Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 297) to amend the Public Health Service Act to reauthorize support for graduate medical education programs in children's hospitals.

Mr. Speaker, I ask that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous material into the Record.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, Pennsylvanians are fortunate to have several excellent children's hospitals in the State. One of these hospitals is the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, the country's first hospital to exclusively care for children, and they have remained one of the best for over 150 years.

In a recent survey, the hospital was rated number one in six separate pediatric specialties and ranked no lower than fourth in another four specialty categories.

Other children around the country aren't so fortunate to have access to excellent doctors. A study in the journal Pediatrics found that more than 8 million children have no pediatrician in their area. Many other sick children have to drive hundreds of miles to see a doctor who specializes in treating their condition.

Children aren't just miniature adults, and treating them isn't just a matter of working on a smaller scale and shrinking the equipment. A doctor who is experienced in treating adults may not be able to apply that same expertise to a child. Treating children is both a medical and an emotional challenge. Often, doctors have to correctly diagnose an illness in little patients who haven't even learned to speak. It takes a special person to go into pediatrics.

For a time in the 1990s, our Nation was facing an acute shortage of pediatricians. With much of government assistance to train doctors being funneled through the Medicare program, it was becoming significantly more expensive for a doctor to choose to be trained in pediatrics.

To help correct this imbalance, Congress created the Children's Hospital Graduate Medical Education program. This is a program that was created, and has been sustained, with bipartisan support.

Unfortunately, the program is facing elimination. President Obama's budget for the 2012 fiscal year called for elimination of the program, despite the positive results.

I support getting rid of programs that are duplicative, unproven, or unnecessary, especially with the budget pressures we are facing now; however, CHGME has a proven track record. Over 40 percent of pediatricians in the United States are trained through CHGME.

Forty-three percent of those in subspecialities are trained through the program.

The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia runs the largest pediatric residency program in the country. Their residents will treat children in my community and then move across the country to practice in other communities. We need their expertise now more than ever.

Last Congress, I worked with my Democratic counterpart on the Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee, Representative Frank Pallone, to introduce legislation to renew the program. Our legislation passed the House of Representatives twice in the 112th Congress, both times by voice vote.

Unfortunately, the bill was tied up in the Senate and was not considered. Congressman Pallone and I wasted no time in reintroducing the bill this year, and I'm proud to say that in the very first meeting of the Energy and Commerce Committee, on January 22, the bill was reported out unanimously. The bill is a very simple, 5-year reauthorization of the CHGME program at current funding levels.

H.R. 297 is supported by the Children's Hospital Association, the American Hospital Association, the Academic Pediatric Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Pediatric Society, the Association of Medical School Department Chairs, the Society for Pediatric Research, the

Association of American Medical Colleges, the American Osteopathic Association, and the American College of Surgeons, among others.

Far too many children in our Nation already lack access to a pediatrician or doctor trained in a pediatric subspecialty. Without CHGME, we will once again be discouraging medical residents from choosing pediatrics.

On a personal note, nearly 2 years ago, I met Anna Lipsman, who was receiving treatment for leukemia at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. Today, thanks to the excellent care she received, she is happy, energetic and in school full time. She continues to remind me about what is really at stake.

I urge all of my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on H.R. 297 and reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I urge Members to support this legislation. It has tremendous bipartisan support, and, with that, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 225) to amend title IV of the Public Health Service Act to provide for a National Pediatric Research Network, including with respect to pediatric rare diseases or conditions.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous materials into the Record on the bill.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support and urge my colleagues to vote for H.R. 225, the National Pediatric Research Network Act of 2013.

Simply put, this legislation will foster important research on diseases that affect children. The bill will allow the National Institutes of Health to establish a national research network compromised of pediatric research consortia. According to NIH, there are between 6,000 and 7,000 diseases considered rare that affect 25 to 30 million people. Most of the approximately 7,000 rare diseases are pediatric diseases and often genetic.

Sadly, there are insufficient therapies for doctors to treat such diseases. The use of pediatric research consortia is a proven way to support pediatric applied research and to promote coordinated research activities that focus on translating research to practice. This will help improve care for children.

As an example, it is important to note that this bill will address some devastating diseases such as spinal muscular atrophy. This is a rare pediatric disease that kills more babies than any other genetic disease. Right now, it is incurable, untreatable, and fatal.

H.R. 225, introduced by Representatives Lois Capps and Cathy McMorris Rodgers, amends the Public Health Service Act so that the director of the NIH, acting through the director of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, could provide for the establishment of a national pediatric research network compromised of pediatric research consortia.

The director could award cooperative agreements to those that strengthen and provide basic support to pediatric research consortia and train researchers. Consortia that receive an award would be comprised of cooperating institutions and coordinated by a lead institution. No more than 20 pediatric research consortia could receive awards.

In addition, the Director of NIH would be able to establish a data- coordinating center to support research and distribute scientific findings and provide reports to the Director of the NIH and the Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration.

The bill would result in no new or increased budget authority, entitlement authority, tax expenditure, or revenues. Nor does the bill contain any earmarks.

So I am pleased to support this legislation. It is my hope that the National Pediatric Research Network will improve our understanding of pediatric diseases, improve treatment and therapies, and provide better health care outcomes for our Nation's children.

I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of H.R. 225, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, at this time, I yield such time as he may consume to the chairman of the full committee, the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Upton).

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Mississippi (Mr. Harper).

Mr. Speaker, I would like to include in the Record CBO's cost estimate for H.R. 225. The cost estimate was not available when the committee filed its report on the bill.

I urge all Members to support this important legislation. With that, I yield back the balance of my time.

U.S. Congress,

Congressional Budget Office,

Washington, DC, February 4, 2013.

Hon. Fred Upton,

Chairman, Committee on Energy and Commerce, House of

Representatives, Washington, DC.

Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has

prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 225, the

National Pediatric Research Network Act of 2013.

If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be

pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Jamease

Miles, who can be reached at 226-9010.

Sincerely,

Douglas W. Elmendorf.

Enclosure.

H.R. 225--National Pediatric Research Network Act of 2013

H.R. 225 would authorize the Director of the National

Institutes of Health (NIH) to establish a National Pediatric

Research Network that could provide support for research and

training at up to 20 pediatric research consortia for up to

five years. The bill would require the Director of NIH to

establish a data coordinating center for the consortia. Upon

request by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

(CDC), consortia participating in the program would be

required to provide assistance to the CDC to establish or

expand surveillance systems, such as patient registries.

NIH currently supports many research networks that support

research and training focused on pediatric health care needs

and operates data coordinating centers for those networks.

Those networks perform essentially the same activities as the

consortia described in the bill. Existing networks do not

routinely provide assistance to the CDC to establish

surveillance systems. Based on information provided by NIH,

CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 225 would have no effect

on the number of research consortia or data coordinating

centers that NIH would support. CBO expects that CDC would

request assistance from a few networks to establish

surveillance systems. Based on past coordination involving

patient registries, CBO expects that the cost of providing

such support would total about $1 million over five years.

Thus, CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 225 would cost $1

million over the 2014-2018 period, assuming the availability

of appropriated funds.

Enacting the bill would not affect direct spending or

revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply.

H.R. 225 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector

mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and

would not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal

governments.

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Jamease Miles.

The estimate was approved by Holly Harvey, Deputy Assistant

Director for Budget Analysis.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 307) to reauthorize certain programs under the Public Health Service Act and the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act with respect to public health security and all-hazards preparedness and response, and for other purposes.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous materials into the Record on the bill.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 307, the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Reauthorization Act of 2013, introduced by my colleague, Mike Rogers, from Michigan, would reauthorize programs designed to foster the development of chemical, biological, radioactive, and nuclear medical countermeasures and strengthen the Nation's preparedness infrastructure. It reauthorizes programs for 5 years at the fiscal year 2012 appropriated level and does not create a new program nor increase the authorization for appropriations for an existing program.

Congress originally enacted the programs reauthorized in PAHPRA through the Project BioShield Act of 2004 and Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act of 2006. Project BioShield authorized funds for the purchase of medical countermeasures through the Special Reserve Fund and enabled the Secretary of Health and Human Services to authorize the emergency use of medical products.

PAHPRA created the Biodefense Advanced Research and Development Authority within HHS to help with the development of medical countermeasures and ensure communications between HHS and the developers of medical countermeasures. Reauthorizing these programs would help the Nation respond to a CBRN attack and is essential to addressing gaps in the Nation's flu preparedness.

H.R. 307 is essentially the same as H.R. 6672, the Pandemic and All- Hazards Preparedness Reauthorization Act of 2012, which passed the House in December by a vote of 383-16.

I would urge all Members to support this critical piece of legislation, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Rogers), the prime sponsor of this legislation.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I have no other speakers.

I urge my colleagues to support this legislation. It has strong bipartisan support. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (S. 1440) to reduce preterm labor and delivery and the risk of pregnancy-related deaths and complications due to pregnancy, and to reduce infant mortality caused by prematurity, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous materials into the Record on S. 1440.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, S. 1440, the Prematurity Research Expansion and Education for Mothers who deliver Infants Early Reauthorization, or the ``PREEMIE'' Reauthorization Act, would take important steps to protect and improve children's health. The bill includes three important programs: the PREEMIE Reauthorization Act, the National Pediatric Research Network, and the Children's Hospitals Graduate Medical Education Reauthorization.

The PREEMIE Reauthorization Act addresses one of the leading causes of neonatal death and a major cause of childhood disabilities: preterm birth. Since its passage in 2006, the PREEMIE Act has sponsored important research that has led to improved prevention and care of children born too early. Reauthorization will mean the continuation of the program that will lead to even better outcomes for children.

The National Pediatric Research Network is a proven way to support pediatric research by coordinating multicentered research activities, including those in rural areas. By working in teams, innovative research improves especially for diseases that are rare or affect a small population of children. Most of the approximately 7,000 rare diseases are pediatric and often genetic, and doctors do not have sufficient therapies to treat them. This bill will help alleviate that problem.

The Children's Hospital Graduate Medical Education Reauthorization would enable the Department of Health and Human Services to provide funding to freestanding children's hospitals to support the training of pediatricians and other residents. Prior to the enactment of CHGME, the number of residents in children's hospitals had declined by 13 percent. Now the program has enabled children's hospitals to increase their training programs by 35 percent.

In my home State of Pennsylvania, three premier children's hospitals, Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, St. Christopher's Hospital for Children, and Children's Hospital of Philadelphia receive CHGME funds that support and ensure world-renowned health care for children.

CHGME is a significant achievement in pediatric health care in Pennsylvania and across the country. Despite these gains, shortages still exist, and the future of the pediatric workforce relies on the continuation of CHGME.

I commend the leadership on both sides of the aisle and in the committee for their leadership on this. These programs enjoy bipartisan support, and I urge my colleagues to support S. 1440.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Georgia, one of the leaders on this issue, Dr. Phil Gingrey.

I yield an additional 30 seconds to the gentleman from Georgia.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2\1/2\ minutes to the chairman of the full committee, the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Upton).

I yield the gentleman an additional 30 seconds.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Lance), a leader on this issue.

Madam Speaker, I have no further speakers. I urge support for this bipartisan legislation.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Yesterday, we had an Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee hearing on how we can combat waste, fraud, and abuse in our health care system. We heard from private sector representatives about some of the innovative ways that they prevent fraud before it happens. At the same time, Medicare loses billions of dollars annually because most fraud is only discovered after it has been perpetrated.

Now, under ObamaCare, we have a new medical loss ratio rule, or MLR, that may actually create perverse incentives for private insurers to behave like Medicare. Some have suggested that the consumer protections provided by the MLR rule are too important to subject the rule to change in order to prevent fraud. Setting aside whether individuals or employers have received the benefit of the MLR rule, clearly the best way to save money is prevent it from being stolen in the first place, not chasing criminals after they have received and spent their illicit gains.

The flawed MLR rule is just another example of how ObamaCare's sloppy legislating and rulemaking has the potential to cost the American people dearly.

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 6163, the National Pediatric Research Network Act, seeks to address important unmet needs in pediatric health.

Pediatric research is so important to the health of our children, and it is essential to finding answers for unmet health needs. According to the National Institutes for Health, there are between 6,000 and 7,000 diseases considered rare that affect 25 to 30 million people. Most of the approximately 7,000 rare diseases are pediatric diseases and often genetic. Unfortunately, the doctors do not have sufficient therapies to treat them.

This bill seeks to alleviate that problem by establishing pediatric research networks and consortia. They will help by coordinating research efforts among participating institutions, concentrating that effort on the most pressing needs and enlisting the help of well- trained researchers.

Through my association with Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, I'm aware that there are too many diseases that children and their families face that do not have easy answers, and few adequate treatments. This bill will strengthen basic and clinical research and bring us closer to finding new treatments and cures.

Mr. Speaker, this bill has strong bipartisan support. I urge my colleagues to support the bill.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 6118) to amend section 353 of the Public Health Service Act with respect to suspension, revocation, and limitation of laboratory certification.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous materials into the Record on H.R. 6118.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to support H.R. 6118, the Taking Essential Steps for Testing Act of 2012.

H.R. 6118 would give the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services much needed regulatory flexibility to enforce prohibitions against improper referrals of proficiency testing under the clinical laboratory improvement amendments.

In order to operate as a business, laboratories must adhere to CMS procedures for processing samples, must share testing results with CMS periodically and are prohibited from intentionally referring testing samples to any other lab.

Currently the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is required under statute to revoke the CLIA certificate of any laboratory that intentionally refers its proficiency testing samples to another laboratory for testing for a period of 1 year.

In addition, the statute requires that a person who has owned or operated a laboratory which has had its CLIA certification revoked, including those owning multiple labs, may not own or operate a laboratory for a period of 2 years following such revocation.

However, there have been instances where a hospital or independent laboratory has accidently referred a PT sample to another lab due to mistakes by employees or through automated systems. In such instances CMS is not allowed by law to consider the circumstances under which the test was accidently referred or if the lab acted in good faith to report and address the incident.

H.R. 6118 would address these issues by amending section 353 of the Public Health Service Act to allow the Secretary discretion to determine whether the 1-year ban on laboratories should be applied and the flexibility to levy immediate sanctions instead of the 2-year prohibition against ownership or operation of the lab.

The legislation enjoys bipartisan support among this body as well as numerous organizations, including the American Clinical Laboratory Association, the American Hospital Association, the College of American Pathologists, and the Clinical Laboratory Management Association, among others.

I would like to thank Congressman Grimm and Congressman Roskam for their work on this legislation, and I urge Members to support the bill.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, at this time I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Grimm).

We have no further speakers.

Mr. Speaker, I urge support for this commonsense, bipartisan bill, H.R. 6118, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 4124) to amend the Public Health Service Act to provide grants to States to streamline State requirements and procedures for veterans with military emergency medical training to become civilian emergency medical technicians, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous materials in the Record on H.R. 4124.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise this evening in support of H.R. 4124, the Veteran Emergency Medical Technician Support Act of 2012. This act would take us forward

in two important ways: it would reduce the shortages of emergency medical technicians in the United States and at the same time help our veterans find employment.

Emergency response is a crucial component of our health care system and preparedness strategy. EMTs are often the first point of contact in a crisis situation, and their care can make the difference between life and death. Emergency response is even more crucial on the battlefield, where military medics respond to emergencies and provide care for the soldiers until a physician or other health professional can take over. These soldiers, trained as combat medics, become very experienced dealing with massive trauma injuries and other complex health problems.

It seems that utilizing those with military medic training in our EMT workforce here at home would be good for the returning soldiers, good for the health care system, and good for patients.

Areas throughout the United States are experiencing a shortage of EMTs, and military medics could potentially fill those workforce gaps. However, there are a number of issues keeping military medics from EMT employment. Most importantly are State licensing requirements, which can require duplicative training and education that is likely to be unnecessary for someone with significant experience.

It is our hope that this bill would allow States to study this issue and streamline their EMT requirements for those returning from the military that have the experience so desperately needed in many communities.

I would like to thank Mr. Kinzinger, a veteran who has served with many of these military medics, and Mrs. Capps for their work on this bill. I urge my colleagues to vote in support of this legislation.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to yield at this time 5 minutes to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Kinzinger).

Mr. Speaker, as a veteran I appreciate the efforts of Mr. Kinzinger and Mrs. Capps and others in this commonsense and very bipartisan bill to support our veterans and provide for this need in the emergency medical technician area.

I urge support for the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 733) to amend the Public Health Service Act to provide for a Pancreatic Cancer Initiative, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous materials in the Record on H.R. 733.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to support H.R. 733, the Recalcitrant Cancer Research Act of 2012.

This act will bring new hope to patients with cancers.

It is never easy to lose someone to cancer, but it is especially difficult when you are not even given a fighting chance.

Cancers with low survival rates and poor outcomes have baffled researchers for more than 40 years. These are recalcitrant cancers.

While survival rates for many cancers have climbed from 50 percent to 67 percent, there are still cancers that have yet to reach the 50 percent benchmark.

While there are various types of cancers that fall under this definition, nearly half of the 577,190 cancer deaths expected in 2012 will be caused by eight deadly cancers, including pancreatic and ovarian cancer.

This bill will direct the National Cancer Institute to establish a scientific framework for the study of recalcitrant cancers. Working groups will be appointed to prepare the framework that will include a review of current research and identification of key research questions and a summary of promising discoveries. The NIH would then be required to issue a report to Congress with recommendations on the effectiveness of the scientific framework model so that we can ensure that progress is being made and determine whether this type of model should be expanded to other types of diseases and conditions.

I urge my colleagues to vote in support of the legislation, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, at this time I would like to yield 3 minutes to the chair of the full committee, the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Upton).

Mr. Speaker, at this time I would like to yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey, (Mr. Lance), a member of the Health Subcommittee.

Mr. Speaker, in conclusion, I want to commend the advocacy of Mr. Lance and Ms. Eshoo, the leadership, Mr. Upton, the ranking member of the full committee and the subcommittee, and thank the staffs of both the subcommittee and the full committee for their tireless work in putting together this bipartisan compromise, an excellent bill. And I urge support from the Members for H.R. 733, the Recalcitrant Cancer Research Act of 2012.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani has been released from prison in Iran. After 3 years of suffering in prison, with the death penalty hanging over his head on false charges, Pastor Youcef is now home with his family. This weekend he was suddenly brought before a court, convicted on a more minor sentence, and granted time served.

While we applaud his release, we cannot forget how Pastor Youcef was abused and falsely accused over the past 3 years. He was subject to intense interrogation. His wife was arrested, taken away from their two young sons for a period of time. His lawyer was arrested on trumped-up charges.

Earlier this year the House drew attention to this persecution when it overwhelmingly passed a resolution calling for the immediate release of Pastor Youcef. We made it clear that the world was watching and would not tolerate the execution of an innocent man.

The Government of Iran continues to abuse religious minorities within its borders: Jews, Sunni Muslims, Baha'is, as well as Christians. Pastor Youcef's release is a victory for human rights, but we cannot forget about the other victims of this corrupt regime.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to bring attention to recent attacks by the Boko Haram terrorist group in Nigeria. Attacks in Nigeria's Plateau state on July 7 and 8 left 198 families displaced, 88 people dead, and 187 houses burnt.

On July 8, during the mass funeral for the victims, they were attacked. Two serving members of the National Assembly--Gyan Dantong and Gyang Danfulani--were also killed. Boko Haram took credit for the attacks, stating in their release that Christians ``will not know peace again'' if they do not accept Islam.

Madam Speaker, these attacks are acts of terrorism performed by a terrorist group against innocent Christians. It's time the State Department labels Boko Haram for what it is--a foreign terrorist organization. We must not be afraid to identify and confront attacks of terrorism wherever they might be.

Our prayers are with the innocent victims as they mourn the loss of their loved ones.

Mr. Speaker, last week, I had the privilege of meeting Shin Dong-hyuk, the only known defector to have escaped from one of the many concentration camps operated by the Communist government in North Korea.

He was born in the camp and faced starvation, torture, and brainwashing on a routine basis, which is described in the book, ``Escape From Camp 14.'' On the same day, the authorities executed both his brother and his mother in front of him for attempting to plan an escape. He knew nothing of the outside world, only living day to day, doing whatever was needed to survive. Heartbreakingly, this included informing the guards when he heard about his family's escape plan. Years later, a new prisoner came to the camp from Pyongyang, and Shin began to learn about the outside world and then began to long to escape.

By some estimates, as many as 200,000 people are held in the brutal gulags like Shin. As we negotiate with the gangster government of North Korea over their nuclear weapons program, we cannot forget about these human rights atrocities perpetrated against millions of their own people.

Madam Speaker, a few weeks ago, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee passed a resolution condemning the government of Iran for its continued persecution of Pastor Youcef Nadharkani.

Pastor Youcef sits in prison for the crime of practicing his faith and wishing to raise his two young boys in that faith. His crime was to go to his sons' school and ask that they not be subjected to Islamic indoctrination. For that, he was taken directly to a tribunal and sentenced to death by hanging.

Despite years of imprisonment, his faith has held up under intense interrogation and torture. And now the government has extended its campaign of terror to Pastor Youcef's lawyer. Muhammed Ali Dadkhah has been disbarred and sentenced to 9 years imprisonment for representing the pastor. He's been pressured to confess to crimes he did not commit.

The government of Iran has no respect for human rights, or even for their own written laws. I'm glad to see my Senate colleagues stand up for Pastor Youcef. The world needs to know what is happening here.

I urge the government of Iran to return this father to his wife and his two sons.

Mr. Speaker, in March, to mark the 2-year anniversary of the signing of ObamaCare, I invited local doctors, business owners, and elected officials to talk about how the law will change the practice of health care on every level.

We heard from Dr. Gerald Rothacker about the law's failure to reform medical liability and how young doctors don't even realize they're practicing defensive medicine, ordering unnecessary tests, and driving up costs. We heard from Gary Alexander, Pennsylvania's secretary for the Department of Public Welfare, about how the law will cause State spending to explode in the coming years.

While Medicaid consumes 30 percent of the State budget now, if the law is fully implemented, it will consume over 60 percent. Pennsylvania won't be a State government. It will be a health plan that paves roads and funds schools on the side.

We also heard from Kirby Sensenig, the owner of a local roofing company. He spoke about the difficult choice he will have to make in coming years about whether to keep providing insurance for his workers, or to pay the penalty and cast them into the health care exchanges.

We all know how much health care reform was needed. We've all heard the stories about individuals denied care that they desperately needed. We've heard about the families who struggled to pay the bills when a child got sick. We all know someone who went without insurance because of the high cost

of premiums. But this law did not fix what was broken. It didn't deliver the reform the American people really wanted.

The savings, both for the government and for families, are an illusion. Don't pat yourselves on the back for gaming the CBO. There won't be a single dime saved by the law. Indeed, government spending will explode because of the law. ObamaCare's new entitlement program and massive Medicaid expansion is estimated to cost taxpayers $1.8 trillion over the next decade.

Things aren't much better for families under ObamaCare. In 2011 alone, the annual premium for an employer-sponsored family plan soared past $15,000. That's a sharp 9 percent increase from 2010. Twenty new taxes impose additional costs on everything from flexible spending accounts to pacemakers. That's 20 new taxes in ObamaCare not yet implemented. It will be taxing medical devices, drug manufacturers, and insurers. It drives up the cost of care. It is a farce to think that government subsidies will balance out the increased costs imposed by all the new taxes and regulations.

Finally, the reach of the Federal Government has extended even to the conscience of religious charities and educational institutions. When the government takes over health care, it takes over basic decisions of morality that should be left up to individuals. It's far past time we ended the destruction of our health care system by a poorly designed and administered law. Full repeal is the only way to get to real reform. I urge support for the bill.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to another member of the Energy and Commerce Committee, the gentlelady from Tennessee (Mrs. Blackburn).

Mr. Speaker, today I'm happy to yield 2 minutes to another distinguished member of the Health Subcommittee, the gentleman from Georgia, Dr. Gingrey.

Mr. Speaker, at this time I'm happy to yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Mississippi (Mr. Harper).

Mr. Speaker, at this time I am pleased to yield 1 minute to another valued member of the Health Subcommittee, the gentleman from Louisiana, Dr. Cassidy.

Mr. Speaker, at this time, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Olson).

Mr. Speaker, at this time, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Kinzinger), another member of the Energy and Commerce Committee.

Mr. Speaker, at this time I am pleased to yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Montana (Mr. Rehberg).

Mr. Speaker, at this time I am pleased to yield 1 minute to the distinguished Member from Wisconsin (Mr. Sensenbrenner).

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 1 minute to the distinguished Member from Nebraska (Mr. Fortenberry).

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 1 minute to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Grimm).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlelady from New York (Ms. Buerkle).

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 1 minute to the gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Mulvaney).

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 1 minute to the gentlelady from Kansas (Ms. Jenkins).

No. We are prepared to close.

If this new law is so outstanding, I wonder why the administration has granted over 1,000 waivers to their friends so they don't have to meet the requirements of the law.

The President promised not to raise taxes on anyone making less than $250,000. He has broken that pledge 20 times with this new law. Many of them are impacting the middle class that he promised not to raise taxes on. That's $800 billion in new taxes.

My friends, the American people have a clear choice: Keep this law and pay the new taxes or take the law off the books and let's start over again with some real free-market reforms.

I urge support for the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, it is an honor today to have Greg Lafferty, senior pastor of my home church, Willowdale Chapel, open us in prayer today.

Greg studied at Wheaton College and Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary. He was ordained at Saddleback Church in Mission Viejo, California, where he served as a teaching pastor under Rick Warren.

Under Greg, the church has grown dramatically. In his time as our pastor, he has made our church much more active in our community and engaged around the world. One example is the work with Hope International, touching lives in the Congo through microenterprise development. The efforts of the church have been multiplied and improved in many ways under Greg's leadership. He has helped our church show the love of Christ in our community in new ways and around the world.

Greg has been married to his wife, Deane, for 28 years. She joins us in the balcony. They have three children together: Kelsey, Krista, and Ryan.

It is a great honor to have Greg and Deane and have Greg open our Chamber today with the opening prayer.