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Washington, DC – After President Obama claimed at thursday’s news conference that his “doors are always open,” Members of the GOP Doctors Caucus issued the following statements calling on President Obama to follow through on his commitment to meeting with physician Members of Congress to discuss health care concerns:
Rep. Phil Gingrey, M.D., Co-Chair (GA-11): “Once again, President Obama says he supports bipartisan solutions to our nation’s healthcare problems. Unfortunately, the GOP Doctors Caucus has been waiting patiently for four months to engage in a meaningful discussion on this issue. The American people continue to reject this Administration’s healthcare takeover and we urge the President to keep his word and meet with us as soon as possible.”
Rep. Tim Murphy, Ph.D, Co-Chair (PA-18): “Every day brings to light new flaws with the trillion dollar healthcare law. Employers — facing an onslaught of costly new mandates — are threatening to drop coverage for their workers and families. Doctors and providers worry that the $500 billion in Medicare cuts means they won’t be able to see patients. The White House met with lawyers and lobbyists when crafting the law. Now I implore the President to meet with the healthcare professionals. Let’s have an open discussion on real solutions that improve care, rather than limit patient access and drive up taxpayer costs.”
Rep. Paul Broun, M.D. (GA-10): “In his press conference today, President Obama reiterated that ‘his door is always open’, but Members of the GOP Doctors Caucus, myself included, have repeatedly knocked on that door without receiving any answer. It comes as no surprise to me that the President has done the exact opposite of what he promised, and instead has completely shut physician Members of Congress out of healthcare discussions. We are medical professionals – many of us are still practicing providers – so our ideas and solutions for fixing our broken healthcare system come from real life experiences. It would behoove the President to listen to our advice, but since it’s obvious that his door will remain closed, I sincerely hope that our suggestions will be considered by the new White House that we’re going to put in place in 2012.”
Rep. Larry Bucshon, M.D. (IN-08):“I’m glad to hear President Obama has an open door policy. Now, I hope he follows through with a meeting he promised the GOP Doctors Caucus four months ago.”
Rep. Scott DesJarlais, M.D. (TN-04):“While I appreciate the president’s declaration that his doors are always open, this is yet another case where his rhetoric simply does not match the reality. Despite the president personally agreeing to meet with GOP Doctors Caucus, we still have not heard anything back from his office. Surely, the president can make time to hear the thoughts and ideas from a group with over 400 years of combined medical experience. I remain hopeful that President Obama will prove me wrong and finally extend an invitation to the GOP Doctors Caucus to meet with him and discuss real solutions for fixing our nation’s healthcare system.”
Rep. John Fleming, M.D. (LA-04): "President Obama's actions speak louder than his words. He says that his doors are always open but refuses to meet with GOP doctors to discuss the best way to save Medicare for everyone and make it sustainable for future generations. Under President Obama's plan, Medicare will go bankrupt in ten years if we do not act now to save it. As a practicing physician for over 30 years, I know that Obamacare is the wrong prescription for health care reform in the U.S and that we need real patient-centered health care reforms – NOT a one size fits all approach like Obamacare."
Rep. Paul Gosar, D.D.S. (AZ-01): “The impactions of this administration’s legislative healthcare takeover and unilateral executive regulatory reforms are of great concern to me and many of my associates. After four months of waiting patiently I look forward to President Obama honoring the commitment he highlighted today to open his doors and address our concerns. In the interim, I call upon him to cease his executive assault on Americans and our American healthcare system.”
Rep. Andy Harris, M.D. (MD-01): “We know the White House door was open dozens of times for Solyndra executives. We hope the door is also open for doctors who want to solve America's crisis in health care cost and access.”
Rep. Joe Heck, D.O. (NV-03): “I urge President Obama to follow through on his promise of an open door policy by meeting with the individuals who are on the front line of medicine about recent changes to America’s health care laws. It is impossible to have an open and honest discussion if our meeting requests are met with silence.”
House Republican Policy Committee Chairman Tom Price, M.D. (R-GA): “Rather than campaigning on the issue of bipartisanship, President Obama ought to follow through by acknowledging House Republican efforts to reach out to him on behalf of positive health care reforms for the American people. We have any number of proposals on the table that would improve access to affordable, quality health care without handing over more power to Washington or imposing mandates on families and job creators. Among these are the patient-centered reforms in the Empowering Patients First Act I recently introduced in the House that provides opportunities for more Americans to control their health care decisions. President Obama ought to accept our invitation to sit down and discuss these issues. His lack of response to date is disappointing and not helpful to getting something done on behalf of the American people.”