E-Newsletter
Health Care

On March 23, 2010, President Obama signed into law the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA; P.L. 111-148). Among its many provisions, PPACA creates a mandate for most U.S. residents to obtain health insurance and provides for the establishment of insurance exchanges through which certain individuals and families will be able to receive federal subsidies to reduce the cost of purchasing that coverage. The American people deserved action on health care to lower costs and expand access, but this bill will unfortunately not supply the improvements we need.

Challenges to the legislation will be mounted by Senators who believe it violates procedural rules, state Attorneys General who promise to sue the federal government over special deals for other states, and Americans who dispute the constitutionality of a federal mandate to buy health insurance. The coming months will show whether and how a new law will be implemented.

I, too, will be working to restore common sense to the debate over an exceedingly important issue for every American. My own health care proposals focus on ways to bring competitive insurance products into new markets and to help small business owners provide more and better options for their employees and their families. We should reform the insurance market without adding giveaways to states and industries who strike special interest deals with the federal government.


Introduced Legislation:

H.R. 573, To amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to prohibit the marketing of authorized generic drugs, Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to prohibit a holder of a new, approved drug application from commencing to manufacture, market, sell, or distribute a generic version of such drug from the time of the receipt of notice from the generic manufacturer that an abbreviated new drug application has been submitted for approval until the expiration or forfeiture of the exclusivity period granted to the generic manufacturer.


Cosponsored Bills:

H.CON.RES.14, Supporting the goals and ideals of Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Week. Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution Agreed to by recorded vote 416 - 0 (Roll no. 99).

H.RES. 178, Expressing the need for enhanced public awareness of traumatic brain injury and support for the designation of a National Brain Injury Awareness Month.

H.R.362, Rural Hospital Assistance Act of 2009, Will provide an increase in FY 2009 Medicare assistance to Medicare dependent hospitals and sole community hospitals by directing the Secretary to increase Medicare reimbursements for low volume facilities.

H.R. 444, 340B Program Improvement and Integrity Act of 2009, 340B Program Improvement and Integrity Act of 2009 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to expand the drug discount program to allow participation as a covered entity by certain: (1) children's hospitals; (2) critical access hospitals; (3) entities providing maternal and child health services, community mental health services, or treatment services for substance abuse; (4) Medicare-dependent, small rural hospitals; (5) sole community hospitals; and (6) rural referral centers.

H.R. 574, Medicare Home Infusion Therapy Coverage Act of 2009, Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to provide for Medicare coverage of home infusion therapy and home infusion drugs.

H.R. 616, To amend part B of title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide for an exemption of pharmacies and pharmacists from certain Medicare accreditation requirements in the same manner as such exemption applies to certain professionals.

H.R. 758, Pediatric Research Consortia Establishment Act, Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), acting through the Director of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, to award grants, contracts, or cooperative agreements for planning, establishing, and providing basic operating support for up to 20 national pediatric research consortia.

H.R. 988, Physical Therapist Student Loan Repayment Eligibility Act of 2009, Amends the Public Health Service Act to: (1) include physical therapy within the definition of "primary health services"; and (2) make physical therapists eligible for the National Health Service Corps Loan Repayment Program (to assure an adequate supply of physical therapists among other health professionals.

H.R. 1032, Heart Disease Education, Analysis Research, and Treatment for Women Act, Heart Disease Education, Analysis Research, and Treatment for Women Act or the HEART for Women Act - Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to allow the Secretary of Health and Human Services to deny a new drug application if the application fails to include required information on clinical investigations.

H.R. 1210, Arthritis Prevention, Control, and Cure Act of 2009

H.R. 1230, Bone Marrow Failure Disease Research and Treatment Act of 2009

H.R. 1246, Early Hearing Detection and Intervention Act of 2009

H.R. 1256, Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act

H.R. 1298, Pharmaceutical Market Access and Drug Safety Act of 2009

H.R. 1339, Children's Access to Reconstructive Evaluation & Surgery (CARES) Act of 2009

H.R. 1362, National MS and Parkinson's Disease Registries Act

H.R. 1427, Promoting Innovation and Access to Life-Saving Medicine Act

H.R. 1441, Ryan Dant Health Care Opportunity Act of 2009

Helpful Links:

http://www.hhs.gov/

http://www.cms.hhs.gov/

http://www.dhss.mo.gov/

http://www.dss.mo.gov/fsd/mchild.htm