Mr. Chairman, the President should be fighting for health priorities that protect Medicare, provide a meaningful Medicare prescription drug benefit, and ensure funding for public health programs that provide care to those who cannot afford it.  After reviewing the HHS budget priorities, it is clear that just the opposite will be accomplished, that is, the budget will spend the Medicare surplus on other priorities, the budget will fail to provide a meaningful prescription drug benefit, and the budget will cut important safety net programs and public health programs that provide care to the under-served population.  

It is particularly alarming that President Bush’s tax cut forces him to use the Medicare surplus to fund other spending initiatives.  The budget includes the Medicare surplus in a $842 billion contingency fund that will be used for defense, education, agriculture and debt reduction.   It is estimated that the contingency fund will be quickly depleted, therefore, leaving the Medicare Trust Fund surplus vulnerable to being used for other priorities.  From my understanding, even Secretary Thompson agrees that the budget fails to protect the Medicare Trust Fund.
 
The government is in a unique financial position to make necessary changes to Medicare and to add necessary health services to those who lack resources.  This is not the time to funnel federal dollars that can be used for health priorities to instead fund a tax cut plan that costs over $2 trillion.
 
Thank you again, Mr. Chairman, for holding this important hearing.  I am interested to hear from Secretary Thompson on the budget and I am looking forward to the opportunity to ask questions.