by U.S. Congressman Erik Paulsen

Ending Our Involvement in Libya 

Since March, the United States has been involved in military engagement in Libya. According to the most recent data available, until May 5, the U.S. provided 66 percent of the personnel, 93 percent of the cruise missiles, 50 percent of the ships and 50 percent of the planes in the conflict.

The U.S. military action in Libya is not only costly during precarious economic times, but it also pushes the boundaries of both legal and constitutional rationale. 

I voted to end U.S. military involvement in Libya and I do not believe there is a clear national interest at stake for the United States. The President has failed to seek Congressional approval for military engagement in the conflict, and has not explained to the American people our strategic goals or plans in entering a civil war which continues to be a protracted stalemate in Libya. 

Bipartisan Wellness Caucus 

Healthcare expenditures in the United States reached nearly $2.5 trillion in 2009. Many of these costs are shouldered by small businesses. In visiting with Minnesota companies, I’ve seen the importance of workplace health and wellness first hand and how they're using wellness programs to lower health care costs for themselves and their employees.

That's why I and several others, including Senator Amy Klobuchar, decided to create a Congressional Wellness Caucus.

Because adults spend roughly half of their waking hours at work, the workplace is an ideal starting point in forming healthy lifestyles and lowering healthcare costs. 

One way to lower healthcare costs is to implement wellness programs in the workplace. The Minnesota Department of Health reports that, on average, employers that adopt wellness programs enjoy a 25 percent reduction in sick leave, health plan costs, workers compensation and disability costs. Overall, companies can expect to save $3 to $6 for every $1 spent on a wellness program.

The purpose of the Wellness Caucus will be to educate our colleagues and their staff about the success stories from some of these Minnesota businesses, so others are able to understand the value of workplace wellness programs, the return on investment for wellness initiatives, and replicate these successes so they can also drive high quality and low cost healthcare solutions.    

Patent Reform for Job Growth

This year, for the first time, China is expected to become the world’s number one patent publisher, surpassing the U.S. in the total and basic number of patents.  The reasons for this is the United States has a three-year wait for obtaining a patent, a backlog of more than a million patent applications, and hasn't updated its patent system in over 60 years.

Many Minnesota companies, both large and small, are built and sustained by innovation and entrepreneurship. Yet, the current patent system is also bogged down with onerous and drawn-out lawsuits - limiting their ability to develop and bring new and inventive products to market.

Last week, I supported a new patent reform bill, the America Invents Act, which passed the House with strong bipartisan support.  This bill strengthens and streamlines the patent system for entrepreneurs and small businesses, helps patents get approved more quickly, ensures better protection and promotion of intellectual property to spur economic growth, and stops frivolous lawsuits.  More patents means more jobs here in Minnesota where we have a wide variety of medical technology and innovative companies.