Griffin: 300 Days after Sending President Obama Ideas for Improving Health Care, Still No Answer

Press Release

Congressman Tim Griffin (AR-02) issued the following statement after not yet receiving a response to his December 10, 2013 letter to President Obama requesting a meeting to discuss ideas for improving our health care system:

"I do not believe it is too late to get real health care reform right. My Republican colleagues and I want to create an open and innovative health care system that benefits all Americans, expands access, increases choice and lowers costs. We want to help people without insurance get affordable coverage and protect folks with pre-existing conditions, and we want to do it without a Washington-knows-best takeover that wrecks everyone else's health care. Americans were told Obamacare would do all of this, but it just isn't working. Every day I hear of more workers and families who are now forced to pay more money for inferior health insurance.

"I realize President Obama and his allies in the Senate will never repeal their health care law no matter how badly it fails, but I was glad to hear him twice invite my Republican colleagues and me to bring him specific ideas for improving our health care system. We sent President Obama a letter with nine ideas and asked if he'd meet with us to discuss them, but 300 days have passed and we still have no answer. I am hopeful the President will respond to our request for an open, productive conversation so we can strive to provide high quality, affordable health care for Americans."

On December 3, 2013, President Obama said to opponents of Obamacare, "If you've got good ideas, bring them to me….[If] you still think this law is a bad idea then you've got to tell us specifically what you'd do differently to cut costs, cover more people, make insurance more secure."

In his State of the Union address, President Obama said, "I don't expect to convince my Republican friends on the merits of this law [Obamacare]….So again, if you have specific plans to cut costs, cover more people, and increase choice -- tell America what you'd do differently."

On April 1, 2014, President Obama said, "I've said before, I will always work with anyone who is willing to make this law work even better."

Rep. Griffin is a cosponsor of the American Health Care Reform Act (H.R. 3121), which would repeal and replace Obamacare.

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