,,iv  #aafth ,,congress  #ast ,session  
,h4 ,,res4 #ecb  ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of
 ,,representatives  ,july #cj1 #bjai,ms4
 ,lofgren submitted the following       
resolution2 which was referred to the   
,committee on ,energy and ,commerce1 and
 in addition to the ,committees on ,ways
 and ,means1 ,natural ,resources1 and   
,veterans' ,affairs1 for a period to be 
subsequently determined by the ,speaker1
 in each case for consideration of such 
provisions as fall within the           
jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
,,resolution  ,proposing a strategy to  
make ,medicare available to all         
,americans4  ,whereas the ,united       
,states spends more money per capita on 
health care than any other              
industrialized nation2 ,whereas #hj     
percent of adults are dissatisfied with 
the total cost of health care in the    
country2 ,whereas #gg percent of        
,americans are concerned that rising    
health care costs will damage the       
,american economy2 ,whereas #fh percent 

of ,americans support a national health 
care plan2 ,whereas the rate of         
uninsured individuals is at a #d-year   
high of #ac4g percent2 ,whereas         
,medicare is consistently rated the most
 popular and efficient health insurance 
system in the country2 ,whereas #ij     
percent of adults aged #fe and older1   
with most adults in this group          
qualifying for ,medicare1 rate both     
their care and coverage positively2     
,whereas private health insurance       
coverage continues to be more prevalent 
than government coverage1 at #fg4b      
percent and #cg4g percent1 respectively2
 ,whereas employer-based insurance was  
the most common subtype of private      
health insurance coverage1 at #ef       
percent2 ,whereas #hj percent of adults 
rate the quality of health care received
 as excellent or good2 ,whereas #fi     
percent of adults rate their health care
 coverage as excellent or good2 and     
,whereas #fj percent of ,americans      
believe it is the ,federal ,government's

 responsibility to ensure health care   
coverage3 ,now1 therefore1 be it  ,that 
it is the sense of the ,house of        
,representatives that-- 7#a7 making     
,medicare an available insurance plan   
for all ,americans should be a unified  
goal despite differences in proposed    
strategies to achieve it2  7#b7 the     
complexity of the existing health care  
system in the ,united ,states should be 
considered2  7#c7 the desire of         
individuals to retain the ability to    
choose their health care should be      
considered2  7#d7 a serious effort to   
change the health care system will      
require years of work2  7#e7 a          
transition plan to reach this goal      
promptly could1 as initial steps--  7,a7
 expand ,medicare eligibility to allow  
every individual who is aged #dj to #fd 
and not a full-benefit ,medicaid        
enrollee to buy into ,medicare2  7,b7   
offer ,medicare on the individual market
 to all age groups2  7,c7 allow         
employers to contribute money to the    

,medicare program and offer it as a     
health care benefit to their employees2 
and  7,d7 offer ,medicare on the        
,exchanges established by the ,patient  
,protection and ,affordable ,care ,act2 
7#f7 after these initial steps1 the     
,secretary of the ,department of ,health
 and ,human ,services should conduct an 
assessment to evaluate how many         
individuals remain outside of the       
,medicare system and their reasons for  
declining enrollment2  7#g7 the         
,secretary should use the findings of   
the assessment to determine how the     
,medicare program can be extended to the
 remaining individuals to enroll2  7#h7 
,medicare coverage should be expanded to
 include all essential health benefits  
as outlined in the ,patient ,protection 
and ,affordable ,care ,act2  7#i7 the   
,department of ,veterans ,affairs will  
continue to have a role to play in      
providing quality health care and       
expertise to the ,nation's veterans2 and
  7#aj7 the ,indian ,health ,service    

will continue to have a role to play in 
providing quality health care and       
expertise to ,native ,americans4