[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 71 (Wednesday, May 1, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2561-S2562]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          CHOOSE MEDICARE ACT

  Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, I rise in support of the Choose 
Medicare Act, which would strengthen the Affordable Care Act and help 
reduce healthcare costs for all Americans.
  This commonsense bill would create a public healthcare option based 
on Medicare that would increase choice and competition in the 
Affordable Care Act marketplaces, including California's state 
exchange, Covered California.
  I would also allow the Secretary of Health Human Services to 
negotiate drug prices under Medicare, increase healthcare subsidies for 
middle-income Americans, and allow the federal government to block 
unreasonable health insurance rate increases.
  The majority of Americans support expanding healthcare choices to 
achieve universal coverage and lower costs for everyone. However, too 
many Americans are still unable to afford a private plan that covers 
the care they need. The Choose Medicare Act would fix this by creating 
a public health insurance plan that would compete alongside private 
insurers in the individual and group insurance marketplaces.
  Known as Medicare Part E, the public option health plan would offer 
comprehensive coverage and all of the benefits covered under 
traditional Medicare. Every doctor that accepts traditional Medicare 
would also be enrolled as a provider for the public health plan,

[[Page S2562]]

giving patients access to a large network of doctors across the 
country. It would also benefit employers. Around half of Californians 
receive their health insurance through their work. The Choose Medicare 
Act would give them more options, allowing large employers to choose a 
plan modeled on traditional Medicare for their workers. Just as they do 
now, employers would cover a portion of the cost of their employees' 
coverage.
  Having access to this new public option would increase competition 
and choice in the employer market, and the public plan's negotiating 
power would help reduce health costs for employers, not just 
individuals. Moreover, our bill would ensure that people who receive 
their health coverage through the public option would be able to keep 
their health insurance when they change employers. Americans would no 
longer feel stuck in low-paying jobs because they are worried about 
losing their health insurance.
  The Choose Medicare Act would also provide funding for a new 
reinsurance program to partially offset the high healthcare costs paid 
by insurers for the sickest individuals. This reinsurance program would 
improve insurer participation in the Affordable Care Act exchanges and 
lower premiums for everyone. It would also give States the option to 
use this funding to address high out of-pocket costs, such as 
copayments, coinsurance, premiums, and deductibles.
  I am proud to note that this bill includes rate review legislation I 
have previously introduced to help keep insurance premiums down. Rather 
than allowing American workers to suffer under excessive premium 
increases, our bill would give the Secretary of Health and Human 
Services the authority to review, modify, and reject unjustified 
premium increases in States where the insurance commissioner does not 
have that authority.
  This review process has already been successful in States where it 
was implemented. Our bill would ensure that everyone, regardless of 
where they live, is protected from unreasonable premiums increases.
  The rising cost of drug pricing is also a huge problem in our 
healthcare system. Our bill would give the Secretary of Health and 
Human Services the authority to negotiate lower drug prices with 
manufacturers, reducing the amount patients pay at the pharmacy.
  After 1 year of negotiations, if the Secretary and drug manufacturers 
are unable to agree on a fair price, the Secretary will then be able to 
use the price that the Department of Veterans Affairs or other Federal 
agencies that purchase prescription drugs already use.
  Finally, our bill would protect America's seniors enrolled in 
traditional Medicare from unlimited out-of-pocket costs by adding an 
annual out-of-pocket maximum for what they can pay. Seniors would no 
longer be burdened with mounting medical costs because they are 
enrolled in Medicare instead of private insurance.
  I want to thank Senator Merkley and Senator Murphy for leading our 
efforts on this important legislation. I urge my colleagues to join us 
in supporting this much-needed, commonsense bill to strengthen the 
Affordable Care Act, give consumers more choices when picking their 
healthcare plan, and make healthcare more affordable for all.

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