MPR Debate: Sen. Tina Smith Stands Up for Minnesotans with Pre-Existing Conditions While Jason Lewis Voted to Gut Health Care Protections

ST. PAUL [10/2/20]–As a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, U.S. Senator Tina Smith believes that we need to take meaningful action to lower the cost of health care and prescription drug prices, and defend protections for the millions of people with pre-existing conditions.

Additionally, Sen. Smith believes we need to allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices, which would lower the price tag of the life-saving medications Minnesotans rely on.

On the other hand, Republican Senate candidate Jason Lewis has voted time and time again to gut health care, take away protections for Minnesotans and Americans with pre-existing conditions, and slash funding for Medicare and Medicaid. He’s even praised the suggestion of undoing Medicare.

SEN. SMITH IS WORKING TO LOWER COST OF HEALTH CARE, PRESCRIPTION DRUGS, AND PROTECT MINNESOTANS WITH PRE-EXISTING CONDITIONS

Duluth News Tribune Editorial Board: Smith Was “Butting Heads With The Lobbying Power Of Big Pharma.” “While the state was falling short, Smith — suddenly with more urgency — was moving forward at the federal level. In June, she introduced a bill to help those who need insulin get it when they legitimately can’t afford it. Her Emergency Access to Insulin Act would provide federal grants so states and tribes can provide emergency access to insulin. […] As logical as it is, Smith’s legislation may be a long shot. She hasn’t been able to schedule a Senate hearing yet. And she’s butting heads with the lobbying power of Big Pharma.  The measure has bipartisan support, however — and bipartisan support for anything in D.C. these days can be a rarity and a success in itself. Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., is a co-sponsor.” [Duluth News Tribune, Editorial Board, 7/25/19]

Star Tribune: “In Her First Piece Of Stand-Alone Legislation, Sen. Tina Smith Has Introduced A Bill To Close A Loophole That Allows Major Drug Companies To ‘Pay To Delay’ Bringing More Affordable Generic Drugs To Market.” “In her first piece of stand-alone legislation, Smith has introduced a bill to close a loophole that allows major drug companies to ‘pay to delay’ bringing more affordable generic drugs to market. ‘The big drug companies are making billions of dollars and they are spending hundreds of millions lobbying Congress,’ she said. ‘I think they need to come to the table to help us solve this problem.’ Smith said there is ‘real strength’ in the research and innovation done by drug companies, ‘but I often think that is used as an excuse for these costs that are going up 40, 50, 100 percent. That just seems wrong to me.’  Smith’s bill, introduced Feb. 28, is the Expanding Access to Low Cost Generic Drugs Act. In her travels throughout Minnesota, Smith said the high cost of health care, particularly prescription medicine, always comes up.” [Star Tribune, 3/25/18; S. 2476, 2/28/18]

Smith’s Bipartisan Bill To Help Lower The Price Of Insulin With Republican Senator Bill Cassidy Of Louisiana Was Passed Into Law. [S. 1140, 4/11/19; CQ, 12/19/19; H.R. 1865, Roll Call 415, 12/19/19]

Smith Introduced Legislation To Allow Medicare To Negotiate Drug Prices. “The skyrocketing price of prescription drugs is a problem touching people in every corner of the country. On Wednesday, Sen. Tina Smith re-introduced her bill at the nation’s capital, which would bring down prices and increase transparency. The ‘Affordable Medications Act,’ which Smith also brought before Congress last session, focuses on increasing affordability by permitting the safe importation of cheaper drugs from places like Canada, and allowing Medicare to negotiate for lower prices.” [KAAL, 6/12/19]

  • HEADLINE: “Sen. Smith Battles Big Pharma About Prices, Transparency.” [KAAL, 6/12/19]

Smith Co-Sponsored The “Choose Medicare Act,” Which Would Create A Public Option. [S. 2708, 4/18/18]

Smith Supported The ACA’s Expansion Of Medicaid.  [Duluth News Tribune, 9/22/18]

Smith’s Bill To Create A “Rural Health Liaison” At USDA, Whose Job Will Be To Focus Federal Health Efforts On The Needs Of Rural America, Was Included In The Farm Bill And Signed Into Law. “On healthcare, Smith has focused on rural needs. She has taken a leadership role on the bipartisan Senate Rural Health Caucus, meeting with rural hospital CEOs, health providers and patients in Minnesota about their challenges. She worked with Republican Sen. Mike Rounds of South Dakota to create in the Senate Farm Bill a ‘Rural Health Liaison’ at USDA whose job will be to focus federal health efforts on the needs of rural America.” [S. 2894, 5/22/18; H.R. 2, 12/20/18; DL-Online, 11/1/18]

Smith On Her Bill To Create An Emergency Insulin Program: “I’m Hell Bent To Work On This And Do Everything I Can To Get It Passed.” “The Emergency Access to Insulin Act, which was co-sponsored by Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., sets up a grant program that states and tribes can apply for. […] When asked whether she thought her bill would become a law, Smith said she feels optimistic. ‘But it’s going to be a push to get this bill down because these big drug companies have a lot of power, not only in the state houses but in Congress and they’re not supporting this bill,’ Smith said. ‘So that means we have to overcome that opposition on their side. But I’m hell bent to work on this and do everything I can to get it passed.’” [Duluth News Tribune, 7/14/19]

JASON LEWIS STANDS BY GUTTING HEALTH CARE AND PROTECTIONS FOR PRE-EXISTING CONDITIONS

Lewis Praised Potential Of Moving Closer To Undoing Medicare. LEWIS: “We didn’t get to this era of collectivism and corporatism and outright socialism overnight either. It took Teddy Roosevelt and his distant cousin Franklin Roosevelt. It took LBJ. It took President Obama to get us here. So I don’t think you’re gonna say ‘Oh, I think we’re gonna undo Medicare tomorrow.’ That’s probably political suicide at this point, but I do think a Paul or a Cruz or a Mike Lee would probably get us closer to that. I don’t think the establishment candidates, and you’ve named a few already, would even bother. So that’s the decision the party’s gonna have to make, but here’s the key: rhetoric in campaigns matter. If you’re not willing to say that in a campaign where these candidates ought to be pressed, you’re not gonna do it once you’re elected.” [Wake Up! With Corporon, Jason Lewis interview, 4/4/14]

Lewis Voted For A Budget That Would Have Cut $537 Billion Out Of Medicare Over The Next Decade By Privatizing The Program. On Jun. 21, 2018, Lewis voted to pass H. Con. Res. 128, the House Republicans’ FY 2019 “Budget for a Brighter American Future,” out of the House Committee on the Budget. The resolution was passed out of committee 21-13. From Washington Post: “The House Republican budget, titled ‘A Brighter American Future,’ would remake Medicare by giving seniors the option of enrolling in private plans that compete with traditional Medicare, a system of competition designed to keep costs down but dismissed by critics as an effort to privatize the program. Along with other changes, the budget proposes to squeeze $537 billion out of Medicare over the next decade.” [Washington Post, 6/19/18; H. Con. Res. 128, Vote 29, 6/21/18]

Lewis: “For Years, On The Radio And Off, I Have Always Stood Firmly Against Obamacare.” “Insurers on Thursday asked to raise premiums by an average of more than 50 percent for customers on Minnesota’s individual insurance market.  Massive proposed premium increases weren’t a surprise, coming on the heels of national market turmoil, the end of a federal subsidy for insurance companies and the withdrawal of a major insurer from Minnesota’s market. […] 2nd Congressional District GOP candidate Jason Lewis: ‘For years, on the radio and off, I have always stood firmly against Obamacare, because we need health care reforms that will give Minnesotans choices – not exchanges like MNsure that take more money out of the pockets of hardworking Minnesotans.’’ [Duluth News Tribune, 9/1/16]

Lewis Voted For the American Health Care Act, Which Would Repeal the Affordable Care Act. On May 4, 2017, Lewis voted for H.R. 1628, the American Health Care Act of 2017. From CQ: ‘Passage of the bill that would make extensive changes to the 2010 health care overhaul law, by effectively repealing the individual and employer mandates as well as most of the taxes that finance the current system. It would, in 2020, convert Medicaid into a capped entitlement that would provide fixed federal payments to states and end additional federal funding for the 2010 law’s joint federal-state Medicaid expansion.” The bill passed 217 – 213. [CQ, 5/4/17; H.R. 1628, Roll Call 256, 5/4/17]

  • PolitiFact: The AHCA “Would Weaken Protections” For Those With Pre-Existing Conditions And “Would Allow States To Give Insurers The Power To Charge People Significantly More.” “An ad by the American Action Network says that under the American Health Care Act ‘people with pre-existing conditions are protected.’ The only kernel of truth here is that the amendment has language that states insurers can’t limit access to coverage for individuals with pre-existing conditions. However, the ad omits that the House GOP health plan would weaken protections for these patients. The legislation would allow states to give insurers the power to charge people significantly more if they had a pre-existing condition. While Republicans point to the fact that those patients could get help through high-risk pools, experts question their effectiveness. Current law does not allow states to charge people with pre-existing conditions significantly more. We rate this claim Mostly False.” [PolitiFact, 5/24/17]

CBO: If The AHCA Had Passed, In 2018, 14 Million More People Would Be Uninsured Under The AHCA Than Under The ACA. CBO report on the AHCA: “CBO and JCT estimate that, in 2018, 14 million more people would be uninsured under the legislation than under current law. Most of that increase would stem from repealing the penalties associated with the individual mandate. Some of those people would choose not to have insurance because they chose to be covered by insurance under current law only to avoid paying the penalties, and some people would forgo insurance in response to higher premiums.” [CBO, American Health Care Act, 3/13/17]

Lewis On Medicaid Expansion: “We Need To Scale That Back.” “REP. JASON LEWIS (R), MINNESOTA:  Oh, yes, I think it would pass the House.  Let’s see what it looks like. But the criticism in the Senate is coming from the left, from Republicans, Rand Paul notwithstanding. They’re worried about their Medicaid funding. But Obamacare expanded Medicaid to the tune of 90 percent match for childless able-bodied adults, while 50 percent match goes to the disabled and blind and poor women. Now, if, as a Republican Party, we can’t go to the American people and say that’s a moral hazard, writ large, and we need to scale that back, then, my goodness gracious. I’m afraid they’re just — I will be blunt with you, Jake. There’s three or four senators over there that just like to vote against Republicans.” [CNN, 9/24/17]

Lewis Voted To Pass The House Republican’s FY 2019 Budget Resolution Out Of The Budget Committee. On Jun. 21, 2018, Lewis voted to pass H. Con. Res. 128, the House Republicans’ FY 2019 “Budget for a Brighter American Future,” out of the House Committee on the Budget. The resolution was passed out of committee 21-13. [H. Con. Res. 128, Vote 29, 6/21/18]

  • The Budget Would Cut $537 Billion Out Of Medicare Over The Next Decade By Privatizing The Program. “The House Republican budget, titled ‘A Brighter American Future,’ would remake Medicare by giving seniors the option of enrolling in private plans that compete with traditional Medicare, a system of competition designed to keep costs down but dismissed by critics as an effort to privatize the program. Along with other changes, the budget proposes to squeeze $537 billion out of Medicare over the next decade.” [Washington Post, 6/19/18]

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