Donna Brazile: Democrats will focus on health care in 2020
Pelosi says Democrats will focus on health care in 2020
Former DNC Interim Chair Donna Brazile previews what to expect from the Democrat Party in the new year.
Former interim Democratic National Committee (DNC) chairwoman Donna Brazile on Tuesday previewed what to expect from Democrats in 2020, saying that health care will be a top priority.
“In this session of Congress, they [Democrats] passed over eight bills to protect and enhance health care in America,» Brazile, a Fox News contributor, said on «America’s Newsroom.»
“[House] Speaker [Nancy] Pelosi has signaled to the Democrats that she really wants to fight to lower prescription drugs. They just passed H.R.3 [legislation to lower drug prices]. That bill is sitting on [Senate Majority Leader] Mitch McConnell’s desk,” she said.
“There’s also a bill on surprise billing; it has bipartisan support,» Brazile added. «That’s when you go to the hospital, and you come back and you look at your bill and you say, ‘Oh, my God, what is that?’ Well, Speaker Pelosi believes that health care is not just for Democrats, but Republicans, too.»
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“She’s going to work with the Republicans, including the president, who also wants to lower prescription drug prices,” Brazile continued. “His notion doesn’t go far enough in terms of negotiation for Medicare and other types of insurance, but I do believe the speaker’s right to focus on this issue when they return next week.”
Pelosi wrote in a letter to members of her caucus on Monday that Democrats will prioritize getting health care legislation signed into law when lawmakers return to Washington in the new year.
Earlier this month, House Democrats pushed through legislation that would empower Medicare to negotiate prescription drug prices and offer new benefits for seniors. The vote along party lines was 230 to 192.
However, the legislation does not have a chance of passing the Republican-controlled Senate, and the White House has issued a veto threat.
In May, President Trump called for an end to “surprise medical bills,” the astonishingly high charges insured patients can face when a member of a medical team that treats them is not in their insurer’s network.
The administration threw its support behind efforts by lawmakers of both parties to address the problem, laying out a set of goals for legislation.
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«Now that the Affordable Care Act, otherwise known as ObamaCare, hangs in the balance and millions of Americans — hundreds of millions of Americans — may be subjected to having their health insurance disappear because of preexisting conditions, this [health care] is a priority,” Brazile said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
