Rep. Sewell Unveils New Democrat Coalition Health Care Action Plan

Washington D.C. - Today, U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell (AL-07), Chair of the New Democrat Coalition's Health Care Working Group, unveiled the Coalition's Health Care Action Plan, a new framework that lays out New Dems' commonsense agenda to address the Republican health care crisis by lowering health care costs, expanding access to high-quality care, and protecting the programs millions of working Americans and seniors rely on.

Sewell announced the Action Plan at a press conference Wednesday morning alongside her New Democrat colleagues. The plan serves as a roadmap for Congressional Democrats to ensure every American has access to and can afford the medical care they need, no matter their income or where they live. As Chair of the Health Care Working Group, Sewell played a key role in developing the plan's details and core principles.

Watch the full press conference here.

"The American people are facing a health care crisis of Republicans' making. Costs are skyrocketing, rural hospitals are closing, and millions of Americans are being kicked off their health insurance so that billionaires can get new tax breaks," said Working Group Chair Terri Sewell. "It does not have to be this way. As Chair of the New Dem Health Care Working Group, I am proud of the strong, commonsense framework that we are proposing. This plan addresses the Republican health care crisis head-on by lowering costs, expanding access to care, protecting rural hospitals, and strengthening the programs that Americans rely on. New Dems are committed to making health care affordable and accessible for every American."

Each of the Action Plan's more than 45 specific policy recommendations falls under one of the document's three principles: providing quality, affordable, health care with predictable costs; improving Americans' health care and protecting and strengthening the Affordable Care Act (ACA), Medicare, and Medicaid; and delivering timely, reliable access to doctors, hospitals, and medicines to every American.

Among other policies, the Action Plan proposes:

• Preserving and stabilizing the enhanced premium tax credits and caps on premiums in the ACA.
• Reversing Republicans' harmful cuts to Medicaid and modernizing the program so it can expand coverage, improve access to providers, streamline enrollment, and remove unnecessary red tape that prevents people from getting care.
• Protecting and strengthening Medicare by safeguarding its guaranteed benefits, enhancing the quality and coordination of care for seniors, ensuring the program can negotiate lower drug prices, and taking steps to preserve the program's financial security and sustainability for decades to come.
• Providing long-term, stable federal funding for community health centers, safety-net hospitals, and rural health clinics to sustain affordable, high-quality care in every community.
• Restoring and increasing federal investment in biomedical and public health research to accelerate the development of new treatments, vaccines, cures, and technologies that improve patient outcomes and save lives.
• Extending Medicare's $2,000 annual prescription drug out-of-pocket cap and its $35 monthly insulin cap to individuals with private insurance.
• Expanding training programs, loan repayment incentives, and pipeline partnerships to address shortages of physicians, nurses, behavioral health providers, and other essential professionals.
• Restoring the Trump Administration's $90 million cut to the ACA Navigator program to ensure consumers, especially those in rural and underserved communities, can access free, unbiased health insurance assistance and services.
• Protecting rural and safety-net hospitals from closure and ensuring access to essential services like maternity care, emergency care, and behavioral health.
• Making permanent the telehealth flexibilities that increased access to care and serve as a crucial lifeline for rural communities.
• Expanding cancer prevention and detection through the National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program and research into Multi-Cancer Early Detection (MCEDs).
• Taking steps to protect the public health workforce from politically motivated mass layoffs or restructuring, ensuring stable, trusted, and effective public health operations.

Read the full Health Care Action Plan here.

Background

Founded in 1997, the center-left New Democrat Coalition is made up of 115 pragmatic House Democrats who work across the aisle and across the Capitol to advance innovative, inclusive, and forward-looking policies. Representing over half the Democratic Caucus, New Dems are united behind a mission to build an economy that works for every American.

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