Health Care

I believe that reforming our health care system is necessary. However, like a growing number of Americans, I also believe the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, better known as ObamaCare, is not the solution to our health care problems.

Since enactment of the president’s health care law, the American people have felt the impacts of this partisan and flawed law. The president promised that premiums would decrease by $2,500 and that if you liked your health care plan you could keep it. Contrary to these promises by the president, the average family has seen their insurance premiums rise by more than $4,000 since enactment and countless people had their plans cancelled as a result of the law. Furthermore, in 2014the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office found that ObamaCare will reduce the number of full-time equivalent workers by up to 2.5 million over the next 10 years.

Repealing this flawed law is the first step toward advancing common-sense solutions in our health care system; however, returning to the previous state of affairs is not acceptable and we still need to address the systemic issues plaguing the health care industry. Congress must work to replace this legislation, but first, we must act to repeal the most onerous provisions of this law. The longer we wait to address the long-term effects of ObamaCare, the harder it becomes to fix these problems. Rather than expand the government’s role in providing health care, I support proposals to make the private insurance market more competitive and ensure individuals and families have choices when it comes to their health care.

Pre-existing Conditions

I support finding affordable options for the uninsured or those priced out of the insurance market. I support expanding and reforming high-risk pools to help all Americans, regardless of pre-existing conditions or past illnesses, access to affordable care.

Small Business Health Plans

I hear from many small business owners in South Dakota who want to provide quality health care coverage for their employees, but often cannot afford the high cost of premiums. South Dakota has 81,000 small businesses and a large portion of our state's uninsured population work for small businesses. I support creating Small Business Health Plans (SBHPs), allowing individuals and small businesses to band together to purchase more affordable health insurance for their employees.

Reform Medical Liability Laws

I support reforming medical liability laws to prevent doctors from practicing defensive medicine in order to avoid frivolous lawsuits and focus on what is best for patients. I support comprehensive medical liability reform that will lower the cost of health care for all South Dakota families.

Reform Health Insurance Regulations

I am in favor of reforming health insurance regulations and finding ways to make the insurance market more competitive. This would provide consumers in South Dakota with a greater number of options in insurance plans and put downward pressure on health insurance prices. Additionally, I support providing state incentives to pursue state-based reforms to their insurance markets.

Waste, Fraud, and Abuse in Current Health Care Programs

It is imperative that we address the waste, fraud, and abuse currently plaguing the Medicare and Medicaid systems. I support combating fraud in our health programs and ensuring their sustainability before expanding them or creating a new government-run program that will simply add to the problem. According to the Government Accountability Office, in fiscal year 2013, Medicare alone had nearly $50 billion in losses sustained by taxpayers due to fraud.

Enhance Health Savings Accounts (HSAs)

I believe Congress should create incentives to encourage people to save for current and future health care needs by allowing participants to use HSA funds to pay premiums for high deductible health insurance. HSAs are proven to encourage more cost-conscious spending.

Telehealth and Digital Medicine

As a member of the Senate Rural Health Caucus, I support initiatives strengthening our rural health care infrastructure. Telehealth is innovative technology that provides real-time information to a health provider from a patient hundreds of miles away using video-conferencing and other technologies. This technology could help home health agencies provide home-monitoring equipment to improve patient care and allow seniors more flexibility to remain at home rather than other more expensive care options.

Using other digital medicine tools like electronic health records and individual health applications on smart phones, also help reduce unnecessary duplication of tests and procedures and provide individuals more responsibility over their health care. To see my recent activity on electronic health records and digital medicine, please click here. 

Focus on Wellness and Prevention

We must change our health care focus to wellness and prevention. Helping people lead healthier lives is a critical part of controlling the cost of health care for everyone, not just the unhealthy. I support reforms making it easier for employers, insurers, and patients to take action to control the chronic disease and obesity epidemic in our country through incentives encouraging healthier behavior and participation in wellness programs.