“The people of South Dakota could not have asked for a better advocate in the U.S. Senate than Tim. He has looked after the wellbeing of South Dakotans and all Americans in a tireless and unselfish manner. When he was struck by two life-threatening conditions, Tim soldiered on and continued doing the people’s work. He has been an example of resiliency to people all over the nation.

“Tim will be missed when he leaves after 2014. I wish him and his wife Barbara the best as they open the next chapter in their life.”

“But health reform is not only saving money – it’s saving lives.”

“In the richest nation in the world no insurance company will ever again put a price tag on a human life.”

Washington, D.C. – Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid spoke on the Senate floor today regarding Saturday’s anniversary of the Affordable Care Act. Below are his remarks as prepared for delivery:

Three years ago, President Barack Obama signed into law the greatest single step in generations toward ensuring access to quality, affordable healthcare for every American – the Affordable Care Act.

Millions of Americans are already benefitting from Obamacare. Insurance companies can no longer set arbitrary lifetime caps on benefits, putting millions of Americans one car accident or heart attack away from bankruptcy. Today children can no longer be denied insurance because they are born with a disease or a disability, a protection that will soon extend to all Americans. And soon being a woman will no longer be considered a pre-existing condition.

In less than a year, 129 million Americans with preexisting conditions such as high blood pressure or diabetes can rest assured they’ll have access to affordable insurance and life-saving care – regardless of their health or how much money they make.

In Nevada alone, tens of thousands of seniors have saved tens of millions of dollars on medicines because the Affordable Care Act closed the gap in prescription drug coverage.

But health reform is not only saving money – it’s saving lives.

Just ask 26-year-old Sarah Coffey, a native of Gardnerville, Nevada. Sarah was halfway through her first year of law school at the University of Connecticut when she was diagnosed with stage 4 Hodgkin’s disease.

Sarah had done everything right. When she enrolled at UConn, she bought the best student insurance plan money could buy and paid for it a year in advance. But her cancer – and the difficult treatment to fight it – made returning to school last fall impossible.

Since Sarah was no longer a student, she no longer qualified for student health insurance. And her policy was about to expire. Without an expensive bone marrow transplant, she might die.

Before the Affordable Care Act became law, Sarah would have been one of the tens of millions of Americans who desperately needed life-saving care, but didn’t have insurance to pay for it. Before the Affordable Care Act, Sarah might even have become one of the 45,000 Americans who died each year because they lacked health insurance.

But thanks to Obamacare, Sarah was able to sign on to her parents’ insurance plan. Sarah is one of 3.1 million young people – including 33,000 young Nevadans – who have benefited from a provision in the law that allows children to stay on their parents’ health plans until they are 26 years old.

And I’m pleased to report that Sarah’s story has a happy ending. She got the treatment she needed. Her most recent PET scan was clear. And Sarah plans to return to law school in September.

Sarah’s mother, Sue, sent me a letter in January. She wrote that Obamacare and the dedicated doctors at Stanford Hospital saved her daughter’s life.

This is the legacy of the landmark law: that no American will end up in an emergency room because he has no insurance, that no American will live in fear of losing her insurance because she loses her job and that in the richest nation in the world no insurance company will ever again put a price tag on a human life.

Thomas Jefferson wrote that, “The care of human life and happiness… is the first and only object of good government.” I am gratified that the Affordable Care Act meets that standard. And I am proud that this law, which we worked so hard to pass, is already ensuring the care of human life remains the first object of this government.

“They said they wanted to debate and pass a budget. Well, here was their chance.”

“Democrats are willing to… debate the issues. And with the American people on our side, this is a debate we know we can win.”

Washington, D.C. – Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid spoke on the Senate floor today regarding Republican objections to considering the Senate Budget Resolution. Below are his remarks as prepared for delivery:

For the last few years, Republicans have been hollering that the Senate hasn’t passed a budget. They have done so in spite of the fact that Republicans in both chambers voted for the Budget Control Act, which set spending levels for the last two years.

Every reasonable political observer admits the Budget Control Act, which had the force of law, was a budget by another name. But still Republicans pined for the days of so-called regular order – when the Senate would vote on a budget resolution that would set spending priorities for the fiscal year.

Republicans were desperate, they said, to have a budget debate. Republicans were desperate for an amendment vote-a-rama. And they had charts to prove it. They had press conferences to prove it.  They even had a calendar tallying the days since the Senate has passed a budget resolution.

So I was amazed yesterday when Senate Republicans blocked attempts to begin debate on the Senate budget resolution. Republicans said they wanted to debate and pass a budget. Well, here was their chance. Yet the Junior Senator from Kansas, Senator Moran, objected to a request to begin debating the budget unless we vote on his proposed amendment to the continuing resolution.

Senator Moran is concerned air traffic control towers in Kansas will close because of across-the-board sequester spending cuts. I say to my colleague, the Senator from Kansas, we are all concerned about the impact of these cuts. In Nevada, more than 100 families will lose access to low-income housing because of the sequester. Nationwide, more than 70,000 little boys and girls will be kicked off Head Start. Over time, these arbitrary cuts will be very painful for millions of Americans.

We are all concerned about the sequester. That is why the Senate Democratic budget proposal actually reverses the sequester. The policies outlined in our budget will save hundreds of thousands of jobs and safeguard communities by keeping police, air traffic controllers and meat inspectors on the job.

Reversing the sequester would alleviate Senator Moran’s concern about air traffic controllers in Kansas. But the Senate can’t debate a thoughtful way to replace the sequester if Republicans won’t even let us debate our budget proposal.

We know Republicans and Democrats won’t agree on every aspect of the budget – which sets priorities for how the government spends money and how it saves money.

Republicans have one plan for Medicare – turn it into a voucher program. Democrats have another – to preserve and protect Medicare for our children and grandchildren.

Republicans have one plan for taxes – lower them for the rich and let the middle class foot the bill. Democrats have another – ask the wealthiest individuals and corporations to contribute a little more to reduce the deficit.

Republicans have one plan to reduce the deficit – rely on harsh austerity that shortchanges the elderly, veterans, the middle class and the poor. Democrats have another – a balanced approach that couples smart spending cuts with new revenue from closing loopholes that benefit the wealthiest Americans.

We have our differences. But Democrats are willing to discuss those differences. We’re willing to debate the issues. And with the American people on our side, this is a debate we know we can win.

“The Ryan Republican budget introduced earlier this week reflects an entirely different set of priorities – skewed priorities Americans have rejected time and again.”

Washington, D.C. – Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid spoke on the Senate floor today regarding the Senate budget resolution. Below are his remarks as prepared for delivery:

For four years, the first priority for the country and for Congress has been to improve the nation’s economy and strengthen the middle class. Our efforts have paid off, and pulled us out of the Great Recession. Over the last 36 months, businesses have created 6.4 million new jobs. But the economy isn’t back to full strength, and unemployment is still too high.

So we cannot take chances with our recovery. We must renew investments in the things that make America strong – in innovation and job training, in education and preventive health care, in new roadways, railways and bridges. To meet our country’s long-term economic goals – including reducing the deficit – we must enact policies that support a strong and growing middle class.

That is why this week the Senate will pass a budget – crafted by the senior Senator from Washington, Budget Chairman Patty Murray – that fully replaces the harmful sequester cuts with balanced, responsible deficit reduction. The policies outlined in our budget will save hundreds of thousands of jobs, and safeguard communities by keeping police, air traffic controllers and meat inspectors on the job. First we must avoid self-inflicted wounds. Then we can build on the successes of the last 36 months.

The Senate budget will continue that progress by creating new jobs repairing crumbling roads and bridges, and training workers for high-skill jobs. These investments are fully paid for by eliminating almost $1 trillion worth of loopholes that benefit the wealthiest Americans and the most profitable corporations.

The Senate budget also makes nearly $1 trillion in responsible spending cuts across the federal budget. But meaningful deficit reduction requires shared sacrifice, including contributions from the wealthiest among us.

If you own a profitable corporation that ships jobs to China or India, Democrats in Congress can’t stop you. But we can keep you from getting a tax break for outsourcing. If you’re successful enough to own a second home or a yacht, Democrats in Congress applaud your success. But American taxpayers shouldn’t subsidize that success with a tax break for your vacation home or your boat.

Ending these wasteful giveaways makes sense to most people. An overwhelming majority of Americans, including a majority of Republicans, support our balanced approach.

In the last two years, we have reduced the deficit by $2.4 trillion. The Senate budget continues this effort without jeopardizing our economic recovery or breaking our promises to seniors and veterans. This budget keeps Medicare strong for today’s seniors, and preserves it for our children and grandchildren. It reflects Democratic values. And it honors the belief that success doesn’t trickle down from the top; it grows out from the middle class.

The Ryan Republican budget introduced earlier this week reflects an entirely different set of priorities – skewed priorities Americans have rejected time and again. The Ryan Republican budget would hand out more budget-busting tax breaks for the wealthy. And to pay for these wasteful tax cuts, it would end the Medicare guarantee, rob 50 million Americans of affordable health insurance and raise taxes on middle-class families. To appease the Tea Party, the Ryan Republican budget would risk lives and risk the recovery.  And that is just too high a price to pay.

Late last night, seven United States Marines were killed and several others were injured by an explosion during a training exercise near Hawthorne Army Depot in Nevada. My thoughts are with those who were injured. My heart goes out to the families of those who lost their lives. And my sympathies are with their fellow Marines, who are also grieving this loss.

Details are still emerging, and I will continue to follow this news closely. I will do whatever I can going forward to support the United States Military and the families of the fallen Marines.