Lawmaker criticizes House schedule during government shutdown, warns of 114% health care spike

A lawmaker (speaker S1) criticized the House schedule amid an ongoing government shutdown, saying it was “day 8 of the government shutdown” while the House had been on vacation for 19 days and urging colleagues to “Get back to work.”

The speaker alleged that "they left early on the 25th specifically to avoid a vote on the Epstein files," presenting that avoidance as a reason for the staggered schedule and a failure of accountability. The transcript does not include any response from House members or other officials to that allegation.

The lawmaker linked the shutdown to an impending health care problem, saying prices will rise sharply and "Price of health care is about to go up 114 percent." The speaker framed the projected increase as likely to fall "disproportionately in rural communities" and "among farmers," and said many households would be unable to afford such increases.

The speaker also cited a figure of "24,000,000 people" who they said need relief and framed reopening the government as contingent on a change by political leaders, saying, "We can open the government tomorrow morning if Donald John Trump realizes that he's hurting his own people." These are claims recorded in the transcript; the speaker did not provide supporting documentary evidence in the available text.

No formal motions or votes are recorded in the transcript, and no other speakers or officials are recorded responding to the claims in the excerpt provided. The remarks close with repeated exhortations for lawmakers to resume work.