The Affordable Care Act has made good progress in expanding health care access to millions of Americans. Next steps should focus on reducing health care costs while improving care both for Medicare and Medicaid patients and for the American people as a whole.
We should reward patients and physicians who choose treatments based on “comparative effectiveness,” which would minimize the need to pay for high-cost but low-effectiveness measures. Tremendous efficiencies can be built into the health care system with an across-the-board mandate for conversion to electronic record-keeping.
When the Medicare drug benefit was implemented, the federal government was specifically prohibited from negotiating the price of prescriptions. Medicaid faces no such restrictions. If Medicare could also negotiate drug prices as Medicaid does, it is estimated that the cost of Medicare would drop by at least $112 billion over 10 years.
We should also work to stop the widespread Medicare fraud in the system. The GAO estimates that $48 billion of Medicare reimbursements went to “improper payments” in 2010, amounting to 10 percent of the total Medicare payout in the year.
Congress should encourage innovation and research focused on continuous improvement in care at reduced cost.
There are several steps Congress should take to improve job growth. We must spur consumer demand to encourage private businesses to invest and hire. Congress can directly create jobs by contracting the repair of deteriorating bridges, roads and schools. Beyond these infrastructure improvements, I propose giving all businesses incentives to create jobs, such as tax credits for the salaries of first-year employees. The Research and Development tax credit should also be made permanent to spur American companies to develop new technologies. A study by Ernst & Young shows doing this will add 130,000 jobs to the U.S. economy just in the short-term.
And to sustain long-term growth in our economy, we must also insure we have a highly-educated and creative work force capable of excelling at the jobs available today as well as those of the future. Community colleges, in particular, can help with this task. Students will benefit greatly if community colleges expand their focus on programs which provide the advanced skills necessary for success in today’s workplace. Many technical jobs in the United States are actually going unfilled because of a lack of qualified workers.
The first step to reducing the deficit is to grow the economy. The deficit will go down significantly when the unemployed and underemployed begin paying taxes on increased earnings and businesses which currently lack confidence begin to invest.
I favor a balanced approach with both spending cuts and revenue increases on the table.
As a CPA, I am trained to understand the facts behind the numbers. We first need to carefully analyze what we are spending our money on with a goal of cutting wasteful and unnecessary costs. For instance, now that the war in Iraq is over, spending on military contractors should drop precipitously. And a thorough analysis of spending is certain to uncover waste and fraud that can be eliminated.
As for revenue increases, we need to make sure that everyone is paying their fair share. At the moment, the burden of taxes falls too heavily on the middle class and that has to stop. I know that the nation cannot afford to continue the tax breaks for the wealthy. According to the Center for American Progress, using CBO figures, the Bush tax cuts for upper-income taxpayers alone will cost the treasury almost $900 billion over ten years.
I believe Syria will only be stabilized once President Bashar al-Assad and his murderous regime no longer control the country. After the atrocities committed by the Assad government in Daraya – where hundreds of men, women and children were killed – National Security Council spokesman Tommy Vietor correctly called them, “the latest horrible evidence of Assad’s brutal crackdown and wanton disregard for human life.” Vietor also said of Assad, “He has lost all legitimacy and every day that goes by, it becomes more urgent for the international community to press him to leave power so that a political transition can begin.”
The challenge is how to make this happen. I believe the United States is correct in providing humanitarian and communications support to those opposing the Assad regime. I also believe the United States is correct in drawing “a line in the sand” against movement of chemical or biological weapons by the regime. We must continue working with the international community – as was done in Libya – to pressure Assad to leave power. While I do not favor direct military intervention in Syria, we must provide as much support as possible to help the Syrian people win and prepare for a post-Assad government.
Yes. I believe that I am in a unique position to be a leader in the effort to ease gridlock. I am a CPA and CPAs are trained to be problem solvers, not advocates for a particular ideological position. I have a lot of experience negotiating with clients on financial matters and resolving disagreements through dialogue and compromise. That is not to say that I would never take a firm position, but it would be based on an understanding of the facts and the needs of 6th District residents, not on political orthodoxy.
We need more people in Congress willing to work together to solve problems. You cannot compromise with people whose only response is to say “no.” We should be willing to consider all options to produce results. But I believe you can reach across the aisle to develop relationships with people who believe that finding solutions to our pressing problems should be our top priority. I admire the women in the Senate who meet together regularly for dinner and promote civility on a bipartisan basis. I believe that reasonable people can craft sensible solutions to complex problems when we focus on the needs of the people we serve.
Social Security is a critical part of our economy, giving seniors the ability to support themselves in retirement and giving them money to spend with American businesses. Social Security will only get more important as time goes by because many private sector companies will not be providing traditional defined benefit pensions in the future. I am confident that I can help analyze the financial underpinnings of this successful program that keeps millions of seniors from falling into poverty. We must carefully examine the projections and assumptions on which Social Security is currently based before doing anything that could undermine the safety net that the program represents. Social Security can be made solvent for many years in the future by adjusting certain aspects of it, such as raising the maximum earnings subject to Social Security taxes, currently $110,100.
We should focus on finding a path to legal status for hardworking, employed people who are already here. Most would prefer to be paying taxes and buying homes, contributing to our society and helping our economy. I think we can get a better handle on immigration by bringing illegal immigrants out of the shadows with a reasonable path to legal residency.
We must also address the “brain drain” issue. Many talented immigrants come to the U.S. to study science and technology - then leave after they receive their education. Our laws should encourage these leaders to stay in the U.S. and contribute to our economy and our quest for innovation.
I support development of a new visa system which allows individuals specifically needed by U.S. employers to enter the country without “cheating the system” -- along the lines of the H-2A agricultural visa program.
I strongly support the President’s directive to stop deportation of undocumented immigrants who are in college or the military. Immigrants who were brought here by their parents as children do not deserve deportation. They should be allowed to serve our country in the military or become productive taxpaying members of society by furthering their education.
My top priorities, as outlined earlier in this questionnaire, are growing the economy in the 6th Congressional District and strengthening Medicare and Social Security for 6th District residents who depend on these programs. However, there are many other issues that Congress must address.
One of my core issues is environmental protection. This is particularly important in our district, which features open, natural spaces that must be preserved. Unfortunately, our environment, including clean air and clean water, is under assault as never before by Congress. Our children and grandchildren deserve to grow up in an environment that will not poison them and with a climate that is conducive to health. Congress seems bent on rolling back the environmental laws that were put in place to solve a very real problem we faced in the 20th Century: the inability of polluting businesses to take into account the external costs of their actions when it came to the harm they were doing to the environment. With their attempts to gut the EPA and allow polluting businesses free rein to do anything they please, Congressional leaders have shown a disdain for anything that would protect the 6th District’s natural resources from exploitation.
My colleagues on the Ways and Means Committee and I are engaged in a robust effort to improve our health care system. First and foremost, the president’s Affordable Care Act must be repealed and replaced with reforms that will reduce exploding costs, increase access to quality services, save Medicare, and remove burdensome regulations.
Existing bureaucratic regulations slow down medical innovations and prevent job growth. Specifically, the approval process for prescription drugs and medical devices by the FDA takes too long, and does so at the expense of patients. The House Committee on Energy and Commerce is conducting a series of hearings to address these burdensome regulations.
By eliminating inherent waste, fraud and abuse, we will be able to take important steps in reducing bloated costs. Limiting runaway lawsuits will cut down on defensive medicine and further drive down costs. When nearly 50 million Americans uninsured, we must be considering innovative solutions to cut expenses and ensure affordability. One such solution is widening state-run, high-risk insurance pools for those with pre-existing conditions. Enhancing the doctor-patient relationship and ensuring that Americans have greater transparency with their providers will similarly reduce health costs and access will necessarily increase.
The House Republicans recently unveiled A Plan for America’s Job Creators, which sets a path forward and eliminates the obstacles that hinder job creation. It builds on an earlier effort that I helped craft, the Pledge to America, and focuses on empowering families, small businesses, and entrepreneurs, the backbone of our economy. This plan was instrumental in orchestrating the passage of free trade agreements with Korea, Panama, and Colombia, which will advance exports and boost small business productivity. To help local businesses learn how to best utilize these new export markets, I hosted a forum with over 100 participants that featured various trade experts who discussed the opportunities and benefits now available to them.
One of the best ways we can create sustainable economic growth is by alleviating the financial pressure our families and small business owners are currently experiencing. With bold tax reform, job creators will be able to expand their workforce instead of shrinking them. A more streamlined, less burdensome code is absolutely necessary to move forward with an economic plan that makes sense.
The House has passed two budgets that prove that the budget can be balanced over time, and our debt paid off, without raising taxes. Compared to the President’s budget request, that failed to receive a single vote of support in both the House and Senate, our Path to Prosperity budget cuts $5 trillion in government spending over the next decade. It brings government spending to below 20 percent of the economy by 2015 and reduces deficits by $3 trillion over the next decade, relative to the President’s budget. This plan will bring government spending back down to its historically normal level, and will likewise return revenue to historically normal levels as well. Restoring the economy to its previous robust activity will allow us to pay off the debt that has burdened us for too long, and will ultimately lead us to solvency.
Over the past few years, we witnessed numerous attempts at establishing democracy in the Middle East, led by the very citizens of nations like Syria and Iran. Those uprisings gave evidence to the fact that men and women repressed by dictatorships and civil war demand freedom, even at the cost of their own lives.
While we in the U.S. have concentrated on stabilizing our economy and ensuring the safety of American citizens, we have not lost the mantle of “world leader.” It is imperative that our stance be known, that we not lead from behind, and that people around the world understand that the United States will not condone or cooperate with violent, oppressive regimes. This year, I co-sponsored the Iran Threat Reduction and Syria Human Rights Act, a bipartisan agreement recently signed by the president that expands sanctions on human rights violators and sends a clear message: that the calls for support and freedom in the Middle East will not go unanswered.
Common sense bipartisan solutions to the biggest problems we face as a nation are both necessary and attainable. I believe if we are only willing to identify a problem at its roots and come together, real solutions are within reach. My record of bipartisanship dates back to my years in the Illinois State House, and continues today as a Member of Congress.
One piece of legislation I am currently working on is a source of particular pride and has garnered bipartisan support; my bill to combat Medicare fraud is backed by the AARP, the White House, and co-sponsored by Democrats in both the House and Senate.
Each year, Medicare fraud costs America’s elderly a staggering $60 billion. Both parties understand how waste, fraud and abuse undermine such a vital program for our seniors, but the private sector offers a common sense, proven solution: predictive modeling technology to prevent fraud before it happens. Credit card companies use similar tactics, which would successfully shift away from the current “pay-and-chase” model that is costing Medicare billions.
One thing is for sure about Social Security and Medicare: Congress must act to save these programs, or they will disappear. In fact, the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has reported that without immediate action, Social Security will go broke in 2037 and cease to exist for future generations.
But instead of addressing these serious problems, President Obama proposed a budget that included more than $1 trillion in new job-crushing taxes and ignored entitlements altogether, leaving them on their current path to bankruptcy.
House Republicans, on the other hand, have proposed a budget that includes bold, fundamental tax reform and a process for protecting Social Security. To ensure the fiscal viability of the program, the Path to Prosperity compels bipartisan collaboration between the president, Congress and the Social Security Board of Trustees.
As a nation of immigrants, the United States welcomes those who have obtained lawful permanent residence, and every year we draw more legal immigrants than every other country in the world combined. However, when illegal immigrants receive taxpayer-funded benefits, it is a financial strain on our systems and state governments, and is fundamentally unfair to those who played by the rules when coming to America. Granting blanket amnesty is not the solution. We must also find a solution that deals with undocumented immigrants currently in the United States, without encouraging more people to cross our borders illegally.
The president’s recent decision to sidestep Congress and enact a temporary immigration policy was a disappointment, as a permanent resolution to our country’s immigration problems must be originate with a bipartisan agreement between the House, Senate and White House. The president’s promise to accomplish this kind of solution in his first term went unfulfilled, and his choice to “go it alone” on this important issue is a concern to those of us hoping to enact lasting, meaningful change.
Our current tax code is a mess of loopholes, carve outs and crony capitalism. What’s worse, with compliance costs and endless complications, it’s actually holding back U.S. job creation. Under the current tax code, there are a number of small business owners who pay taxes through their individual returns called pass throughs, and when we talk about raising taxes on the “wealthy,” these small business owners often get hit instead. Ultimately, they are forced to reduce investments, payroll—and yes, employees—in order to pay the higher taxes. The 6th Congressional District is home to a number of these small business pass throughs, run by generations of families, entrepreneurs and community leaders. Bringing both sides together to fundamentally reform the code would create greater certainty for business owners and give them the necessary flexibility to build on their futures and their communities.
