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NEWS

Burgess Earns National Association of Manufacturers Legislative Excellence Award

Burgess receives award from Mike Nelson, Mayday President

Representative Michael C. Burgess, M.D. (TX-26) has earned the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) “Award for Manufacturing Legislative Excellence” based on the strength of his legislative record during the 109^th Congress.

Congressman Michael Burgess received the award for his score of 100 for an outstanding voting record in support of his understanding of manufacturing’s critical role in the overall strength of our economy, and a willingness to do what must be done to boost competitiveness, job creation and prosperity for working Americans.

For its 109^th Congress rating, NAM member companies tracked a series of votes on key pieces of legislation, including health information technology, the Energy Policy Act, permanent repeal of the death tax, and medical liability reform.

Burgess Remarks on President Bush's State of the Union Address 2007

U.S. Congressman Michael C. Burgess, M.D. commented on the State of the Union Address on the following programs. Please click on each individual link to access the file.

Jon-David Wells Show
01/23/2007 State of the Union (Preview)

Jeff Bolten Show
01/24/2007 State of the Union

Mark Davis Show
01/24/2007 State of the Union

Alan Nathan: State of the Union
01/26/2007 Alan Nathan: State of the Union

/Multimedia/

Burgess Addresses National Automobile Dealers on North Texas Energy Conservation

Congressman Michael C. Burgess, M.D. (TX-26) spoke at the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) ENERGY STAR event during the District of Columbia’s annual Auto Show. NADA and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced that they have joined the Energy Star Challenge and are encouraging their 20,000 automobile member dealerships to reduce energy use at more than 43,000 facilities nationwide by 10 percent or more. If auto dealerships reduced energy use by 10 percent they would save nearly $193 million and prevent over 1 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions.

Phil Brady, President, National Automobile Dealers Association; EPA Air and Radiation Acting Assistant Administrator William Wehrum; and Congressman Michael C. Burgess, M.D.

To read the speech, please click here.

Burgess Joins New Anti-Terrorism Caucus

U.S. Congressman Michael C. Burgess, M.D. (TX-26) joined the newly formed, bipartisan, the Congressional Anti-Terrorism Caucus co-chaired by fellow North Texas Member, Rep. Kay Granger.

“Since 9/11, the term “terrorist” has been bantered about by the media,” said Rep. Michael Burgess. “But it is important for everyone to be educated about what motivates these individuals and groups to carry out such aggressive and deadly actions. We must know our enemy better in order to defeat him.”

The Congressional Anti-Terrorism Caucus’s mission statement states that terrorism is not a Democrat or Republican problem; it is a critical issue for all Americans.

“Terrorism is not an individual act; it is a modus operandi prompted by ill-conceived and destructive beliefs,” said Rep. Burgess. “Terrorism is not a new concept, but today we are better equipped to understand them and conqueror them.”

Why the Government SHOULD NOT Negotiate Drug Prices
(Appears on The Hill's CongressBlog)

The government successfully negotiating drug prices is about as probable as a Florida Gator fan wearing an Ohio State jersey to tonight’s championship football game.

If naysayers of the current market-based system for drug pricing say it isn’t working, they should look at the numbers. The cost of Medicare's new prescription drug benefit has come down about 10 percent in the last six months. Most importantly, seniors on Medicare’s prescription program are allowed to receive any medication their doctor prescribes to them, and they receive them at a lower cost.

All of this would change if the government starts negotiating drug prices as the Democrats are proposing. And why is that?

First, negotiating and changing the market-based system would also slow the research and development of new medications. Drug companies pour millions of dollars into research for the next breakthrough drug that could target cancer cells, reduce hypertension, fight cardiac disease, etc. Permitting government price setting for drugs marketed to the over 40 million Americans covered by Medicare would destroy innovation in this country. Instead of stifling drug innovation as federal price controls would, the current system that allows the market to hold down cost to the beneficiary while returning value for innovation is a preferable approach.

Secondly, the Democratic approach would affect where a senior gets their medications. The local pharmacy where seniors have gone for years to pick up their medications and talk directly with a pharmacist could be severely curtailed in favor of mail-order delivery. The federal government will attempt to squeeze every dime it can out of pharmacies as well, not really understanding how pharmacies operate in the private sector. Medicaid, at least on a state-by-state basis, directly negotiates with drug manufacturers and sets limits for pharmacy reimbursement. I constantly hear from independent and community pharmacists that say this is killing their businesses and hurting their customers. Allowing Medicare to do this will probably be the last nail in their coffins. Seniors want dependability, familiarity and personal attention to their health care needs. With local pharmacists they receive this kind of care. With new government negotiations, we will see a push for impersonal, automated systems.

The government should stay out of your grandmother’s medicine cabinet.

To see Congressman Burgess’ statements on the House of Representatives floor concerning negotiating, drug prices, please click here.

Burgess Bill Works to Insurance Families Stay Together

The following statement may be attributed to U.S. Congressman Michael C. Burgess, M.D. (TX-26) concerning the introduction of his bill, H.R. 377, Insuring Families for Their Future Act on January 10, 2007:

“Families are the cornerstone of our society. It is our families that we turn to in times of joy and times of sorrow. The loss of any family member can be one of the most painful and difficult experiences that anyone can go through. The loss of a parent can be especially devastating for a child.

“The last thing that any family needs to worry about during this time of sorrow is whether or not they will be able to stay together. Yet if the loved one who has passed away is the family's primary income source, this may be very real worry for thousands of families.

“In 1964, Congress acted to protect families in this difficult situation by encouraging employers to provide a certain amount of life insurance coverage for their employees. The Revenue Act of 1964 (P.L. 88-272) allowed employees to exempt the premium costs of their employer-sponsored group term life insurance up to $50,000, but required individuals to pay an imputed income tax on the premium costs over that $50,000 cap.

“The value of the current $50,000 cap has eroded over time because it was not indexed to inflation. If you were to index $50,000 in 1964 to today, you would find that to keep pace with inflation, the current cap should be set at $320,000.

“My bill, H.R. 3777, the Insuring Families for the Future Act would raise the cap to $320,000 and index it to future inflation, thereby encouraging employers to provide a larger life insurance benefit to their employees.

“This legislation will ensure that families can stay together during this time of sorrow.”

Burgess Retains Seat on Powerful House Committee

U.S. Congressman Michael C. Burgess, M.D. (TX-26) continues his service as a member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee for the 110th Congress. He has been selected to sit on four subcommittees including the Heath; Energy and Air Quality; Oversight and Investigations; and Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection.

“As a physician, my first choice for a committee assignment was Energy and Commerce because of its breadth of influence over health care legislation,” said Congressman Michael Burgess. “I will be introducing legislation during the 110th Congress that will bring affordable health care to Americans and transparency to the entire system. My subcommittee assignments ideally suit my legislative priorities.”

In addition to his service on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, Congressman Michael Burgess has been named the sole Vice Chairman for the Republican House Policy Committee which serves as a formal council to formulate and implement national legislative priorities, and to improve relationships between the executive and legislative branches of government.

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