothing to ensure fiscal responsibility or improve the medical education system in health centers, and does even less to ensure that there are trained and qualified health care providers in their communities to serve their communities.

In fact, it jeopardizes ongoing and forthcoming efforts to ensure that there are highly-trained and qualified health care providers practicing in every community--especially those that suffer due to a shortage of health care providers--across the country.

If this bill were to pass and become law, then the already-planned primary care training programs that will be operated by community-based entities, like community health centers, will not likely continue beyond their first planned year because turning this program into a discretionary one offers no guarantee of future funding. Further, making this program discretionary will serve as a disincentive to other community-based entities that are considering launching similar graduate medical education programs for the same reasons.

The unfortunate element in all of this is this: These programs train individuals who will practice in family medicine, internal medicine, pediatrics, obstetrics and gynecology, general dentistry and geriatrics--the very areas of medical care where the provider shortages are the greatest.

Further, the individuals trained by these programs are very likely to serve most underserved communities--a disproportionate number of which are rural, low-income and/or racial and ethnic minority--across the Nation.

Why, I must ask, would we want to end these programs, when provider shortages are not issues that affect only our side of the aisle; it is a public health crisis that touches every district across the Nation. In fact, during the health care reform debates, my friends on the other side of the aisle continually argued that there are not enough physicians in the country to meet our current primary health care needs and to address our current primary health care challenges. So, it seems counterintuitive to, then, seek to compromise and put an end to the very programs that were designed and funded to address this very problem.

We have had and continue to have very serious health care challenges in this country, and our primary care workforce shortages fall into that category. All of these serious health care challenges warrant even more serious solutions--many of which are being implemented thanks to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

However, this bill--H.R. 1216--is not a serious solution and, if passed, will only become a serious part of a serious problem.

I, therefore, urge my colleagues to vote, ``no'' on this bill. And, in doing so, you will be voting yes for the improved and strengthened primary health care workforce across the Nation.

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to lead the Congressional Black Caucus this hour to talk about jobs and the need for job creation in communities across this country.

General Leave

Before I begin, I would like to ask, Mr. Speaker, unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the subject of this Special Order, which is jobs.

Amidst reports of improvement in the economy--and the April jobs report was one of those examples--we are in a steady, yet slow, recovery. But that recovery has not been felt by the millions of Americans who are out of work or who are working in jobs that are well below their potential. And no more is the pain of the recession felt than in the African American community where unemployment is high in good times but now remains the highest of all population groups in this country at 16.1 percent.

And so along with saving homes, job creation remains a primary focus of the Congressional Black Caucus and of House Democrats. We are determined to build on the more than 3 million jobs created or saved by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. And so as a key part of this effort before we left for last week's constituent work period, House Democrats launched a Make It in America agenda, which we wholeheartedly support.

Over the past 3 years, we have passed legislation to prevent multinational corporations from outsourcing jobs overseas, to give tax credits to small businesses to hire new employees, to restore the credit to small businesses because they are the engine of our economy and of job creation. Our Make It in America agenda continues and expands on that effort by a number of pieces of legislation introduced by members of the Democratic Caucus: legislation to support developing a national strategy to increase manufacturing, to invest in infrastructure and support the flow of commerce, to keep our country competitive in the global marketplace, to further support small businesses, to develop an innovative education policy, and to put smart regulations in place which protect our people and our environment while improving government efficiency.

Democrats have already introduced bills to further these goals, and we are calling on the Republican leadership to end the assaults on health care reform and the blocking of the green economy we need to build, asking them to support both of these important pillars of President Obama's agenda which will create jobs. And I ask them to bring our job-creating legislation to the floor.

At this time, Mr. Speaker, I would like to yield such time as he might consume to the gentleman from Georgia, Congressman David Scott.

Thank you, Congressman Scott. I thank you for calling attention to the need to restore the manufacturing base in this country as the Democrats are attempting to do with our Make It in America agenda. And thank you for reminding everyone that Main Street is still not taken care of and that there is a critical connection between the jobs crisis and the housing crisis and why they need to be dealt with now as an emergency.

I would just call on our leadership, the Republican leadership: Let's stop trying to unravel President Obama's agenda, which is an agenda that creates jobs. We've been here for almost 5 months, and not one job has been created by any legislation that the majority has brought to the floor. It's time to get busy. Main Street is calling on us.

At this point, I'd like to yield as much time as he would consume to the Congressman from Illinois, Congressman Danny Davis.

Thank you, Congressman Davis, for joining us this evening, and thank you for your kind words. I am very proud to be a part of a Congressional Black Caucus, which is made up of 43 workhorses, and I am just glad to be able to work along with all of them.

Thank you for calling attention to the need to extend unemployment benefits for the many who are still without a job. The jobs are just not there, and the Republican majority is not creating any. We need to continue this lifeline to our families and to the communities that they live in. So thank you for raising that issue again.

I yield such time as he might consume to the gentleman from Virginia, Congressman Bobby Scott.

Thank you, Congressman Scott, for reminding us that we are really not out of a recession. This is the time where we need to invest and to continue those unemployment benefits, and thank you for talking about the people who are unemployed.

We hear so many misconceptions spread about people who are receiving unemployment. They really would prefer to have a job. They are actively looking, as you have pointed out, to be able to receive those unemployment benefits. It's a shame the way that some of our colleagues speak about people who are really trying to find a job where there are no jobs to be found and need that extra help. So I really appreciate your coming and joining us this evening.

One of the other things that the Congressional Black Caucus has been advocating for is summer jobs for our young people. It's important for us to have them meaningfully occupied and employed during that summer vacation. It seems like we are going back to what we used to have to do in the previous administration and keep begging and begging for summer jobs for our young people. It's critically important.

I also don't understand why there is so much objection to our building a green economy. If we don't, we will be left behind the rest of the world in this important sector. Creating that economy would build on the tens of thousands of jobs that were created with the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and moving to renewable energy and the jobs that that will create is good for our environment. It will slow climate change, it is good for our health, and it is good for our economy.

It would build jobs, sustainable jobs, and help us to build a strong and more sustainable economy for the future. It's good for profit, it's good for the planet, and it's good for people.

I want to just talk a little bit about the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

I yield to the gentleman.

Thank you for adding that issue to the discussion this evening.

Let me just go back to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, because despite its immediate and projected successes, our friends on the other side of the aisle continue their efforts to repeal and underfund the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

Despite the rhetoric to the contrary, this new law lifts more than 30 million Americans out of the ranks of the uninsured, protects the health care consumer from unjust practices that have occurred in our health care system for far too many decades, and preserves and improves the health care and thus the wellness of some of our Nation's most vulnerable residents--our children and our seniors.

My colleagues and I have and will continue to highlight the deleterious health consequences that would result if these attacks on health care reform ever moved from a policy proposal to enactment, and we will continue to oppose any attempt to undermine this important law.

It's also critically important to remember, though, that while repealing health care reform will have very obvious, very negative impacts on health and wellness, the repeal of any part of the law created by the Affordable Care Act will also have an equally horrendous impact on the economy and more directly on jobs.

The data is in; it's indisputable. There is no evidence that health care reform hurts or eliminates jobs. In fact, since the health care reform bill was passed in March of last year, there has been private sector growth month after month after month, leading to the creation of a total of 1.4 million new private sector jobs, and we are counting. Further, of these 1.4 million new jobs that were created, both directly and indirectly from health care reform, 243,000 of them, almost a quarter of a million of them, are directly in the health care sector. All of this job and growth job expansion has occurred in just 1 year.

While that's good news, there was even better news that came out of a recent study out of Harvard University, which found that health care reform, as enacted by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, would create up to 4 million jobs over the next 10 years. Compare that to 8 years of policies under the previous administration that literally eliminated 673,000 private sector jobs while at the same time exacerbating our Nation's plight with uninsurance, spiraling health care costs, and worsening health disparities.

Once you make the comparison, ask yourself which policies are truly better for American jobs, for the American economy, for the health and wellness of Americans, and for the Nation as a whole. Is repealing health care reform better when we know that the repeal not only would increase medical spending, the repeal would increase medical spending by $125 billion by the end of this decade and increase family insurance premiums by nearly $2,000 every year? But it will also destroy as many as 400,000 jobs every year over the next decade.

The answer is simply no. We need to stay on this path, one with an upward trajectory, because it is the path that not only includes a reformed, transformed health care system, but it's also a path that creates jobs, lowers the unemployment rate and saves employers, both large and small, money that they can reinvest by creating additional jobs for millions of Americans. It is a path that we have been hoping to find; it is a path that we have struggled to get on; and now that we're on

it, it is a path that is delivering on its promises.

I don't believe I have any further speakers, so at this time I just want to reiterate that we've been here for almost 5 months. Nothing that has come to this floor has created jobs. Communities like mine and communities that most of my colleagues represent in this body still have high unemployment. There are no jobs. We need to continue to provide unemployment insurance. We need to work to begin to create the jobs that the people of America need.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, next Friday, an outstanding member of our military who hails from my district in the U.S. Virgin Islands will receive a promotion to Colonel at the Pentagon and I rise today to salute his service to our country.

Lt. Colonel Alfred Francis, known as ``Plow'' to his family and friends as a native of St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands, is currently assigned to The Army Staff, Pentagon here in

Washington, DC, and has served there since 2009. He previously commanded the 304th Signal Battalion, 1st Signal Brigade, Camp Stanley, Korea from 2007 to 2009. Prior to serving in Korea, Lt. Colonel Francis served at the Pentagon, assigned to DISA's Joint Staff Support Center as Division Chief, NMCC Operations. He deployed in support of ENDURING FREEDOM between 2002 and 2005. He was assigned to Headquarters, 25th Infantry Division (Light), Schoefield Barrack, Hawaii, serving as the Assistant Division Signal Officer/Deputy G6 and as the Executive Officer, 125th Signal Battalion and later as Deputy CJ6, CJTF-76.

Lt. Colonel Francis received his Bachelor of Science Degree and ROTC Commission as a Distinguished Military Graduate from Alabama A&M University in 1989. He has a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering Technology and Minor in Mathematics and a Master of Science degree in Quality Systems Management from the National Graduate School. Upon completion of the Signal Officers Basic Course, he was assigned to the 279th Signal Platoon, Kaiserlautern, Germany, where he served as a Platoon Leader and Exercise and Plans officer from 1990 to 1993.

Upon graduation from the Signal Officers Advanced Course at Fort Gordon, Georgia, he was assigned to 525th Military Intelligence, XVIII Airborne Corps, Fort Bragg, North Carolina, where he served as Brigade Signal Officer, then Company Commander of A Company-327th Signal Battalion, 35th Signal Brigade (Corps, Airborne) from 1994 to 1996. He was then assigned to the Military District of Washington, where he served on the 1997 Presidential Inaugural Committee as Chief, Visual Information Branch, followed by assignments within the Defense Information System Agency, DISA, as a Commercial Satellite Communications Officer and as a Communication Watch Officer in the National Military Command Center, NMCC, Joint Staff, Pentagon from 1996 to 2000.

Lt. Colonel Francis' awards and decorations include the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, the Army Commendation Medal, the Meritorious Service Medal, the Joint Staff Commendation Medal, the Army Achievement Medal, the National Defense Service Medal with Bronze Star, the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, the Afghanistan Campaign Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, the Korean Defense Service Medal, the Joint Meritorious Unit Award, the Joint Staff Badge, the Army Staff Badge and the Parachutist Badge.

Mr. Speaker, the people of Fredriksted, St. Croix, the U.S. Virgin Islands and indeed the entire nation are proud of Lt. Colonel Francis. He is an exemplary young American who serves as a role model to the young people of our islands and is a source of pride to his parents, Betty L. Wilson and Divincy ``Tino'' Francis. We salute him on the occasion of his promotion to Colonel.

Mr. Chairman, today I rise with great disappointment to speak out against yet another attempt to repeal an Affordable Care Act provision that is at the very core of increasing access to health care for the over 30 million uninsured Americans.

As my colleague said, almost $54 million in planning grants have been awarded to help 49 States, the District of Columbia and four territories, including $1 million to the Virgin Islands, to create unique State and territorial-based solutions to improve our States' and territories' health insurance markets. We must not repeal this funding, as H.R. 1213 would do, because by placing the burden entirely on the already-overburdened States, it will make it more difficult for them to establish changes, and it will increase the costs to families who are seeking to insure themselves. This is really another effort to get rid of exchanges altogether.

In deciding how to vote today, I ask my colleagues to think about all of their constituents who suffer unduly from health conditions that could be prevented or controlled if only they had access to health insurance, preventive care, and treatment. These constituents, our fellow Americans, demand that we stand up and fight for their access to affordable health insurance, as Democrats have always done and are doing today.

I urge all of my colleagues to vote against this legislation that would undermine the ability of millions of Americans to have access to health insurance and access to needed health care services.

Mr. Chairman, here we go again, this time attacking a provision in the Affordable Care Act that would help to reach children and especially teens who otherwise might not have access to important health care services.

And so, Mr. Chairman, today I join my Democratic colleagues to speak on

behalf of our children and against H.R. 1214. Our future depends on the development of healthy, well-educated children. Unfortunately, often our children miss school, or sit in class too distracted to pay attention because of preventable and treatable health conditions that, if caught early and treated as these school-based health centers would do, would enable them to better learn and to reach higher levels of achievement.

I've heard a lot of talk about protecting our children from future debt, something all of us are working to prevent. But if we really care about our children, why are we now considering this legislation that will harm them, not in the future, but today?

Eliminating funding for school-based health centers would not just prevent a building from being built, but would eliminate the creation of the only medical home that many underserved students know and which creates access to needed mental, physical and dental care, centers that provide services that many students cannot or would not access anywhere else. And these services provide a support to the teachers so that they can focus on teaching these students.

Taking away this funding for school-based health centers, as H.R. 1214 would do, would be a step in the wrong direction, not just for the health and well-being of our children, but for our country's ability to win the future.

Before I close, I want to just say that we did not pass any bill that is unaffectionately known as ObamaCare. The Affordable Care Act is about your, the American people's, care; and this provision is about our children's care.

I urge my colleagues to vote for our children and vote ``no'' on H.R. 1214.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life and memory of Army Staff Sergeant Jorge Antonio Scatliffe, who died in Mosul, Iraq, on April 3, 2011, in support of Operation New Dawn. Staff Sergeant Scatliffe was the 7th soldier from my district, the U.S. Virgin Islands, to die in the Middle East since the outbreak of hostilities in the wake of the tragedy of September 11, 2001.

Staff Sergeant Scatliffe, 32, was assigned to E Company, 27th Brigade Support Battalion, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas. He grew up on the island of St. Croix and attended the Lew Muckle Elementary School, the Elena Christian Junior High School, St. Croix Central High School and was one of the first graduates of the St. Croix Educational Complex.

Staff Sergeant Scatliffe joined the Army in April of 1998 as a Bradley Fighting Vehicle system maintenance man. His first deployments to Iraq began in April 2003 and ended in 2004. He was redeployed in December 2005 and served until December 2006 and once again from June 2008 to May 2009. Staff Sergeant Scatliffe was on his fourth tour of duty in Iraq, which he began in 2010 and ended tragically on April 3rd of this year, when he gave the ultimate sacrifice for his country, his precious life.

Staff Sergeant Scatliffe received many awards and decorations which includes two Army Commendation Medals, three Army Achievement Medals, four Army Good Conduct Medals, a National Defense Service Medal, an Iraqi Campaign Medal with campaign stars, a Global War on Terrorism Medal, Overseas Service Ribbons, an Army Service Ribbon, a Driver and Mechanic Badge for Mechanics, a Driver and Mechanic Badge for Wheel Vehicle Drivers and a Driver and Mechanic Badge for Tracked Vehicle Drivers.

Mr. Speaker, Staff Sergeant Scatliffe was a man who deeply loved his family, especially his mother, Sarah, with whom he maintained a close relationship. He is also mourned by his brothers, Robert and Raymond, and a circle of family, friends and fellow soldiers who are broken hearted at the loss of an exceptional young man.

I extend my sincere condolences to the family, friends and fellow soldiers of Staff Sergeant Jorge Scatliffe on behalf of the people of the U.S. Virgin Islands, the U.S. Congress and the entire nation. Your service and your sacrifice will not be forgotten.

Madam Chair, I rise today in strong support of the Congressional Black Caucus' budget, which is responsible and responsive to the needs of all Americans, especially those who have been ignored and underserved in these hard economic times.

We reject the Republican budget that, while providing giveaways to the rich and corporations, sends seniors and people with disabilities out into the private insurance market with vouchers that will not cover, and so will increase, their costs, and that reopens the dreaded doughnut hole.

The CBC budget preserves Medicare, strengthens and extends it, and ends the doughnut hole. Republicans would cut Medicaid, denying health care to Americans who need prevention and care most, continuing the spiral of excess disabilities, illness, and premature death.

Our budget fully funds Medicaid and the Prevention and Public Health Fund, ensuring health care and the chance for wellness which many would not have without them.

We robustly fund HIV/AIDS, WIC, maternal and child health, and other programs to close gaps and bring better health to minorities, the poor, and Americans in rural areas and the territories.

Unlike the Republicans budget, we create millions of jobs, bring down costs, and further reduce the deficit. Vote for the CBC budget. Reject the harmful Republican budget.

Mr. Chairman and colleagues, I cannot believe that we are here debating a bill that would repeal the Prevention and Public Health Fund. At a time when we should be championing legislation to strengthen the health and well-being of Americans and this Nation, my colleagues on the other side of the aisle are doing the exact opposite with H.R. 1217.

Currently, we have tens of millions of hardworking Americans who suffer and some die from preventable diseases, and without prevention and public health efforts, the very services this fund was created to support, tens of millions more will be affected in the future.

With so much at stake--and we are talking about human lives--we should not be here fighting about the merit and value of keeping the Prevention and Public Health Fund in place. We would do better for our country in terms of health and savings if we were instead discussing increasing it.

If my colleagues on the other side of the aisle are not moved by the disastrous human impact, then perhaps they will be moved by the equally disastrous economic impact that it will have, because not having prevention and effective public health measures in place costs money, and a lot of it.

On the other hand, the Journal of Health Affairs reported that increasing the use of proven preventive services from their current levels to 90 percent would result in $3.7 billion in savings in just 1 year. And we know from a Joint Center study that reducing health disparities, which this fund would help to do, could save as much as $1.24 trillion in direct and indirect medical costs in just a 3-year period.

This bill to repeal the Prevention and Public Health Fund is not just misguided legislation, it is harmful and unjust. It is contrary to our values and a disrespect of the value of human life. It will not save money. In fact, it will cost this Nation more, both in human health and wellness as well as in actual health care spending.

I strongly urge my colleagues to vote to protect all Americans and the moral standing of this country by voting ``no'' on H.R. 1217.