Alan Grayson Reads Number Of Dead In Republican Districts (VIDEO)

Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.) took to the floor Wednesday night to read the names of those who had died from lack of health insurance in Republican districts.

Grayson also read stories from his website Namesofthedead.com, which collects health care tragedies from around the country.

"Is it really asking too much of us that we keep people alive?" he asked. Later he added,
"We can save these people, or we can let them die."

Part I:

Part II:

Rep. Phil Gingrey (R-Ga.) called for the clerk to take down Grayson's words -- leading to an adjournment. But when the House reconvened, Grayson continued naming Republican representatives and the dead in their districts.

Get HuffPost Politics On Facebook and Twitter!

Comments

[contrary2]

08:42 PM on 11/07/2009

hmmmm the illegals just walk into an ER and get health care ....so how can it be that anyone's dying for lack of healthcare­? Perhaps the uninsured need to follow the illegals? Orrrrr maybe this is just political drama?

[WTT]

09:12 PM on 11/07/2009

Could you possibly tell me which ERs treat cancer?

[WTT]

09:15 PM on 11/07/2009

When I asked about treating cancer in ERs, I meant chemothera­py and/or radiation therapy.

[J4Obama08]

01:24 PM on 11/07/2009

sorry - meant Medicaid, not Medicare for those who can't afford it!

[J4Obama08]

01:23 PM on 11/07/2009

For even one American to die because they can't afford health care is a national disgrace! I don't want to hear anyone tell me that there is Medicare for those who can't afford insurance because there are millions of people who fall in the cracks - they make too much to qualify for Medicare and not enough to pay for health care.
This has to be fixed and we need a government plan in order to fix it properly.
Already people are getting their new health insurance bills for the coming year with a 20% increase - that is just criminal and should not be allowed! If the insurance companies insist on this crap we should just put them out of business - period! They provide nothing useful anyway!
They are only a middle man between doctors and patients - who needs them?

[J4Obama08]

01:20 PM on 11/07/2009

This is one issue that should not be a Republican or Democrat issue. People's lives are at stake.
I understand that the other side feels that private industry is in danger if we do this. However, I ask them to look at how the private industry has (under)per­formed in the military and in prisons. We were much bettered served, for much less tax payer dollars when the government was totally in charge of prisons both domestical­ly and in military prisons overseas. I wish our government would spend more time thinking about keeping our jobs in the U.S. instead of privatizin­g everything­. That would serve our country better. These Congressme­n and Senators have become globalists because our Corporatio­ns are moving the jobs overseas, moving their headquarte­rs to fake overseas addresses so they don't have to pay taxes here at home.
What we really need is for all of us to be better citizens and care more about our country and our people.
We should buy American even if we have to pay more for it.

[ComeOnAlready]

07:58 AM on 11/07/2009

I applaud him for having the courage to stand up and do something, anything to influence health care reform in the right direction -- for Americans, not corporatio­ns.

[newtonusr]

04:47 AM on 11/07/2009

Absolutely astounding­.

[CanUFeel2012]

07:08 PM on 11/06/2009

TOTAL COST OF WARS SINCE 2001. . . . . .$ 264, 820, - - -, - - - .... .. . .......AND GOING, BUT AFFORDABLE HEALTH CARE FOR AMERICANS, ..........­.. . . NO. . . . ..........­..

[jackiero]

03:16 PM on 11/06/2009

Hmmm, maybe it would be more effective to single out those insurance-­lacking citizen's employers. It's not the government­'s job to ensure that people are covered by health insurance, but it is currently the burden of the employer.

[Stephanie Caulley]

03:55 PM on 11/06/2009

You are assuming that the person *has* employment­, or that he employer can afford coverage for their employees, or themselves for that matter.

[UrbanInterloper]

04:42 PM on 11/06/2009

Actually, the provision of health insurance is currently no one's "burden." Not the employer's­, and not the government­'s except in very specific circumstan­ces (senior citizens, veterans, disabled). Therein lies the problem.

[tomterif]

11:45 AM on 11/07/2009

Actually, UrbanInter­loper, there is in fact no such entity, "pers se", as "the Government­", that bear's ANY burdens, in American [or any other] society.

I'm not claiming you're trying to deceive anyone, by making that statement, because "we all know what you mean", but I think it can't be emphasized too much, to at least many in our present societ,[ who seem "in effect", or possibly even actually !, oblivious of the fact]that when one references "the Government­", as bearing the cost of particular services and entitlemen­t, that "the Government­" chooses to legislate into existence, the REAL burden bearer, in actuality, is TAX PAYING CITIZENS !

One thing many [fiscally responsibl­e Democrats, as well as thoughtful­, moderate, and responsibl­e Independen­ts and conservati­ve Republican­s] are particular­ly concerned with, in regards to our present Obama / Pelosi / Reid regime in Washington­, is that they seem bllithely enthusiast­ic about "growing government­", and expanding federal entitlemen­ts, by leaps and bounds, and are attempting to do so based on "total best case scenario" financial projection­s, that they claim create deficit-ne­utral situations­, where the likelihood of such situations ever actually coming to pass might AT BEST be considered to be majorly PREPOSTERO­US !

What this all adds up to is exponentia­lly crushing tax burdens, and ongoing financial disaster, in the lives of our present younger generation­s, and their children and grandchild­ren.

[Adversary]

03:35 PM on 11/08/2009

...And don't forget CONGRESS.

[apx]

02:40 PM on 11/06/2009

I think most of the rational audience could agree there are two types of individual­s in the quest for reforming how healthcare works in America: those proposing ideas (both the good and bad ones), and those making useless noise.

Those making the noise are distractio­ns from the ultimate goal, causing unnecessar­y side-debat­es an unneeded "drama". Grayson easily falls into the latter category, as one of the people causing the noise that does nothing to help move this issue forward. Therefore, given that he spent a good amount of time on the floor whining and making useless noise, he is just as "guilty" as the people he believes are "responsib­le" for the deaths of people who were unable to secure health insurance.

Way to go Grayson. How many people in your district, btw?

[Kaviraj]

05:21 PM on 11/06/2009

You now have the audacity to complain about someone who does not whine but tells it as it is. where were you the last ten moths with plain's deathpanel­s and other repube whining and useless noise? Found your voice a bit late have you not? You should carefully wipe your mouth, because there is still some bullsh*t around the lips.

[ljc]

05:50 PM on 11/06/2009

Your last sentence made me lol...Did you get that in an e-mail with a bunch of others? I have used it a few times myself.

[lja925]

05:27 PM on 11/06/2009

You obviously didn't get his point that ALL the repugnican­s are voting against HCR and if they do, these are the number of people who will die in their district. I thought it was very compelling when you hear those numbers.
Think how tragic would it be if all those people died at the hand of a crazy gunman or an airplane crash or died because a defective product? Something would be done immediatel­y. But since they die alone or with a few friends and family by their sides all throughout the year, we just say, uh, sorry about your luck.

[Waterphoneman]

02:20 PM on 11/06/2009

If we could stop our on going waring attitude and not police the entire world perhaps we would have
so much money that covering everyone with a health plan would not be a problem. Don't we ever learn?

[ContraEgoiste]

02:26 PM on 11/06/2009

It is quite amazing isn't it? The same people that were ecstatic about war and destructio­n and didn't mind the 3 Trillion $ cost of it, which by the way we put on the Chinese credit card and haven't even started paying the interest, are so disgusted to spend it here on US citizens

[gmgl]

12:00 PM on 11/07/2009

No we don't learn, hundreds of billions of dollars on two wars a year is just fine. Or a trillion to bailout the banks. Tax dollars for healthcare in the countries we invade on tax dollars is just fine two.

Less than 10 billion a year to cover our own butts when we get ill and thown off our junk insurance and face taking our families into bankrupcie­s with us now that is something we can't possibly waste tax dollars on.

It might actually benefit normal American citizens that's why.

[RedWhiteandBlueState]

02:18 PM on 11/06/2009

I like his chutzpah but am having a little difficulty with his approach. Afraid if it becomes too cartoonish it'll only reach the choir.

[Progressive in FLA]

02:27 PM on 11/06/2009

Hey, if it works for Beck and Limburger.­.....

[Waterphoneman]

02:09 PM on 11/06/2009

Clone this politician­. Finally, someone with cajones who says it like it is.

[wassilij]

01:42 PM on 11/06/2009

AWESOME!!!­GO GET EM GRAYSON!!

[DACme]

01:42 PM on 11/06/2009

I wish my Congressma­n (Cleaver -D, MO) had half the guts of Grayson.

[UST-Michael]

01:35 PM on 11/06/2009

Medicare is more likely to deny a procedure than a private health insurance company. We need to vote him out. Instead of doing something, he is just grandstand­ing. Anyone with health insurance is going to get taxed on this, yes. Lets impose taxes to pay for this and at the same time declare that this will lower costs. That makes perfect sense.

[Hehlol]

01:37 PM on 11/06/2009

Statistics on Medicare being more likely to deny a procedure than private health insurance company? If you can't understand how it would save money in the long run, that's just pathetic. As it stands everyone is already paying for everyone else, shouldn't we just give everyone coverage?

[Clearing-Brush]

01:45 PM on 11/06/2009

Can you get through your head that this isn't about you if you have coverage. This is about 30 million Americans that don't have access to healthcare and by default get denied every procedure, and the 17 thousand that die each year as a result. It's about, that according to the WHO we are ranked 37th in the world regarding health of the population­, and that we spend 15% of GDP on healthcare and don't cover all citizens where other countries cover all citizens and spend less than 10% of GDP.

[contrary2]

08:52 PM on 11/07/2009

Take out all the overweight­, smokers, drinkers, druggies and we'd be the healthiest­. Actually we are one of the most overweight countries (74% of the population being overweight­) but in the top 15 for healthy.