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Washington, Oct 29 - Iowa Congressman Tom Latham released the following statement regarding the health care bill unveiled by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Thursday:

“The health care legislation proposed today by Speaker Pelosi and the House Democrats violates many of the common-sense principles upon which I have insisted throughout the health care debate.  Speaker Pelosi’s $894 billion health care bill spends massive amounts of federal tax dollars without meeting the goal of extending coverage to everyone.  Most people who currently have health insurance will not benefit from the bill, and, in fact, their health care costs will increase under this proposal.  The bill imposes stifling new federal regulations on private health insurance plans that will raise premiums and encourage employers to drop coverage. Rather than extending the reach of the federal bureaucracy, we should be focused on bipartisan health care solutions to cover the uninsured.

This 1,990-page behemoth was cobbled together behind closed doors at the same time Americans were demanding an open and honest debate.  It will limit patient choice, put government between patients and doctors and place another mandate on small businesses already struggling with the economic downturn.  I’m committed to working in a bipartisan fashion to put together health care solutions that uphold choice and competition, and I’ve introduced my own health care legislation that would expand coverage and rein in costs without breaking the federal budget.  We can’t lose sight of these principles in the middle of such an important debate.”