Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for holding this Member Day hearing on health tax legislation.
I look forward to hearing from our witnesses about these issues.
The legislation that will be discussed needs to be scrutinized carefully, and I hope that we can have a constructive conversation this morning.
This means asking tough questions about each of these bills.
At the heart of our analysis must be a careful examination of what these bills do to the health security of the American people.
We must also consider the impact these bills have on the sustainability of our health care system.
Proposals that undermine the reforms made by the Affordable Care will weaken health security by taking coverage away from working families.
And proposals that carve unnecessary holes in the tax code deprive the federal government of needed revenue and make the system less sustainable.
None of these ideas should get a free pass.
As the Ways and Means Committee, it is our duty to analyze and scrutinize the legislation that comes before us.
We can’t gloss over important facts - such as the fact that unpaid-for tax breaks add billions to the deficit, or that political attacks on the ACA undermine health care reform.
Today’s hearing is just the first step in what should be an ongoing process.
I hope that it might even be an opportunity to fulfill my Republican colleagues’ unrealized promise of a return to regular order.
Returning to regular order means we listen to ideas - some good, some bad - and make informed decisions that are the product of careful debate.
Holding this Member Day is not enough.
Substantive legislative hearings, markups, amendments, and further debate will allow us to take a hard look at these proposals and find ways to improve them.
This is something that has been missing in this Congress and at this Committee for some time.
I look forward to learning more about the legislation that our witnesses will discuss this morning.
And I intend to ask tough questions about these ideas.
