Jay Inslee: Washington's 1st Congressional District
Issues
Health
From prescription drug coverage to Medicare to organ donation, Jay actively has worked to improve many aspects of nation's health care system. Ensuring that all citizens have access to affordable, quality health care has been one of his top priorities in Congress. Below is information on health issues he has taken the lead on.
| Key cancer group backs Inslee biosimilar-drug bill |
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[ 20 November 2007 ] In response to troubling news reports, U.S. Rep. Jay Inslee called for a congressional investigation into unproven and potentially dangerous medical devices. |
| Inslee calls for investigation into unproven medical devices |
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[ 20 November 2007 ] In response to troubling news reports, U.S. Rep. Jay Inslee called for a congressional investigation into unproven and potentially dangerous medical devices. |
| Inslee on the veto of children’s health care legislation |
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[ 3 October 2007 ] U.S. Rep. Jay Inslee made the following statement in response to the president’s veto of legislation that would increase funding for the popular health-care program for kids. |
| House approves SCHIP bill - Includes key provision for Washington state |
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[ 25 September 2007 ] House approved legislation that would renew and expand a popular health insurance program for low-income children. It included a key provision that would allow Washington and 10 other states to use 100 percent of federal funds under the State Children’s Insurance Plan (SCHIP) to cover kids just above the poverty level. |
| Lawmakers call for safe, science-based regulation for follow-on biologics |
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[ 19 April 2007 ] U.S. Reps. Jay Inslee, Gene Green and Tammy Baldwin filed legislation in the House that would provide clear guidance on a pathway for production of follow-on biologic, also known as bio-similar or bio-generic medicines. |
| Inslee, Obama introduce bill to help U.S. automakers produce hybrids, lower health care costs |
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[ 18 April 2007 ] U.S. Rep. Jay Inslee and U.S. Sen. Barack Obama reintroduced the Health Care for Hybrids Act, legislation that would allow automakers to receive federal assistance to help pay their legacy health care costs if they invest some of their savings in building more fuel-efficient automobiles. |
| House honors fallen colleague by passing kidney-donation bill |
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[ 7 March 2007 ] U.S. Rep. Charlie Norwood died less than a month ago, after a long struggle with lung disease and cancer. Fellow members in the House of Representatives honored him by unanimously passing an organ-donation bill he authored in January with U.S. Rep. Jay Inslee. |
| Inslee lauds bill that would get kids active |
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[ 28 February 2007 ] U.S. Jay Inslee and other lawmakers introduced legislation that would include guidelines for physical education as part of a landmark federal law aimed at providing quality education to all American youth. |
| Inslee statement on veto of stem-cell research legislation |
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[ 19 July 2006 ] The House of Representatives failed to override a presidential veto of legislation that would have allowed federally funded stem-cell research using embryos left over from in vitro fertilization. U.S. Rep. Jay Inslee released the following statement after the disappointing vote. |
| Bill filed to give FDA deadline for acting on Plan B |
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[ 3 November 2005 ] In the wake of repeated postponements by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on deciding over-the-counter status of Plan B emergency contraception, a bipartisan group of legislators unveiled legislation that would require the agency to make a decision. |
| Hearings on the Selling of Confidential Drug Research |
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[ 12 August 2005 ] U.S. Rep. Jay Inslee today asked a House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee to convene hearings on the recently reported practice of doctors selling confidential pharmaceutical drug clinical trial research information to investment firms. |
| House Passes Stem Cell Legislation |
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[ 24 May 2005 ] U.S. Rep. Jay Inslee today praised the House passage of the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act of 2005 (H.R. 810), which loosens restrictions on stem cell research by allowing increased federal funding for embryonic stem cell science. The stem cell legislation passed the House by a vote of 238 to 194, and would lift President Bush’s 2001 ban on federal funding for researching new embryonic stem cell lines. |
| Urge Full Funding for Organ Donation Legislation |
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[ 10 May 2005 ] U.S. Rep. Jay Inslee and the American Society of Transplantation (AST) today urged full funding for the initiatives enacted by the Organ Donation and Recovery Improvement Act. Inslee released a letter that he and 60 other Members of Congress sent this week to House appropriators in support of the complete $25 million in funding for the law’s organ donation programs, which include increasing organ donor coordinators, expanding public awareness programs, strengthening organ procurement infrastructure, and reimbursing expenses incurred by living donors. |
| Support for Emergency Contraception |
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[ 21 January 2005 ] Today the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) was expected to announce whether it would allow making the emergency contraception Plan B available over-the-counter for women ages 16 and older. In anticipation of the announcement, U.S. Rep. Jay Inslee and 54 Members of Congress sent a bipartisan letter to the FDA in support of making the emergency contraception Plan B available over-the-counter for women ages 16 and older. Unfortunately, the FDA instead announced that it would further delay its decision. |
| Efforts to Import Flu Vaccine |
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[ 20 October 2004 ] U.S. Rep. Jay Inslee (WA-01) announced today that ID Biomedical, which has a branch in Bothell, Washington, is negotiating to import 1.2 million surplus doses of its influenza vaccine from Canada into the United States to help deal with the current dosage shortfall. Inslee spoke with the office of Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy G. Thompson and urged the Secretary to find a way to legally allow 1.2 million doses of ID Biomedical’s vaccine to be sold in the United States market through an investigational new drug application process – essentially as a clinical trial. |
| Elected Officials Receiving Flu Shots |
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[ 20 October 2004 ] U.S. Rep. Jay Inslee sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, questioning his judgment in urging Members of Congress to get flu shots at a time when America is facing a severe shortage in shots for high risk groups, such as the elderly and young children. The suggestion is irresponsible both because it may cost vulnerable people who truly need the flu shot’s protection their chance of receiving vaccination, and because it feeds a public perception that elected officials believe they are more special than the constituents they serve. |
| Equity for Children’s Health Insurance in WA State |
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[ 24 June 2004 ] U.S. Rep. Jay Inslee (D-WA) introduced a bipartisan bill today to fix a current inequity under which Washington State and other states are prevented from spending a large percentage of their federal allotments for health insurance coverage to children. Inslee’s bill, the “Children’s Health Equity Technical Amendments Act of 2004,” (H.R. 4692) changes the allotment eligibility requirements and allows Washington State to spend a greater portion of State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) funds on children at or near the national poverty level. |
| Downed Animal Protection Act |
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[ 21 January 2004 ] Inslee joined other lawmakers, consumer groups and public interest groups in support of the Downed Animal Protection Act (HR 2519). This legislation would prohibit animals that are too sick to stand or walk from entering the American food supply. The legislation also ensures that downed animals are humanely euthanized. It makes the current USDA ban permanent, and expands the ban to downed sheep, pigs, goats, horses, and mules. |
| Organ Donor Legislation Becomes Law |
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[ 5 April 2004 ] Today the President signed into law the Organ Donation and Recovery Improvement Act (H.R. 3926), which includes language first authored by U.S. Rep. Jay Inslee (WA-01) in 2000 to provide funding for organ donor coordinators for hospitals and organ procurement organizations. The bill passed the House of Representative by a vote of 414 to 2 on March 24, 2004. |
| Need for Organ Donations Increases |
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[ 4 May 2004 ] The need for donations is increasing almost twice as fast as the supply. Given this growing disparity, we must explore new and creative ways to improve organ donation rates and give particular attention to the untapped resource of living donors. |
| Seniors Deserve A Better Prescription Drug Bill |
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[ 22 November 2003 ] You may have heard in the news that Republican Congressional leaders have passed a final proposal on prescription drugs and Medicare. Our seniors deserve a better deal than this bill provides. I voted against this bill because the proposed drug benefit would not begin until 2006, and it will only be offered through private insurance companies or HMOs. The average senior would continue to pay about two-thirds of the total cost of their prescriptions. The bill also forbids the government from negotiating lower Medicare drug prices, and it bans importation of cheaper prescription drugs from Canada. Please be assured that I will continue to fight for a real benefit that starts before 2006 and does not privatize Medicare. |
| Amendments to Medicare Bill |
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[ 26 June 2003 ] U.S. Rep. Jay Inslee yesterday offered two amendments to the Medicare bill in the Committee on Rules. Inslee’s amendments would increase Medicare reimbursement rates for health care providers nationally and Washington state in particular, which suffers from a geographic inequity in the Medicare repayment formula. |
| Hearing Device Follow-up Care Legislation |
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[ 16 January 2003 ] The Medicare Audiologic Rehabilitation Act provides reimbursement for follow-up services relating to hearing aids and other hearing devices to ensure their proper function. By covering follow-up rehabilitation for individuals with hearing aids and other hearing assistive devices, the legislation will help millions of Americans, and especially seniors, to lead fuller lives by ensuring that the hearing technologies they have invested in truly correct their hearing problems. |
| Medicare Update and Forum |
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[ 19 June 2002 ] I recently held an Inslee Issue Forum on the effects of inadequate Medicare funding for Washington State seniors. Local seniors, physicians, hosptials and nursing homes all explained the consequences of underfunding Medicare, and I am convinced that solving this problem must be a high priority for Congress. |
| Organ Donor Legislation |
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[ 23 April 2002 ] Inslee announced the introduction of the "Floyd D. Spence Organ Coordination Improvement Act" at an event at the U.S. Capitol. Chris Klug, who underwent a liver transplant in 2000 and went on to win a bronze medal for snowboarding in Men's Parallel Giant Slalom in the 2002 Winter Olympics, joined Inslee to call attention to the thousands of patients in need of transplant organs. |
| Organ Donation |
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[ 19 March 2001 ] An event at Children's Hospital and Medical Center featuring donor recipients set the stage for the re-introduction of two pieces of legislation aimed at increasing organ donations across the country. I was joined by organ donors and recipients, including Cappy Neimer, a seven year old liver transplant recipient, and Judy Grogan, a daughter who made the decision to donate her mother's organs. |
| Prescription Drugs |
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[ 28 June 2001 ] I signed on as an original cosponsor of the Medicare Guaranteed and Defined Rx Benefit and Health Provider Relief Act, a bill that includes a prescription drug benefit under the Medicare program. |
| Choice |
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[ 22 January 2001 ] On this anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision, I am disappointed by reports that President Bush intends to bar U.S. aid to overseas family-planning programs that include abortion counseling. |
| Organ Donor Legislation |
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[ 12 October 2000 ] U.S. Rep. Jay Inslee introduced two companion bills aimed to improve the organ donation process in the United States. [ Organ Donor Card ] |