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Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Monday, September 7, 1998 Volume 34ÐNumber 36 Pages 1667±1730 1 VerDate 28-AUG-98 08:19 Sep 10, 1998 Jkt 010199 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 1249 Sfmt 1249 W:\DISC\P36AU4.000 TXED02 PsN: TXED02 Contents Addresses and Remarks Communications to CongressÐContinued Ireland Iraq, letter reporting on compliance with Community leaders, reception in DublinÐ United Nations Security Council 1723 resolutionsÐ1710 Gateway, Inc., employees in SantryÐ1724 Patients' Bill of Rights, letter to Senate Swissair Flight 111, remarks in DublinÐ majority leaderÐ1684 1723 Interviews With the News Media Northern Ireland Assembly in BelfastÐ1705 Exchange with reporters in Dublin, IrelandÐ Gathering for Peace in ArmaghÐ1717 1720 Groundbreaking ceremony for Springvale News conference with President Yeltsin of Educational Village in BelfastÐ1707 Russia in Moscow, September 2 (No. Victims of bombing in OmaghÐ1709 163)Ð1686 Radio addressÐ1667 Joint Statements Russia Russia-U.S. agreement for promotion of Duma and regional leaders, meeting in aviation safetyÐ1701 MoscowÐ1703 Russia-U.S. joint statements First day of school festivities in MoscowÐ Common security challenges at the 1677 threshold of the twenty-first centuryÐ Future Russian leaders in MoscowÐ1678 1696 Virginia, roundtable discussion on education Exchange of information on missile in HerndonÐ1668, 1670 launches and early warningÐ1694 Protocol to the Convention on the Communications to Congress Prohibition of Biological WeaponsÐ1693 Guatemala-U.S. treaty on stolen vehicles and Situation in KosovoÐ1693 aircraft, message transmitting with Trade, investment, technological, and non- documentationÐ1676 governmental cooperationÐ1694 (Continued on the inside of the back cover.) Editor's Note: The President was in Dublin, Ireland, on September 4, the closing date of this issue. Releases and announcements issued by the Office of the Press Secretary but not received in time for inclusion in this issue will be printed next week. WEEKLY COMPILATION OF regulations prescribed by the Administrative Committee of the Federal Register, approved by the President (37 FR 23607; 1 CFR Part 10). PRESIDENTIAL DOCUMENTS Distribution is made only by the Superintendent of Docu- ments, Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402. Published every Monday by the Office of the Federal Reg- The Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents will be ister, National Archives and Records Administration, Washing- furnished by mail to domestic subscribers for $80.00 per year ton, DC 20408, the Weekly Compilation of Presidential Docu- ($137.00 for mailing first class) and to foreign subscribers for ments contains statements, messages, and other Presidential $93.75 per year, payable to the Superintendent of Documents, materials released by the White House during the preceding Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402. The week. charge for a single copy is $3.00 ($3.75 for foreign mailing). The Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents is pub- There are no restrictions on the republication of material lished pursuant to the authority contained in the Federal Reg- appearing in the Weekly Compilation of Presidential Docu- ister Act (49 Stat. 500, as amended; 44 U.S.C. Ch. 15), under ments. 2 VerDate 28-AUG-98 08:19 Sep 10, 1998 Jkt 010199 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 1249 Sfmt 1249 W:\DISC\P36AU4.000 TXED02 PsN: TXED02 ContentsÐContinued Joint StatementsÐContinued Meetings With Foreign LeadersÐContinued Russia-U.S. memoranda of understanding Russia Cooperation in the field of civil aircraft Duma leadersÐ1703 accident/incident investigation and President YeltsinÐ1686, 1693, 1694, 1696, preventionÐ1698 1698, 1700, 1701 Principles of cooperation in the fields of United Kingdom culture, the humanities, the social Prime Minister BlairÐ1709, 1717 Secretary of State for Northern Ireland sciences, education, and the mass MowlamÐ1709 mediaÐ1700 Statements by the President Letters and Messages Harold Ickes' 1996 campaign financing Labor Day, 1998, messageÐ1727 activitiesÐ1683 Northern Ireland peace processÐ1683, 1710 Meetings With Foreign Leaders Northwest Airlines pilots strikeÐ1676 Ireland Senate action on appropriations legislationÐ Deputy Prime Minister HarneyÐ1724 1683 Minister for Transportation, Energy, and Swissair Flight 111 crashÐ1710 Tourism O'RourkeÐ1724 Supplementary Materials Prime Minister AhernÐ1720, 1724 Acts approved by the PresidentÐ1730 Northern Ireland Checklist of White House press releasesÐ Assembly Deputy First Minister MallonÐ 1730 1705, 1717 Digest of other White House Assembly First Minister TrimbleÐ1705, announcementsÐ1728 1717 Nominations submitted to the SenateÐ1729 3 VerDate 28-AUG-98 08:19 Sep 10, 1998 Jkt 010199 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 1249 Sfmt 1249 W:\DISC\P36AU4.000 TXED02 PsN: TXED02 Week Ending Friday, September 4, 1998 The President's Radio Address like cost-cutting accountants, not care-giving August 29, 1998 doctors. That's why I've worked so hard to pass a Good morning. I'm speaking to you today Patients' Bill of Rights, available to all Ameri- from the Edgartown Elementary School in cans in all plansÐa Patients' Bill of Rights Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts. I'd like to that would say medical decisions should be talk to you about how we can put progress made by doctors, not accountants; emer- over partisanship in efforts to expand access gency room procedures should be made to quality health care for every American. available whenever and wherever they're Years from now, when we look back on needed; no one should be denied access to the greatest accomplishments of this century, a specialist when it's needed; no one should miraculous advances in medical care surely be forced to change doctors in the middle will be at the top of the list. But for all the of treatment just because an employer successes of medicine, for all the wonders changes medical plans; there ought to be an of its quality, parts of our rapidly changing appeal of a medical decision made by an ac- medical system that deal with access to medi- countant all the way up the chain in the com- cal care are in desperate need of repair. pany, quickly, until it gets to a doctor; people Like many of you, I've been appalled by who are hurt ought to have redress; and med- tragic and repeated stories of men and ical records should be kept private. women fighting for their lives and, at the We've worked very hard to make these same time, forced to fight insurance compa- protections available to everyone we could. nies focused not on getting them the medical We've extended the protections of a Patients' care they need but on cutting costs even if Bill of Rights to 85 million Americans who it denies that medical care. get their health care through Federal plans, Recently, I met Mary Kuhl, the wife of Medicare, Medicaid, the Federal Employee a 45-year-old man who died after his insur- Plan, the Veterans' Administration. Today ance company canceled his emergency heart we'll take executive action once again. surgery, against his doctor's urgent warnings. More than 120 million Americans are in I met Mick Fleming, whose sister died of workplace health plans that are protected breast and lung cancer after she was unfairly under Federal law. The Secretary of Labor denied the treatment her doctor rec- has now been instructed to ensure that all ommended, treatment for which she was eli- these people can quickly appeal, through an gible and desperately needed. These stories internal review process, any coverage deci- and these practices are callous and unaccept- sion that denies the care their doctors said able. We must do everything in our power was needed and appropriate. That means 120 to give our families greater protection at this million more people will no longer have to time of great change in medical science. take an HMO accountant's ``no'' for an an- These things happen when, against doc- swer. This will bring a lot greater peace of tors' recommendations, managed care plans mind. deny procedures or treatment. Now, nobody In many of these stories we hear about, wants to waste money, and the managed care the HMO actually, ultimately, approves the movement has done a lot of good in slowing treatment the doctor recommended but only down unnecessary inflation. But none of us after it goes through layer after layer after wants to see medical decisions affecting our layer of appeal. And sometimes there's no families made by insurance company em- appeal at all. What we're doing today is trying ployees who are trained and paid to think to give quick and prompt appeals through 1667 VerDate 28-AUG-98 08:20 Sep 10, 1998 Jkt 010199 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 1244 Sfmt 1244 W:\DISC\P36AU4.031 TXED02 PsN: TXED02 1668 Aug. 29 / Administration of William J. Clinton, 1998 an internal review process to the insurance Thanks for listening. companies and plans that are within our ju- risdiction. It will help 120 million Americans, NOTE: The President spoke at 10:06 a.m. from but it's not enough. It is simply not enough. the Edgartown Elementary School on Martha's Vineyard, MA. We do not have the authority to extend all the critical patients' rights protections I mentioned to all the American people, and Opening Remarks at a Roundtable we won't have it until Congress acts. That's Discussion on Education in why I've worked since last November with Herndon, Virginia doctors, nurses, consumers, lawmakers of August 31, 1998 both parties to get a strong, enforceable, and bipartisan bill of rightsÐagain, one that says Thank you. First