Bill Cassidy - Ranking Member of the Senate HELP Committee | Official U.S. Senate headshot
Bill Cassidy - Ranking Member of the Senate HELP Committee | Official U.S. Senate headshot
U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, delivered remarks during a hearing on medical debt in Washington on July 11, 2024.
Cassidy's prepared speech addressed the need for affordable health care and highlighted his experience as a doctor treating uninsured and underinsured Americans. "As a doctor who treated uninsured and underinsured Americans for decades and now as a Senator, addressing the need for affordable health care has been a life-long mission," he stated.
He emphasized that medical debt is symptomatic of broader issues within the healthcare system. "Ultimately, medical debt is a symptom of a greater problem within our health care system," Cassidy said. He pointed out that Americans are paying more for health insurance than ever before, citing average monthly unsubsidized premiums on ACA exchanges.
Cassidy noted that hospitals are responsible for more than half of medical debt and mentioned various federal programs designed to support hospitals in financial distress. He raised concerns about whether discounts from programs like 340B are being used to lower patient costs. "Hospitals participating in 340B receive substantial discounts on prescription and oncology drugs, but it is unclear if those discounts are actually being used to lower the cost of care for patients," he remarked.
The senator criticized Democratic proposals to cancel all medical debt as insufficient solutions that fail to address root causes. "To be clear, a one-time cancellation of medical debt is not a real solution," he argued.
Cassidy also dismissed Medicare for All or single-payer systems as inadequate fixes for high healthcare costs and medical debt. He called for bipartisan efforts to improve access to quality, affordable healthcare and cited last year's PBM Reform Act as an example of successful bipartisan legislation.
"Thank you again to our witnesses for being here to discuss how to responsibly address medical debt and ways Congress can improve patients’ access to quality, affordable health care," Cassidy concluded.
For updates from HELP Republicans, visit their website or follow them on Twitter at @GOPHELP.
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