Senator Bob Corker, who said he spent 80 percent of his time on health care issues in 1995-1996 as Tennessee’s commissioner of finance and administration, expressed disappointment in the House vote and outlined his opposition to the draft health care proposals in the Senate.

He said, “I’m disappointed the House passed a bill instead of working toward bipartisan reforms that will stand the test of time. Like most Americans, I want to see responsible health care reform, but paying for it by sending unfunded mandates to states, taking money from Medicare – which is already insolvent – to fund new federal entitlements, and passing off costs to future generations does not pass the common sense test,” said Corker.

“We still don’t have a final bill in the Senate – it’s being drafted behind closed doors – but for the sake of argument we’ll use the Senate Finance Committee’s health care reform bill, which is expected to be the driving force behind a final product.

"Here are some of my major concerns with the finance bill:

· “I’m bewildered when I see that the finance bill would cost taxpayers almost a trillion dollars and actually result in HIGHER health care costs for millions of Tennesseans. A study by Oliver Wyman and sponsored by BlueCross BlueShield of America indicates that ‘cluster 4’ states, including Tennessee, would see a 60 percent expected increase in average claims per member. According to data based on the report, current average premiums in Tennessee would increase by $1,619 for individuals and $3,727 for families under reforms contained in the finance bill.

· “Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen estimates the finance bill would cost Tennessee $735 million in Medicaid expansion (and the House bill would cost $1.35 billion), a huge unfunded mandate that creates a very difficult situation for our state. My guess is that most other states would face a similarly painful situation if these costs are passed down.

· “The bill seeks to take $404 billion away from Medicare, which is predicted to be insolvent by 2017, and leverages it to create a new entitlement program rather than using it to make Medicare more solvent. I honestly don’t know how Congress has moved from broad, bipartisan concern over Medicare’s $38 trillion in unfunded liabilities — liabilities that threaten our country’s financial stability — to now embracing a proposal that would take cuts made to Medicare and use them to leverage a new program to cover the uninsured, rather than putting the funds toward extending the life of Medicare.

· “And finally, the finance bill uses typical Washington budget gimmickry, using 10 years of new taxes to finance six and a half years of spending, resulting in huge deficits in the next decades.

“If Republicans had put forth a bill that had the exact same building blocks – a bill that took $404 billion out of Medicare to leverage another program, that created an unfunded mandate for states by making states raise their Medicaid levels, and that would raise premiums by 60 percent over the next five years – there would not be a single Democratic vote for the bill. I am puzzled why my colleagues would even consider voting for this, especially anyone who has concerns about our country’s fiscal condition.

“As we approach health care reform, the mission of Congress and the Obama administration should be the same as any doctor treating a patient: Do No Harm.”