U.S. Senator Susan Collins released this statement after voting in favor of an amendment introduced by Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell that would repeal the health care law.
"One of the major reasons I opposed the health care law was that it did not do enough to rein in the cost of health care and to provide consumers with more affordable choices. As it turns out, the law will impose billions of new taxes, fees, and penalties and lead to fewer choices and higher costs for many middle-income Americans and most small businesses. For these reasons, I voted in support of repealing this law and starting anew on health care legislation that will truly meet the needs of our nation.
"I am particularly concerned about the law's impact on Maine's small businesses, which are our state's job creation engine. The law discourages small businesses from hiring new employees and paying them more. It could also lead to onerous financial penalties on some small businesses that are already struggling to provide health insurance for their employees. Rather than punishing employers with burdensome penalties and new bureaucratic requirements, we should be encouraging businesses to create jobs.
"That is why, today, I also voted in favor of an amendment that passed with overwhelming bipartisan support that would repeal a provision of the health care law that requires every business, church, and charity to submit a separate 1099 tax form for all business transactions totaling $600 or more in a given year. The provision creates huge amounts of paperwork for as many as 40 million businesses and other entities, increases overhead costs, and discourages job creation.
"The bitter rhetoric and partisan gridlock that we experienced over the last two years obscured a very important fact: there are many health care reforms that have overwhelming support in both parties. We could have agreed, for example, on generous tax credits for self-employed individuals and small businesses to help them afford health insurance, therefore reducing the number of uninsured. We also could have agreed on reforms that would prevent insurance companies from denying coverage to children who have pre-existing conditions, permit children to remain on their parent's policies until age 26, require standardized claim forms to reduce costs, and allow consumers to purchase insurance across state lines.
"There are numerous other areas of bipartisan agreement, some of which are addressed in the new health care law, and these provisions could certainly be retained or even strengthened. It is very unfortunate that the new law, in other aspects, goes way too far and will actually increase health care costs, impose billions of new taxes, fees, and penalties, and hurt our seniors, health care providers and small businesses.
"In the last session of Congress, we missed an opportunity to work together, in a bipartisan manner, to draft a health care bill that could have achieved the consensus goals of providing more choices of coverage, containing the escalating cost of health care, and helping small businesses afford health insurance for their employees. We have a new opportunity - and an obligation - in the 112th Congress to do this by working together to make needed changes to this law."
Senator Collins is a cosponsor of several legislative proposals that would repeal portions of the health care law, including two bills that would repeal the individual and employer mandate provisions. Senator Collins also is cosponsoring the Patients' Freedom to Choose Act, which would repeal two provisions in the health care bill that prohibit individuals from using funds from their Flexible Spending Arrangements (FSAs) and Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) to purchase over-the-counter medication unless they have a prescription from their physician. The bill also would repeal the provision in the healthcare law that caps FSAs at $2,500 beginning in 2013.
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