Healthcare

Valley residents deserve to have access to affordable, high-quality healthcare. No American should have to pick between affording life-saving medications and putting food on the table. Throughout my service in Congress, I have been working to expand healthcare coverage, train more medical professionals, build medical facilities and tackle health disparities in our Valley. I am continuing to fight in Congress to lower healthcare costs, strengthen the Affordable Care Act (ACA), protect those with preexisting conditions and ensure Americans have access to affordable, quality health care.

• Strengthening the Affordable Care Act: In 2010, I voted to pass the historic Affordable Care Act (ACA) which has helped over 35 million Americans enroll in health care insurance. Thanks to the American Rescue Plan nearly 5.8 million Americans were newly enrolled in ACA plans and now with the Inflation Reduction Act, we are building on those efforts by extending key ACA tax credits to millions of Americans through 2025.

• Cutting Prescription Drug Costs: I helped pass the Inflation Reduction Act which caps the cost of insulin at $35 per month for seniors and those with disabilities on Medicare. Additionally, it caps Medicare beneficiaries' annual out-of-pocket costs for prescription drugs covered by Medicare Part D at $2,000 per year.

• Addressing the Physician and Nursing Shortage: I introduced legislation to provide federal funding for medical school construction, expansion, and training in underserved communities that lack quality access to quality healthcare, which would benefit universities like UC Merced and UCSF Fresno. In addition, I have secured funding to create a nurse pipeline extension program at Fresno City College, and support the residency program at UCSF Fresno.

• Protecting those with Pre-Existing Conditions: In 2019, over 130 million Americans with pre-existing conditions were at risk of losing healthcare when the previous administration fought to strike down protections provided by the ACA. I voted for legislation to strengthen protections for people with pre-existing conditions and prohibit junk plans from discriminating against people with pre-existing medical conditions.

• Protecting Medicare: For nearly 50 years, Medicare has provided significant healthcare coverage to millions of seniors and those with disabilities. In Congress, I have fought to close the “donut loophole,” cap prescription drug costs on Medicare Part D, and ensure better coverage for beneficiaries. I will continue to oppose any effort to privatize or disband Medicare.

• Rural Clinics and Hospitals: I’ve secured federal funding to help improve hospitals across the Valley including the Fresno Veterans Hospital. He helped construct a regional burn and trauma center and brought funding for rural healthcare clinics across the Valley.

• Mental Health and Opioid Crisis: Nearly one in five U.S. adults live with a mental illness, totaling 52.9 million. I voted for the Restoring Hope for Mental Health and Well-Being Act of 2022, a bipartisan legislative package that expands access to treatment for opioid-use disorders and reauthorizes 30 critical programs to support mental health, substance-use-disorder prevention, treatment, and recovery.

• Learn More about my efforts to Protect Access to Reproductive Health.