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Legislative Outlook in 2004
Representative Hilda Solis (CA)
The rising cost of health care will be  one of the most important issues for voters for the next decade, according to Rep. Hilda Solis (D-CA), a member of Congress from the Los Angeles area.
Solis said that many of her constituents are without health insurance coverage, including thousands of retirees. Their situation was not helped by the prescription drug coverage bill signed into law last year, Solis noted. “It is a confusing, incomplete bill,” she said.
The move to privatize government-run programs is gaining momentum, Solis warned. Solis’ promised to fight any proposals to privatize Social Security.
Solis encouraged the delegates to carefully consider where they invest their pension funds. “Let’s make sure we invest in corporations that are paying their fair share of taxes,” she said. “Let’s make sure that these countries with lower wages are importing from us. Let’s make sure they have equitable working conditions, including overtime and other benefits.”
Rep. Solis, who was first elected to Congress in 2000, serves on the House Energy and Commerce Committee—the first Latina to serve on this committee. She is also assistant whip, chairwoman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus’ Task Force on Health and Democratic vice chair of the Congressional Caucus on Women's Issues. Solis came to Washington after a distinguished career in the California state legislature. She was the first Latina elected to the California State Senate.
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