[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 30 (Thursday, February 15, 2024)]
[House]
[Page H645]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             MAKING MEDICALLY NECESSARY NUTRITION AVAILABLE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Florida (Mr. Rutherford) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. RUTHERFORD. Madam Speaker, today hundreds of thousands of 
children and adults all across America, including over 177,000 just 
from my State of Florida, live with digestive gastrointestinal liver or 
pancreatic disease or inherited metabolic disorders, commonly referred 
to as ``IMD,'' that actually inhibits their bodies from being able to 
process typical foods.
  When left untreated, Madam Speaker, inherited metabolic disease or 
gastrointestinal conditions actually cause the body to fail to absorb 
nutrients, and the food can actually become toxic.
  Without necessary nutrition, patients can face severe health risks, 
including unnecessary surgeries, hospitalizations, intellectual 
disabilities, or death.
  Our health system must be structured to support proven treatments so 
that these patients can continue to live with these diseases.
  I recently introduced legislation with Representative McGovern that 
would make medically necessary nutrition more easily accessible to 
patients across the Nation.
  H.R. 6892, the Medical Nutrition Equity Act, builds on coverage 
Congress passed for TRICARE and would actually cover medically 
necessary food, vitamins, and individual amino acids for these 
Americans with digestive and inherited metabolic disorders and allow 
them to lead normal, healthy lives.
  As co-chair of the Crohn's and Colitis Caucus where I advocate for 
these digestive disorders, I urge my colleagues to consider supporting 
this legislation as we work to pass it into law.


                   Holding Rule Breakers Accountable

  Mr. RUTHERFORD. Madam Speaker, as a former sheriff, I dedicated my 
life to holding rule breakers accountable, and I am here to tell you 
this morning that President Biden and Secretary Mayorkas are rule 
breakers.
  Their inaction on securing the southern border is not a failed 
policy, Madam Speaker--it is their policy. For over a thousand days now 
they have refused to secure our southern border.
  The House tried to intervene when we jointly passed H.R. 2, the 
Secure the Border Act, the strongest border security bill in history.
  While Senator Schumer and President Biden refused to act on this 
bill, we continue to see record numbers of illegal immigrants at our 
border, increasing rates of fentanyl poisoning, and an uptick in our 
national security threats.
  Senator Schumer and President Biden falsely claim that they need 
additional authority to fix this situation at the southern border. That 
is blatantly false.
  If the President cared about truly securing the border, Madam 
Speaker, all he has to do is undo the 94 executive actions that he has 
taken since becoming President that have created this crisis at the 
southern border and support States like Texas and others in their 
efforts to secure their own borders, and he can sign H.R. 2 into law.
  I am proud to join with Representative Hinson and my other colleagues 
in demanding that the President enforce our laws on the books today to 
immediately address this crisis at the border.
  I have to say that the President's inaction is costing American lives 
and billions of dollars. For 3 years, Republicans have been the 
balefire to America that our southern border was in crisis--3 years.
  It takes a Presidential election and the impeachment of the Homeland 
Security Secretary to actually get Democrats to finally admit that 
there is a crisis at our southern border. That should not be.

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