Lower Health Care Premiums for All Americans Act

Floor Speech

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Mrs. MILLER-MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of my bill, the Lower Health Care Premiums for All Americans Act, a bill rightfully named because that is exactly what it does.

Republicans want to lower healthcare costs and premiums for all Americans, all the Americans on commercial insurance, all the small businesses, all the people on the ACA exchanges, and all the self- insured, not just a select few, and not subsidizing profitable insurance companies.

Insurance, especially bad insurance, is not care.

The Lower Health Care Premiums for All Americans Act offers commonsense solutions to America's broken healthcare system.

It lowers premiums through choice and competition. By expanding association health plans, we give small businesses and self-employed workers the buying power of large employers, cutting premiums by as much as 30 percent.

It gives families control over their dollars. We strengthen CHOICE arrangements, allowing defined contributions and pretax options so workers can choose the right plan for their needs, rather than being stuck in plans that cost too much and deliver too little care.

It brings transparency transparent to drug pricing. We take on the pharmacy benefit managers, which have long operated behind the scenes as middlemen, collecting hidden fees while prescription prices climb. Our reforms force transparency so families can finally see where their healthcare dollars go and pay less at the pharmacy counter.

It protects access to employer-sponsored insurance. By clarifying access to stop-loss insurance, we safeguard small businesses from being financially ruined by catastrophic health claims.

It stabilizes premiums responsibly. We responsibly fund cost-sharing reduction payments, lowering ACA premium costs for all in the marketplace by 11 percent. This policy alone results in an average premium savings of $900 nationally, while reducing Federal spending, saving taxpayers $36 billion.

Contrary to what we hear from my colleagues on the other side of the aisle, the premium tax credits continue and revert back to their 2021 levels.

This bill delivers what Americans have been asking for: lower premiums, more choices, and a healthcare system that works for them, not against them. It is time to put all Americans and their doctors in the driver's seat and ahead of profitable insurance companies.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

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