Healthcare (March 2011)

When Speaker John Boehner took the gavel, he promised the American people that this Congress would focus on job growth and the economy. Instead, we have seen a majority that has been consumed with rolling back the clock on healthcare, no matter what that means for the economy, the deficit or the health and well-being of American families.

Our investment in the National Institutes of Health (NIH) over the past three decades has led to landmark accomplishments such as the mapping of the human genome and the development of life-saving drugs that target specific cancers or lower cholesterol. Deaths from heart disease and stroke are down 63 percent and 70 percent, respectively, since the 1970s, and HIV has been transformed from a rapid death sentence to a chronic, manageable disease. Thanks to NIH-funded research, millions of lives have been saved and improved, and hope for the future is provided to millions more.

When it comes to cutting spending, Congress has made significant strides over the past few weeks to try and undo the damage caused by the Democrats’ spending spree over the last four years. But we can only fully move toward restoring fiscal responsibility if we stop wasteful spending at its source. Repealing and defunding the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, or “ObamaCare,” would do just that. And unless we do it, this bill will sink our local and federal governments further into debt.