Health Care

I am proud to serve as the top Republican on the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee. In this role, I have helped lead hearings on the resurgence of measles in our country and the importance of vaccines, as well as the rising costs of insulin. I am hopeful that by looking at insulin as a case study, we can work with President Trump and tackle the overall rising drug prices in our country that are crippling patients at the pharmacy counter.

I also serve on the Health Subcommittee for the House Energy and Commerce Committee. in the 116^th Congress, I have introduced the following health bills:

• The Cancer Drug Parity Act, which will fix a discrepancy that causes insurance companies to charge more for orally administered cancer medications than traditional intravenous cancer treatments; 
• The Improving HOPE for Alzheimer's Act, which will ensure that patients diagnosed with Alzheimer's will receive proper care planning from their physician;
• The Treat and Reduce Obesity Act, which will expand access to treatment options for Medicare beneficiaries affected by obesity; 
• And the EMPOWER Care Act, which will help certain Medicaid beneficiaries - such as the elderly or individuals with disabilities - transition from a health care facility to receiving care in their own homes or community if they choose to do so. 

One of my top priorities has been combating our nation’s opioid crisis. During the 115^th Congress I introduced the Comprehensive Opioid Recovery Centers Act (H.R. 5327) to establish a grant program for treatment facilities to offer all evidence-based treatments and FDA-approved medications for opioid use disorder. This bill was signed into law on October 24, 2018, as part of the SUPPORT for Patients and Communities Act, a bipartisan package of over 50 bills that will address the opioid epidemic from four main angles: prevention, treatment and recovery, protecting communities, and fighting the illicit fentanyl trade.

The BOLD Infrastructure for Alzheimer’s Act (H.R. 4256/S. 2076), which I introduced during the 115^th Congress, was signed into law on December 31, 2018. This law will create a public health infrastructure to support prevention, treatment, and care for patients with Alzheimer’s and related neurological diseases. 

President Trump also signed my Sports Medicine Licensure Clarity Act into law last year. This bill provides legal protection for sports medicine professionals who cross state lines with their high school, college, or professional teams to take care of the athletes on their teams. Before my legislation, sports medicine practitioners were not legally protected when they crossed state lines with their teams unless they were also licensed in the state where the team was competing, putting athletes and practitioners potentially at risk.

During the 115^th Congress, I introduced and passed into law the Early Hearing Detection and Intervention Act, which reauthorized a program to help make sure infants receive hearing screening and to provide services for the children who are found to be deaf or hard of hearing.