GRASSLEY: Today is the Senate Finance Committee is going to hold
its third and final walk-through session on health care reform. Each
session covered a different topic. Today is how the finance health
care is about -- today's topic, I should say, is about finance health
care reform, financing it. The other two were about the delivery
systems and coverage. And I think I covered those with you pretty
thoroughly over the last two or weeks.
I'm working with Senator Baucus of Montana to see if we can put
together a bipartisan bill. Our goal is to drive down health care
costs which continue to rise at an unsustainable rate and to make sure
that health insurance coverage is more affordable and accessible.
Also, today, on another item, the president's going to sign
legislation I sponsored with Senator Leahy of Vermont. Our bill is
the biggest update to the Federal False Claims Act since 1986 when I
first modified that law in order to fight fraud by government
contractors. To date, the 1986 amendments have recovered $22 billion
for the taxpayers.
This year's update will continue to fight fraud by empowering
whistleblowers. The overall bill is aimed at fighting mortgage fraud
and protecting tax dollars being used to try to bail out the financial
system.
One explanation. I was invited to the signing ceremony. I was
invited to be on stage. But it's going to come at the tail end of our
walk-through, which last week, went on for six or hours. So I would
have to leave there at 3:30 and devote -- and devote 2 hours to
probably what's going to be a five-minute signing ceremony. So I'm
not going to be able to be on the stage with the president, but I very
much appreciate the president's invitation since I'm the lead
Republican co-sponsor of this bill.
And that -- that, once again, is referring to that bill I
introduced with Senator Leahy.
OK. I'm ready for questions. I'll start out with and then go to
Kerry and then go to Tom Beaumont and Mike Glover in that order.
QUESTION: Thank you, Senator.
GRASSLEY: Go ahead.
QUESTION: Were you surprised when the president appointed
Huntsman to be the ambassador to China because I think you said one
time that maybe Jim Leach was on that list.
GRASSLEY: Yes, I was surprised, but maybe -- maybe I shouldn't
be surprised considering the -- the -- well, what I've been told is
that he speaks Chinese very fluently. And -- and I presume, whenever
you can get the proper talent with the language for a country, it's to
our benefit. And I'm not sure to what extent that played a goal in
it, and I would have been very happy not only for Jim Leach but for
our country to have somebody of Jim Leach's caliber representing.
And I thought that was a very real possibility. And it could
have been a very real possibility. We don't know who the last people
were on the list, but he was prominently talked about over a long,
long period of time. Well, the governor ends up getting it, and I
don't even know why other than maybe the language had something to do
with it.
By the way, is that -- did he used to be governor of North
Carolina or is it Utah?
QUESTION: Utah.
GRASSLEY: Oh, he's present governor of Utah then? OK.
And, well, then maybe since he's a Republican, it does give the
president an opportunity to say he's a little more bipartisan, you
know, in these appointments. And he would have been able to say that
with Jim Leach as well because, even though Jim Leach supported
President Obama, he still is a Republican.
Tom Beaumont?
QUESTION: Senator, you and Senator Baucus have said that taxing
some employer-paid health benefits could be an option. Do you expect
this to be an option in the end?
GRASSLEY: I believe so because you're going to find today
Republicans, I think, it's Senator Coburn and Senator Burr, are
putting in a bill. And there's a lot of things that are going to be
in their bill that maybe would be in a bipartisan bill that Burr and
Coburn wouldn't like, but they know that it's going to take some money
to finance, and they know that there is some increase -- utilization
of health care that comes from high-end health insurance policies that
they feel that that needs to be capped. And so they're going to be
suggesting that in their legislation this morning.
So that gives -- how would you say it? That gives a lot of
prestige to something that Democrats want to do. Maybe not in exactly
the same way. So I think it's -- I think that it is something that's
got a real possibility.
Now, you know, it's -- it's going to be very controversial
because, on a small group of people, there's going to be some people
paying more taxes, you know.
QUESTION: Can I ask a follow-up?
GRASSLEY: Yes, please.
QUESTION: If this is going to be very controversial, do you
expect it to be the key sticking point or the key point of controversy
in the financing deal?
GRASSLEY: From the tax end, yes. But there's -- whenever you
get into savings on Medicare and Medicaid, there's just dozens and
dozens of things you can look at. And every one of them are very
controversial. And so the extent it which you're trying to save
money, now, that would be saving money short term that, quite frankly,
would be recouped by providers later on. When you have everybody
having insurance and providers get paid for the services they're
doing. Because now, sometimes, they don't get paid for the services
they're doing.
Or in the case of limits on Medicare on reimbursement, they don't
get paid a hundred percent of cost.
QUESTION: Thanks.
GRASSLEY: OK. Mike Glover?
QUESTION: What's the best guess of what it would cost, Senator?
GRASSLEY: Listen, all I -- all I can say is that preliminary
figures aren't whether giving to you, but they're kind of
stratospheric.
QUESTION: So a lot?
GRASSLEY: Yes.
QUESTION: OK. Thank you.
GRASSLEY: Jim Boyd?
QUESTION: I'm good today, Senator.
GRASSLEY: Mary Rae Bragg?
QUESTION: Nothing today. Thank you, sir.
GRASSLEY: Tim Rohwer?
QUESTION: Yes, Senator. I understand the Senate yesterday
passed a bill that would make it tougher for these credit card
companies to charge these huge fees and make it more harder to target
young adults. What was your vote, and what do you think of that bill?
GRASSLEY: I like it. And I voted for it. And I got an
amendment adopted -- well, in conjunction with Senator Feinstein
that's going to have more transparency in any arrangements that credit
cards have my using mailing lists or student lists at universities.
It isn't going to prohibit anything they now do, but I think if -- if
a university is used as a marketing tool for credit cards, at least it
ought to be very transparent.
Two reasons I voted for it. Whatever credit card companies do
and whatever consumers agree to by taking a credit card -- and don't
forget the consumer is the ultimate authority in this area because
nobody's going to make you take a credit card. You take it on your
own volition.
So number one, you know, it's kind of a contract. And that
contract can be changed at a whim. And this, more or less, makes sure
that there's ample notice before the rules are changed and the
interest rates go up. So why? So you've got an opportunity to get
out if you don't like it. But, you know, these things can happen and
you don't know it until you get your next bill.
So transparency and notification and a time period for the
consumer to think about do they want to continue with that credit card
or not. Then the other one is these rates going up in a fashion that
is outright usury. You know, going up from 15 to 28 percent overnight
is ridiculous.
Now, is it ridiculous that they can charge any interest rates
they might want to charge? That's a lesser issue than the fact that
you ought to be notified about it ahead of time and get a chance to
get out if you want to get out. I did vote for an amendment to limit
it to 15 percent which is what credit unions do, but that amendment
lost. And it happens that I was the only Republican that voted for
it.
Does that answer your question, Tim?
QUESTION: Yes.
GRASSLEY: OK. I think I've gone through everybody that's on
unless somebody else got in. And if they did, then you can speak up
now.
OK. Thank you all very much.