State Health Care Premium Reduction Act
Floor Speech
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, I rise today in opposition to H.R. 1425, the so-called Patient Protection and Affordable Care Enhancement Act, the latest in a series of attempts by House Democrats to score cheap political points at the expense of hardworking taxpayers.
And speaking of scoring cheap political points, I think most of my colleagues and I are tired of having words put in our mouths that aren't there. We do not oppose reducing the cost of drugs. We want that. We don't believe it is a bad thing.
At a time when Congress should be united in our continued fight against the novel coronavirus and ensuring the country can reopen safely, we are instead here today debating a bill that amounts to nothing more than political posturing. Rather than solve any pressing healthcare problems, including the Nation's response to the COVID-19 pandemic, this misguided legislation will limit healthcare options for patients, contribute to already skyrocketing healthcare costs, and double down on the many failures of the Affordable Care Act or the ACA.
As the Republican leader of the Committee on Education and Labor, I am committed to improving and enhancing employer-sponsored healthcare options for American workers and their families.
Yet today, we are debating legislation that would enlarge ObamaCare even further by providing subsidies for some of the wealthiest Americans, providing a blank check bailout for insurance companies, strong-arming States into expanding Medicaid, and eliminating lower cost healthcare options like short-term, limited-duration insurance plans.
Short-term insurance plans offer healthcare options for Americans who might find themselves between jobs or unable to afford rising premiums in the already expensive individual market. What is astonishing to me is that Democrats conveniently failed to mention that these short-term, limited-duration plans were legal under the Obama administration and that States still have the authority to regulate these plans.
As Republicans, we believe in federalism. If States choose to limit or prohibit the sale of these plans, they are free to do so. Instead of respecting the judgment of State lawmakers and local authorities to act in their States' and constituents' best interest, House Democrats are doubling down on a one-size-fits-all Federal mandate.
As we have seen over and over again, Washington-knows-best requirements simply do not work. In the case of the ill-advised legislation before us today, Federally dictated policies will only lead to fewer choices and higher premiums.
Additionally, House Democrats have missed the mark with H.R. 1425 when it comes to COBRA notices for millions of workers.
While there is room for improvement in this area, such as increasing transparency and allowing consumers to decide which plans work best for them, Democrats are instead blocking consumer access to information about other forms of valued coverage options outside of the ACA.
Just when you thought it couldn't get worse, the blatantly political bill we are considering today incorporates Speaker Pelosi's socialist drug-pricing scheme to cover up the hundreds of billions of dollars this government healthcare expansion would cost American taxpayers.
The rising costs of prescription drugs is an issue that resonates with everyone in this Chamber. Seventy percent of Americans consider reducing the price of prescription drugs to be a top priority, and they are looking to us, their elected representatives, to get the job done to get drug prices under control.
That is why Congress started a collaborative effort and bipartisan process last year to tackle this issue. Unfortunately, this bipartisan collaboration was abruptly cut short by Speaker Pelosi's introduction of H.R. 3, which was written in secret without Member input or the regular committee process.
Lowering drug costs should not be a partisan issue, yet the underlying partisan, socialist provisions in H.R. 3 are included in the legislation before us today.
Democrats are well aware that H.R. 3 will never become law. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said it will go nowhere in the Senate, and President Trump has said he will veto the bill if it comes to his desk.
Still, House Democrats continue to waste time during an unprecedented health and economic crisis on legislation that will die after House passage.
Their socialist drug-pricing scheme is nothing more than a leftwing downpayment on a government-run healthcare system that would eliminate private insurance and implement government-controlled rationing of prescription drugs.
As I have said many times before, governments don't negotiate; they dictate. The Democrats' radical drug-pricing scheme will eliminate choice and competition and jeopardize innovation, investment, and access to future cures. And we are considering this at a time when we are in the process of developing treatments and a vaccine for COVID-19.
This type of unprecedented government interference in private market negotiations and substantial increase in regulatory red tape proves one thing: The Democrat Party is being held hostage by their most radical leftwing Members.
The American people deserve better from Congress than the socialist drug-pricing scheme in the bill before us today. They deserve a real solution that will lower the cost of prescription drugs without jeopardizing access to new treatments and cures.
That is why House Republicans have introduced H.R. 19, the Lower Costs, More Cures Act. This bill contains bipartisan, bicameral measures, and it can become law this year. Specifically, H.R. 19 will help lower out-of-pocket costs, protect access to new medicines and cures, strengthen transparency and accountability, and champion competition.
Yet, House Democrats are ignoring this bipartisan, commonsense legislation. Clearly, they prefer politics over progress.
Madam Speaker, I am deeply disappointed that we are here today debating yet another partisan ploy from my colleagues on the other side of the aisle. There are bipartisan solutions to many pressing issues at our fingertips, including continuing to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, but Speaker Pelosi and her Democrat colleagues continue to turn their backs on bipartisan legislation to help the American people, and that is truly shameful.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
Madam Speaker, propagandists have said that if one repeats a lie often enough, people will soon believe the lie and not the truth. My colleagues are entitled to their own opinion but not to their own facts or rewriting history.
I want to repeat some comments from my Texas colleague, Mr. Brady, who spoke earlier in this debate.
Republicans support children, seniors, and patients with preexisting conditions.
Republicans created the popular Children's Health Insurance Program that millions of families rely on today.
Republicans created the prescription drug program in Medicare to help seniors get the medicine they need.
Republicans created the first law that established protection for patients with preexisting conditions. That law, passed in 1996, is the Health Insurance and Portability Act of 1996.
We want people to have access to high-quality, affordable healthcare that fits their needs and make their own choices, not what Speaker Pelosi demands for them.
Madam Speaker, the devastating effects of COVID-19 are still being felt across our Nation, yet today Democrats are spending time pushing a deeply flawed, partisan bill that is being used to score cheap political points instead of working on bipartisan solutions like lowering drug costs, ending surprise billing, and getting our economy back on its feet.
We are left with H.R. 1425, a radical bill which will limit healthcare choices, increase costs, and double down on the failures of the Affordable Care Act. No innovation, investment, or solutions, just more of the failed status quo from House Democrats, which will go nowhere after the vote today.
Contrary to what Speaker Pelosi said, Democrats do not and cannot, in this bill, guarantee affordability of healthcare. What they do guarantee is government control with rationing, fewer cures, and less freedom for Americans. Republicans believe in just the opposite.
Madam Speaker, I strongly urge a ``no'' vote on H.R. 1425, and I yield back the balance of my time.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Source