Health Care
House Democrats are committed to expanding access to quality, affordable health care coverage, strengthening protections for people with pre-existing conditions, and lowering prescription drug prices and the cost of health care overall.
Under President Biden and Congressional Democrats, the uninsured rate is at an all-time low. While Republicans vote against legislation to lower health care costs, House Democrats are working to bring down the overall costs of health care and increase access to health care coverage.
With the landmark Inflation Reduction Act, House Democrats took direct action to reduce health care costs for millions of Americans. For the first time, Medicare will be able to negotiate prescription drug prices for high-cost drugs. The law also caps out-of-pocket prescription drug costs for Medicare recipients at $2,000 annually and establishes a $35 cap for a month’s supply of insulin. The Inflation Reduction Act also protects progress made under President Biden to expand access to quality, affordable health care coverage by continuing the expanded premium tax credits originally passed in the American Rescue Plan, which lowered health care premiums for millions of working families.
This built upon the Affordable Care Act – enacted by President Obama and Congressional Democrats in 2010 – that has put American families in control of their own health care and ended a system that put profits ahead of patients. Since its enactment, 35 million Americans have gained access to quality, affordable health coverage. Americans with pre-existing conditions can no longer be discriminated against by insurance companies. Parents can now keep their children on their insurance plans up to age twenty-six. Insurance companies are no longer allowed to put annual or lifetime limits on coverage or drop people when they get sick. Additionally, thanks to the law, Medicare costs – from premiums and deductibles to overall program spending – have slowed to well below the levels projected before the law passed.
These reforms were crucial, especially when the COVID-19 pandemic struck but more action was needed. That’s why House Democrats worked to enact legislation right away - without any Republican support - to ensure that testing, treatment, and vaccinations for COVID-19 would be covered with no out-of-pocket costs to Americans.
House Democrats remain committed to the goal of affordable, accessible health care for all.
Joe, you took the words out of my mouth. I don't think it's what the Democrats or Republicans want, the process won.
As House Republican leaders continue to scramble for votes to pass their TrumpCare bill, Speaker Ryan claimed the MacArthur Amendment would keep in place protections for Americans with preexisting conditions:
I am disappointed to see, one more time, that the Trump Administration is undermining the confidence of the health insurance marketplaces under the Affordable Care Act.
Today, Speaker Ryan said to his Members on their TrumpCare vote: "This is who we are. This will define us."
We couldn’t agree more. If Republicans vote for a bill to:
-Take away health coverage from 24 million Americans
-Allow discrimination against Americans with pre-existing conditions
This week, House Republicans are attempting to bring their TrumpCare bill to the Floor for a vote.
The winner of today's most shocking comment contest is Representative Mo Brooks (R-AL), who told CNN's Jake Tapper:
William Shakespeare famously declared that “past is prologue,” and the bard’s words ought to give us pause as we assess the first scene of this very strange play in which we now find ourselves as a nation.
As President Donald Trump focuses on tomorrow’s 100 day benchmark, here’s a quick look at how he little he has achieved in his first 100 days in office.
Today, the House passed a bill to continue funding the government for an additional week while negotiations continue on a bill to fund the government for the remainder of the fiscal year.