Senator Warner joined eight of his freshman Democratic colleagues today in signing a letter to Senator Max Baucus, the chairman of the U.S. Senate Finance Committee, which is responsible for crafting the health care reform legislation that the Senate will vote on.   

This is the first time that a majority of the newest members of the U.S. Senate have collectively voiced their concerns on a major piece of legislation.  They write that health reform legislation is "essential and cannot wait."

In the letter, the senators urge the chairman to continue working toward bipartisan legislation and express their concerns that there has been too little focus on containing health care costs. 

It reads:

“The fact is that the current situation is unsustainable in the long term. With 17% of our GDP currently being used to pay for health care services, we must get health care costs under control so we can compete and lead in the global marketplace. We believe that any final bill must include innovation, hard decisions, and incentives to bend the cost curve.”

Read the whole letter below: