Jeff Bingaman United States Senator from New Mexico

Video of speech

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jeff Bingaman today pointed to the many provisions in the health insurance reform legislation that would benefit New Mexicans.

In a speech on the Senate floor, Bingaman said the measure that merged the work of two Senate committees would help make health care more affordable for families and small businesses, and extend coverage to uninsured New Mexicans – and it is done in a fiscally responsible manner that actually reduces the deficit by more than $130 billion over the next 10 years. 

“Among other things, this bill would create a system that helps to prevent illness and disease instead of just treating it when it's too late and when the cost is excessive. This proposal will reduce health care fraud and waste and abuse and overpayment to insurance companies.  It's estimated by most experts in the range of $60 billion per year under the current arrangements we have, the current health care delivery system,” Bingaman said. 

“Additionally, this legislation would eliminate most of the cost of uncompensated care. This is a very substantial part of the premium that people with health insurance are required to pay. They are not only paying for their own health care when they pay their premium, they are paying for the uncompensated care that the hospitals and the physicians and others are providing to people who don't have insurance,” he added. 

Bingaman also said this legislation would no longer allow health insurance companies to discriminate against Americans with pre-existing medical conditions.

New Mexicans are experiencing rapid growth in their insurance premiums, and Bingaman pointed out in his speech that the legislation aims to address that serious problem.

“Let me talk a little about the impact of this legislation on my state. I represent New Mexico and, frankly, this legislation is critically important to my state. Without health care reform my state is expected to experience the largest increase in health insurance premiums of any state in the union. For example, the average employer-sponsored insurance premium for a family in New Mexico today, or in 2000, the year 2000, was $6,000. By 2006, that had almost doubled to $11,000 for a family of four.  By 2016, the expected increase goes to an astonishing $28,000,” Bingaman said.

“In addition, the health insurance premiums and the percentage that those premiums represent of the income of the average New Mexico family is higher in my state, unfortunately, than in any other state in the union. Today 31 percent of a family's income is going to pay for health care. That is for the folks who have coverage today in New Mexico. That's expected to grow to an astounding 56 percent -- over 56 percent of a family's income is expected to be consumed just paying premiums for health care by 2016. That's totally unsustainable and unaffordable,” he added. 

The health reform proposal before the Senate intends to slow the growth of health care costs around the nation.  The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) forecasts that the legislation would not add to the federal deficit. In fact, CBO would reduce the deficit by $130 billion by 2019 and by much more than -- by more than $400 billion by 2029.  Most experts believe these reductions also will drive down cost in the private health insurance market.  Thus, this legislation is critically important to New Mexico because it will help to curb costs for all residents.

Bingaman said there will be time to improve the legislation further, but he looks forward to a debate on this extremely important piece of legislation.

“I compliment Majority Leader for putting together a very credible proposal that will move this country very far toward meeting the health care needs of all Americans, and I hope that by the end of this year we are able to enact that legislation or pass it through the Senate and go to conference with the House of Representatives,” Bingaman said.