Two committees of the U.S. House of Representatives are holding hearings this week of interest to insurers and policyholders.
On Tuesday at 10 a.m. ET in H-313, The Capitol, the House Rules Committee will hold an original jurisdiction hearing on the Medicare for All Act of 2019. This marks the first time Congress has ever held a hearing on Medicare for All.
“I'm proud to announce this historic hearing on Medicare for All legislation. We've made tremendous progress expanding health care over the years, most notably with passage of the Affordable Care Act, which provided coverage to more than 20 million Americans. We have more work to do though and that's why I'm a proud cosponsor of this bill. It's a serious proposal that deserves serious consideration on Capitol Hill as we work toward universal coverage,” said Rules Committee Chairman James P. McGovern (D-MA).
“I want to thank Chairman McGovern for holding this historic hearing. Even with passage of the Affordable Care Act, there are more than 70 million people either without coverage or who have coverage that leaves them still unable to access medical care due to prohibitively high out-of-pocket costs. There is no other developed country on the face of the Earth that has a health care system that is as fragmented and costly as ours. The health outcomes and barriers to care in America are the worst of any industrialized nation. Health care is a human right and I'm proud the Rules Committee will be holding this hearing on the Medicare for All Act as this Majority discusses ways to strengthen our health care system for everyone,” said Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal (D-WA).
“The time is now to ensure that every American has access to quality, affordable healthcare. Medicare for All is the beginning of a national conversation about how to improve healthcare and bring down costs. Chairman McGovern's leadership in holding this first-ever hearing on Medicare for All is a critical step in this long journey, but much work remains. We're going to continue engaging stakeholders across the country to realize the vision of universal healthcare coverage,” said Congresswoman Debbie Dingell (D-MI).
More than 100 members of Congress already have cosponsored the Medicare for All Act of 2019.
In addition, on Wednesday, the Committee on Financial Services, chaired by Representative Maxine Waters (D-CA), will hold a hearing “Examining Discrimination in the Automobile Loan and Insurance Industries.” The hearing will be held in the Rayburn House Office Building and is scheduled to begin at 10:00 a.m.
Victoria Spears
Victoria Prussen Spears is senior vice president of Meyerowitz Communications Inc., a law firm marketing communications consulting company. A graduate of Sarah Lawrence College and Brooklyn Law School, Ms. Spears was an attorney at a leading New York City law firm before joining Meyerowitz Communications. She may be contacted at [email protected].