ADVISORY
FROM THE COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS

Thomas Announces a Hearing on the Administration's Principles
to Strengthen and Modernize Medicare

Congressman Bill Thomas (R-CA), Chairman, Committee on Ways and Means, today announced that the Committee will hold a hearing on the Administration's Principles to Strengthen and Modernize Medicare. The hearing will take place on Thursday, July 19, 2001, in the main Committee hearing room, 1100 Longworth House Office Building, beginning at 10:00 a.m.

Oral testimony at this hearing will be from invited witnesses only. The witness will be the Honorable Tommy Thompson, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. However, any individual or organization not scheduled for an oral appearance may submit a written statement for consideration by the Committee and for inclusion in the printed record of the hearing.

BACKGROUND:

On July 12, 2001, President George W. Bush unveiled a set of principles to guide Congress in its work to strengthen and improve Medicare, while adding a prescription drug benefit to the program. The hearing will examine the Administration's Medicare modernization principles in greater detail.

In announcing the hearing, Chairman Thomas stated:  "The President has shown courage in tackling the challenges of this complex and vital program. His leadership will provide momentum in developing bipartisan solutions to Medicare's growing shortfall, and help modernize the aging Medicare program with the inclusion of 21^st century prescription drug and preventative care benefits."

FOCUS OF THE HEARING:

Over the past several months, the Health Subcommittee has held a series of hearings on various aspects of the Medicare program in need of improvement. In those hearings, the Subcommittee has examined the need to add a prescription drug benefit to Medicare, challenges to long-term program solvency, opportunities to modernize the fee-for-service benefit package, ways to enhance private- sector options for beneficiaries, and regulatory barriers confronting providers.

The full Committee hearing will give the Administration an opportunity to present its recommendations for solving the challenges facing the Medicare program.

DETAILS FOR SUBMISSION OF WRITTEN COMMENTS:

Any person or organization wishing to submit a written statement for the printed record of the hearing should submit six (6) single-spaced copies of their statement, along with an IBM compatible 3.5-inch diskette in WordPerfect or MS Word format, with their name, address, and hearing date noted on a label, by the close of business, Thursday, August 2, 2001, to Allison Giles, Chief of Staff, Committee on Ways and Means, U.S. House of Representatives, 1102 Longworth House Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20515. If those filing written statements wish to have their statements distributed to the press and interested public at the hearing, they may deliver 200 additional copies for this purpose to the Committee, room 1102 Longworth House Office Building, by close of business the day before the hearing.

FORMATTING REQUIREMENTS:

Each statement presented for printing to the Committee by a witness, any written statement or exhibit submitted for the printed record or any written comments in response to a request for written comments must conform to the guidelines listed below. Any statement or exhibit not in compliance with these guidelines will not be printed, but will be maintained in the Committee files for review and use by the Committee.

1. All statements and any accompanying exhibits for printing must be submitted on an IBM compatible 3.5-inch diskette in WordPerfect or MS Word format, typed in single space and may not exceed a total of 10 pages including attachments. Witnesses are advised that the Committee will rely on electronic submissions for printing the official hearing record.

2. Copies of whole documents submitted as exhibit material will not be accepted for printing. Instead, exhibit material should be referenced and quoted or paraphrased. All exhibit material not meeting these specifications will be maintained in the Committee files for review and use by the Committee.

3. A witness appearing at a public hearing, or submitting a statement for the record of a public hearing, or submitting written comments in response to a published request for comments by the Committee, must include on his statement or submission a list of all clients, persons, or organizations on whose behalf the witness appears.

4. A supplemental sheet must accompany each statement listing the name, company, address, telephone and fax numbers where the witness or the designated representative may be reached. This supplemental sheet will not be included in the printed record.

The above restrictions and limitations apply only to material being submitted for printing. Statements and exhibits or supplementary material submitted solely for distribution to the Members, the press, and the public during the course of a public hearing may be submitted in other forms.

Note: All Committee advisories and news releases are available on the World Wide Web at http://waysandmeans.house.gov.

The Committee seeks to make its facilities accessible to persons with disabilities. If you are in need of special accommodations, please call 202-225-1721 or 202-226-3411 TTD/TTY in advance of the event (four business days notice is requested). Questions with regard to special accommodation needs in general (including availability of Committee materials in alternative formats) may be directed to the Committee as noted above.