Rep. Figures: ‘Healthcare for us is not a talking point. Protecting healthcare for us is a requisite.’

WASHINGTON - Today, Congressman Shomari C. Figures (AL-02), joined the House Democratic Caucus to deliver remarks on their efforts to protect Americans' healthcare ahead of the House vote to re-open the government. A transcript of his remarks is below.

Watch remarks here!

Thank you.

House Democrats just spent the better part of the last 40-plus days trying to keep healthcare affordable for millions of Americans while our House Republican colleagues were on a taxpayer funded vacation.

During this shutdown, realities hit home for a lot of people. Mothers had to worry about how they would take care of their children. Babies without WIC. Families stood in pantry lines - families are still standing in food pantry lines - in the month of November, the month of Thanksgiving, because SNAP benefits were expired and this Administration chose to use them as pawns in this game.

Capitol Police officers, members of the military, my staff, all of our staff, and millions of other federal workers had to deal with the uncertainty and the stress of missing paychecks.

And for what, in the end? What were Republicans able to give in the end? Nothing but a handshake deal to take a future vote on extending the healthcare subsidies when we all know that future vote is the equivalent of asking two wolves and a chicken vote on what's for dinner.

It is dead on arrival. It is dead on arrival.

Now, I can speak to you as someone from a different perspective. A lot of us represent districts where we can talk about what could happen or what may happen. Let me tell you about what my district looks like in the state of Alabama, and it doesn't look too dissimilar from my fellow colleague from Alabama, Congresswoman Terri Sewell's district.

I [have] about 50,000 people in my district who are slated to see their healthcare premiums on average nearly double. And this is in a district where the individual median income is just north of $32,000. I have 13 counties in my district, 10 of them either do not have a hospital because it has recently closed, or their hospital is on literal life support, and they have to go to a county commission or a city council every single month to make payroll. And the largest hospital in Montgomery, Alabama - the state's capital - is in the midst of a bankruptcy and also [faces] risks of closure. And this [i]s all in a state that has the third lowest life expectancy in the country.

So healthcare for us is not a talking point. Protecting healthcare for us is a requisite. It's a requirement. It's something we have to do. And if you ask us if the shutdown was worth it, I say hell yes it was worth it. Because fighting to maintain healthcare for [the] American people - there's nothing more pure than that. There's no more important role that we have here as Members of Congress than to ensure the healthcare of the American people.

So, while the failure of Republicans to do anything to protect healthcare is truly disappointing, I want the world to know that my Democratic colleagues here in the House - they can ride with me in any battle I face in my life. They stood with us under the leadership of Hakeem Jeffries to make sure that we kept this front and center. And I look forward to remaining committed to this fight for all of Alabama and for all of America.

And with that, I turn it back over to our leader: Future Speaker Jeffries.

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