Health Care
We must work to advance health care policies that open the marketplace, drive down costs, and provide families with the ability to choose the health plan that meets their needs.
I firmly believe that all Americans should have affordable and accessible health care, including coverage for pre-existing conditions, but there is a big difference between having health care and having health insurance. We must put control of health care decisions back into the hands of individuals, families, and their doctors.
Key Issues:
- Affordable and Accessible Health Care: Instead of making health care more accessible and more affordable, Obamacare has only made it harder for many Americans to access the health services they need. Thousands of Coloradans have had their health insurance plans cancelled, because Obamacare is making it near impossible for insurers to provide plans in our state. The law has also forced many small businesses to cut employee health insurance benefits. I have voted every chance I’ve had to repeal Obamacare, either in part or in full, so we can replace the law with a system that works for the American people. I’m pleased to report that some of those reforms have been signed into law. I am an original cosponsor of the Empowering Patients First Act of 2015 (H.R. 2300), a bill that will restore control over health care decisions back into the hands of individuals, families, and their doctors. I’ll continue to work to advance H.R. 2300 and other important reforms to our health care system.
- Rural Health Care: Our rural communities in the Third Congressional District face unique challenges when it comes health care. In rural and mountainous areas, travel can be difficult and resources are limited. Critical Access Hospitals (CAH) serve an extremely important function in rural and mountainous areas, but the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) proposed a change to the CAH eligibility requirements, which could have forced some CAHs to close and required families to travel longer distances to access health care. I joined my colleagues in urging CMS to approach the proposed changes to CAH eligibility with caution to maintain the economic viability of our communities and the medical safety of our families.