House Committee Advances Bipartisan Bills on Hospital Price Transparency, Medicare Advantage and Drug Pricing Reforms

07.21.2026 / Statement

Families USA's Health Care Affordability Week of Action Continues as Senate HELP Committee is Set to Mark Up Patients Deserves Price Tags Act Tomorrow

WASHINGTON, D.C. - In a big win to promote health care affordability, the full House Energy and Commerce Committee today advanced several bills strongly supported by consumer and patient groups, including Families USA.

The package that passed included an updated and improved version of the Lower Costs, More Transparency Act of 2026. Key provisions were strengthened after Families USA's advocacy these past few weeks, including in committee testimony by our Senior Director of Health Policy, Sophia Tripoli, earlier this summer.

The Committee also advanced policies to improve Medicare Advantage data reporting, and to reduce prescription drug red tape and administrative barriers to allow more affordable medicines to reach patients. Additionally, the Committee advanced policies to improve oversight into ownership and other financial arrangements of health care corporations.

This markup comes during Families USA's Affordability Week of Action, right after the organization's Health Care Affordability Symposium, which brought together policy experts and congressional staff to discuss the importance of this legislation. In response to today's committee vote, Families USA's executive director Anthony Wright issued the following statement:

"Today, the House Energy and Commerce Committee took a meaningful step forward to advance health care affordability, moving forward several bipartisan policies that will provide more insight and oversight on how premium dollars are spent, and the health care prices we pay for prescriptions and hospital care. This stronger version of the Lower Costs, More Transparency Act of 2026 will require hospitals to publish real prices, in dollars and cents, with no loopholes and no exceptions.

"We are pleased that the Senate HELP Committee is marking up the Patients Deserve Price Tags Act this week - a strong version of price transparency worthy of our highest support. This week, this year, and for years before that, Families USA has been advocating for improved price transparency to expose the excessive prices charged by hospitals and health systems. To rein in high costs, patients, employers, and others need to know what the prices are. While we need to do more, strong price transparency is foundational, and the first domino that needs to fall if we're going to bring down health care costs.

"We're also encouraged that the House Committee didn't stop at price transparency in addressing health care affordability. The Committee also advanced policies to strengthen Medicare Advantage data reporting, an important step to improve oversight and accountability that this program needs, so that Medicare dollars go toward care, not corporate profit margins. And critically, the Committee advanced policies that will improve oversight into ownership arrangements of health care corporations, in part to shine a light on private equity's growing influence. The Committee advanced policies to cut red tape to help clear the way so that more affordable medicines can reach patients faster, without the delays that keep prices artificially high.

"While we have much more to do, these bipartisan policies represent real, meaningful progress toward addressing the health care affordability crisis. Throughout our Health Care Affordability Week of Action, we are mobilizing people and organizations from around the country to push for passage. We urge the full Congress to continue the momentum and bring these bipartisan bills to the floor without delay."