Dear Mr. Schaefer:
Thank you for taking the time to contact me regarding health reform. I always enjoy hearing from people back home in Wisconsin , and I welcome this opportunity to address some of the issues you raise.
Congress has made great strides towards reforming America 's health care system. As you may know, on November 7, 2009 the House passed H.R. 3962 "Affordable Health Care for America Act," and on December 24, 2009 the Senate passed H.R. 3590 the "Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act."
Debate on the Senate health reform bill has been passionate and at some points daunting; passage was the result of long negotiations and the culmination of more than a decade of work. This bill takes major steps in the process of cutting health care costs, while maintaining quality and expanding coverage. This bill will cover 94 percent of Americans under 65 and provide coverage for more than 31 million of the uninsured, cut the deficit by $132 billion in the first ten years and roughly $1.3 trillion over the second ten years.
I am pleased with the direction we are moving with this bill. Many of the important insurance reforms will begin as soon as the President signs the final health reform bill; insurers will be prohibited from putting a cap on lifetime benefits and will no longer be able to rescind coverage when patients become sick. Children will be permitted to stay on their parents' insurance plan until age 26, and small businesses will receive tax credits to make covering their employees more affordable. These are just a few of the provisions that will immediately help improve our health system.
For Wisconsin , the bill will provide additional federal funds for BadgerCare, alleviating some of the burden on our state budget and preserving access to care that many in Wisconsin depend on. Additionally, the bill will provide free preventive services for over 870,000 seniors in Wisconsin and will extend the solvency of Medicare for an additional decade.
I was pleased that a number of bills I sponsored have been included in the merged Senate package, including initiatives that would improve the health and long-term care of seniors and work to reduce the cost of health care. These include the Nursing Home Transparency and Improvement Act (S.647), the Patient Safety and Abuse Prevention Act (S.631), the Physician Payments Sunshine Act (S.301), the Medicare Payment Improvement Act of 2009 (S.1249), as well as provisions from the Retooling the Health Care Workforce for an Aging America Act (S.245). My hope is that these are included in the final health reform bill passed by Congress.
I understand your concerns about the role of abortion in health care reform. I recognize that abortion involves difficult and ultimately personal decisions, and that decisions about abortion should be made by a patient and her doctor. Please know that I respect the deeply held beliefs of Americans on both sides of the issue, and I will keep your thoughts in mind as Congress continues to consider these important reforms.
Again, thank you for sharing your thoughts. I will be sure to keep them in mind as legislation progresses through Congress.
Sincerely,
Herb Kohl
United States Senat
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Sen Herb Kohl on the Bradley Birkenfeld Case.
Dear Mr. Schaefer:
Thank you for contacting me with your concerns about the Bradley Birkenfeld case and the enforcement of our tax code. Ensuring that everyone pays their fair share of taxes is very important to me, and I welcome the opportunity to discuss this issue with you.
In February of 2009, the Swiss bank UBS admitted to criminal wrongdoing in their actions to hide the assets of their clients from federal taxes. As a result, the bank paid a $780 million fine and closed the unit responsible for the crime.
Bradley Birkenfeld, a former UBS banker, was sentenced to 40 months in prison for his role in the bank's wrongdoing. Many have criticized the severity of this sentence due to the cooperation Mr. Birkenfeld is said to have offered to the Justice Department. The Justice Department has claimed that his cooperation was limited, and that it did not merit a reduced sentence for the crimes committed by Mr. Birkenfeld. I am following the situation closely, but since this is a legal matter, it would be inappropriate for me to intervene directly as a U.S. Senator.
To increase the ability of the IRS to enforce our tax code in the future, Senator Max Baucus (D-MT) introduced S. 1934, the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act on October 27, 2009. This legislation requires foreign banks to disclose information to the IRS about accounts subject to taxation, which American banks are already required to do. S. 1934 was referred to the Senate Finance Committee, of which I am not a member.
Please be assured I will keep your thoughts in mind as Congress considers these issues. Again, thank you for contacting me and please feel free to do so again in the future.
Sincerely,
Herb Kohl
United States Senator
Thank you for contacting me with your concerns about the Bradley Birkenfeld case and the enforcement of our tax code. Ensuring that everyone pays their fair share of taxes is very important to me, and I welcome the opportunity to discuss this issue with you.
In February of 2009, the Swiss bank UBS admitted to criminal wrongdoing in their actions to hide the assets of their clients from federal taxes. As a result, the bank paid a $780 million fine and closed the unit responsible for the crime.
Bradley Birkenfeld, a former UBS banker, was sentenced to 40 months in prison for his role in the bank's wrongdoing. Many have criticized the severity of this sentence due to the cooperation Mr. Birkenfeld is said to have offered to the Justice Department. The Justice Department has claimed that his cooperation was limited, and that it did not merit a reduced sentence for the crimes committed by Mr. Birkenfeld. I am following the situation closely, but since this is a legal matter, it would be inappropriate for me to intervene directly as a U.S. Senator.
To increase the ability of the IRS to enforce our tax code in the future, Senator Max Baucus (D-MT) introduced S. 1934, the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act on October 27, 2009. This legislation requires foreign banks to disclose information to the IRS about accounts subject to taxation, which American banks are already required to do. S. 1934 was referred to the Senate Finance Committee, of which I am not a member.
Please be assured I will keep your thoughts in mind as Congress considers these issues. Again, thank you for contacting me and please feel free to do so again in the future.
Sincerely,
Herb Kohl
United States Senator
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Sen Herb Kohl-Response to Letter Requesting Public Option
Dear Mrs. Schaefer:
Thank you for taking the time to contact me regarding health reform. I appreciate your interest in this very important issue.
Congress has made great strides towards reforming America 's health care system. On November 7, 2009 the House passed the "Affordable Health Care for America Act," and on December 24, 2009 the Senate passed the "Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act." Both of these bills would expand coverage to the majority of Americans, curb the rising cost of health care, cut the deficit and improve the quality and efficiency of our health care system.
Debate on the Senate health reform bill has been passionate and at some points daunting; passage was the result of long negotiations and the culmination of more than a decade of work. This bill takes major steps in the process of cutting health care costs, while maintaining quality and expanding coverage. This bill will cover 94 percent of Americans under 65 and provide coverage for more than 31 million of the uninsured, cut the deficit by $132 billion in the first ten years and roughly $1.3 trillion over the second ten years.
I am pleased with the direction we are moving with this bill. Many of the important insurance reforms will begin as soon as the President signs the final health reform bill; insurers will be prohibited from putting a cap on lifetime benefits and will no longer be able to rescind coverage when you become sick, children will be allowed to stay on their parents plan until age 26, and small businesses will receive tax credits to make covering their employees more affordable. These are just a few of the provisions that will begin to immediately help improve our health system.
For Wisconsin , the bill will provide additional federal funds for BadgerCare, alleviating some of the burden on our state budget and preserving access to care that many in Wisconsin depend on. Additionally, the bill will provide free preventive services for over 870,000 seniors in Wisconsin and will extend the solvency of Medicare for an additional decade.
I was pleased that a number of my bills were included in the bill passed by the Senate. These include the Nursing Home Transparency and Improvement Act, the Patient Safety and Abuse Prevention Act, the Physician Payments Sunshine Act, Medicare Payment Improvement Act of 2009, as well as provisions from the Retooling the Health Care Workforce for an Aging America Act. My hope is that these are included in the final health reform bill passed by Congress.
Work remains to be done before we pass a final health reform bill. Now that both the House and Senate have passed their respective bills, we will be tasked with merging the two versions of health reform. There are a number of differences between the two bills, but I am confident we will soon send a bill to the President to sign. I look forward to improving upon the bill with my colleagues in Congress until final passage.
Again, thank you for your comments. I will be sure to keep your thoughts and concerns in mind as legislation progresses through Congress.
Thank you for taking the time to contact me regarding health reform. I appreciate your interest in this very important issue.
Congress has made great strides towards reforming America 's health care system. On November 7, 2009 the House passed the "Affordable Health Care for America Act," and on December 24, 2009 the Senate passed the "Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act." Both of these bills would expand coverage to the majority of Americans, curb the rising cost of health care, cut the deficit and improve the quality and efficiency of our health care system.
Debate on the Senate health reform bill has been passionate and at some points daunting; passage was the result of long negotiations and the culmination of more than a decade of work. This bill takes major steps in the process of cutting health care costs, while maintaining quality and expanding coverage. This bill will cover 94 percent of Americans under 65 and provide coverage for more than 31 million of the uninsured, cut the deficit by $132 billion in the first ten years and roughly $1.3 trillion over the second ten years.
I am pleased with the direction we are moving with this bill. Many of the important insurance reforms will begin as soon as the President signs the final health reform bill; insurers will be prohibited from putting a cap on lifetime benefits and will no longer be able to rescind coverage when you become sick, children will be allowed to stay on their parents plan until age 26, and small businesses will receive tax credits to make covering their employees more affordable. These are just a few of the provisions that will begin to immediately help improve our health system.
For Wisconsin , the bill will provide additional federal funds for BadgerCare, alleviating some of the burden on our state budget and preserving access to care that many in Wisconsin depend on. Additionally, the bill will provide free preventive services for over 870,000 seniors in Wisconsin and will extend the solvency of Medicare for an additional decade.
I was pleased that a number of my bills were included in the bill passed by the Senate. These include the Nursing Home Transparency and Improvement Act, the Patient Safety and Abuse Prevention Act, the Physician Payments Sunshine Act, Medicare Payment Improvement Act of 2009, as well as provisions from the Retooling the Health Care Workforce for an Aging America Act. My hope is that these are included in the final health reform bill passed by Congress.
Work remains to be done before we pass a final health reform bill. Now that both the House and Senate have passed their respective bills, we will be tasked with merging the two versions of health reform. There are a number of differences between the two bills, but I am confident we will soon send a bill to the President to sign. I look forward to improving upon the bill with my colleagues in Congress until final passage.
Again, thank you for your comments. I will be sure to keep your thoughts and concerns in mind as legislation progresses through Congress.
Friday, January 8, 2010
Senator Feingold-Reproductive Health Care
Dear Mr. Schaefer,
Thank you for contacting me regarding reproductive health care. I appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts with me.
As you know, Senator Ben Nelson (D-NE) offered an amendment to the Senate health reform legislation that would prohibit the public option and any insurance plan sold through Health insurance exchanges to individuals purchasing with a federal subsidy from covering abortions except in the cases of danger of death of the woman, rape, or incest. The Senate rejected the amendment by a vote of 54-45. I opposed the amendment.
On December 24, 2009, the Senate passed H.R. 3950 "The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act" by a vote of 60 to 39, with my support. The legislation prohibits mandatory abortion coverage as part of a minimum benefits package, and prohibits federal funds being used for abortions unless the pregnancy is due to rape, incest, or the life of the mother is in danger. You can find the text of the bill at http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=111_cong_bills&docid=f:h3590pp.txt.pdf.
I support a woman's right to choose. I feel very strongly that Congress should seek to regulate abortions only within the constitutional parameters set forth by the U.S. Supreme Court. I have also always believed that decisions in this area are best handled by the individuals involved, in consultation with their doctors and guided by their own beliefs and unique circumstances, rather than by government mandates.
I will continue to work in the U.S. Senate to develop and expand programs that will help reduce the number of unintended pregnancies and provide a full range of choice to all women.
Again, thank you for contacting me. As health care reform moves forward, I will continue working to improve access to health care and make health care more affordable for the people of Wisconsin. You can learn more about my work on health care reform at my website at http://feingold.senate.gov/healthreform.html. I look forward to hearing from you in the future.
Thank you for contacting me regarding reproductive health care. I appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts with me.
As you know, Senator Ben Nelson (D-NE) offered an amendment to the Senate health reform legislation that would prohibit the public option and any insurance plan sold through Health insurance exchanges to individuals purchasing with a federal subsidy from covering abortions except in the cases of danger of death of the woman, rape, or incest. The Senate rejected the amendment by a vote of 54-45. I opposed the amendment.
On December 24, 2009, the Senate passed H.R. 3950 "The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act" by a vote of 60 to 39, with my support. The legislation prohibits mandatory abortion coverage as part of a minimum benefits package, and prohibits federal funds being used for abortions unless the pregnancy is due to rape, incest, or the life of the mother is in danger. You can find the text of the bill at http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=111_cong_bills&docid=f:h3590pp.txt.pdf.
I support a woman's right to choose. I feel very strongly that Congress should seek to regulate abortions only within the constitutional parameters set forth by the U.S. Supreme Court. I have also always believed that decisions in this area are best handled by the individuals involved, in consultation with their doctors and guided by their own beliefs and unique circumstances, rather than by government mandates.
I will continue to work in the U.S. Senate to develop and expand programs that will help reduce the number of unintended pregnancies and provide a full range of choice to all women.
Again, thank you for contacting me. As health care reform moves forward, I will continue working to improve access to health care and make health care more affordable for the people of Wisconsin. You can learn more about my work on health care reform at my website at http://feingold.senate.gov/healthreform.html. I look forward to hearing from you in the future.
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