Matsui Statement on the President's Health Insurance Reform Proposal

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, February 22, 2010

CONTACT: MARA LEE
(202) 225-7163

Congresswoman Doris O. Matsui (CA-05) issued the following statement today after President Barack Obama released a health insurance reform proposal. The plan was distributed this morning in advance of the bipartisan, bicameral health-care meeting set to take place this Thursday at Blair House in Washington, D.C.:

We must pass comprehensive health insurance reform that provides access to quality, affordable health care for America's families and seniors. After months of rigorous debate and input from our constituents, both houses of Congress have produced a bill that will build upon the strengths of our current system, begin the process of reducing health-care costs, hold the insurance companies accountable, invest in prevention and public health, and make dramatic consumer-friendly reforms to the insurance market. The President's proposal serves as an important reminder that we must move forward and work together to pass health insurance reform legislation that delivers on the promise of affordable, quality care for people in Sacramento and across the country.

The President's proposal now available to the public is a step forward in helping us achieve this goal. It is my hope that Congressional leaders on both sides of the aisle use Thursday's bipartisan health summit as an opportunity to collaborate and move the process along so that reform reaches people in Sacramento as quickly as possible. The cost of inaction is too great we cannot afford to fail in delivering health insurance reform for the American people.