Press Releases
Currently showing results related to The Affordable Care Act
Chairman Scott Statement on Supreme Court Decision Protecting Affordable Care Act
06.17.21 WASHINGTON - Chairman Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (VA-03) released the following statement in response to the Supreme Court's decision in California v. Texas. "Today, the Supreme Court threw out yet another baseless lawsuit against the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The Court's decision will protect millions of Americans' access to affordable health care, secure coverage for people with pre-existing conditions, and maintain critical protections that patients rely on every day. "As we continue to confr… Continue Reading
Democratic Health Leaders Blast Trump Administration for Latest Attempted Sabotage of the Affordable Care Act
12.01.20 WASHINGTON - Today, House Education and Labor Committee Chairman Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (D-VA), House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard E. Neal (D-MA), House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-WA), and Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-OR) released the following statement opposing the Trump administration's Notice of Benefit and Payment Parameters for … Continue Reading
House Health Leaders Condemn Final Rule to Erode Anti-Discrimination Protections Under the ACA
07.09.20 WASHINGTON - The chairs of the House committees with jurisdiction over health care condemned the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) for finalizing a rule that weakens protections under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) for LGBTQIA+ individuals, women, people with limited English proficiency, immigrants, people of color, people with disabilities, and patients from other marginalized communities and urged HHS Secretary Alex Azar to immediately rescind it. The letter was signed by House Edu… Continue Reading
Chairman Scott Statement on Trump v. Pennsylvania
07.09.20 WASHINGTON - Chairman Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (VA-03) released the following statement after the Supreme Court ruled in Trump v. Pennsylvania that, under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, employers can claim a religious or moral objection to deny workers health insurance coverage for contraceptive care. "The passage of the Affordable Care Act a decade ago was a major milestone in our effort to ensure all Americans have access to safe and affordable contraceptive care. Unfortunately, the Su… Continue Reading
Chairman Scott Urges Yes Vote on Bill to Strengthen the Affordable Care Act
06.29.20 WASHINGTON - Chairman Scott delivered the following remarks during the floor debate of H.R. 1425, the Patient Protection & Affordable Care Enhancement Act. "I rise in support of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Enhancement Act. As we continue to confront the worst public health emergency in recent history, our first priority must be to protect the health and safety of the American people. "But, during this pandemic, millions of people have lost their jobs. Regrettably, in Americ… Continue Reading
Chairman Scott Statement on Trump Administration Request for Supreme Court to Strike Down Affordable Care Act
06.25.20 WASHINGTON - Chairman Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (VA-03) released the following statement after the Trump Administration filed a brief with the Supreme Court, requesting that the Court overturn the Affordable Care Act in its entirety. "With today's Supreme Court filing, the Trump Administration remains undeterred in its dangerous attack on Americans' access to affordable health care. "If the Administration succeeds in striking down the Affordable Care Act, the consequences for consumers will be d… Continue Reading
Health Committee Chairs Unveil Legislative Package to Make Health Care & Prescription Drugs More Affordable
06.24.20 Washington, D.C. - As Americans face both the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting severe economic downturn, Energy and Commerce Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), Ways and Means Chairman Richard E. Neal (D-MA) and Education and Labor Chairman Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (D-VA) today unveiled The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Enhancement Act, a legislative package that will provide much needed relief by making health care and prescription drugs more affordable. The legislation also expands… Continue Reading
Democratic Health Leaders Reassert Request to Trump Administration to Help Uninsured and Underinsured
06.15.20 WASHINGTON - Bicameral Democratic Health Committee leaders wrote to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Alex Azar and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Seema Verma today to reassert their request for a Special Enrollment Period (SEP) to help the millions of uninsured and underinsured Americans sign up for health insurance coverage amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. According to estimates, more than 20 million Americans who recently lost their e… Continue Reading
House Health Committee Chairs Blast Trump Administration’s Attack on ACA’s Nondiscrimination Protections
06.12.20 WASHINGTON - Education and Labor Chairman Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (D-VA), Energy and Commerce Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), Ways and Means Chairman Richard E. Neal (D-MA), and Oversight and Reform Chairwoman Carolyn B. Maloney (D-NY) released the following statement today after the Trump Administration finalized a discriminatory rule overturning key health programs and nondiscrimination protections for marginalized populations, including LGBTQIA+ people, women, individuals with disabilitie… Continue Reading
House Health Leaders Oppose Rule to Roll Back ACA Nondiscrimination Protections
05.01.20 WASHINGTON - Today, Chairs of the House Committees that oversee the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) voiced their strong opposition to a harmful Trump administration rule that would roll backAffordable Care Act (ACA) nondiscrimination protections. In a letter, House Education and Labor Committee Chairman Bobby Scott (D-VA), House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard E. Neal (D-MA), House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), and House Oversight and R… Continue Reading
Democratic Health Leaders Urge Verma to Withdraw Proposals that Increase Health Costs and Kick Thousands Off Coverage
03.06.20 WASHINGTON - Bicameral Democratic health leaders wrote to Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Seema Verma today urging the agency to withdraw its proposed policies included in a February proposed rule that would result in higher out-of-pocket costs for millions of Americans and thousands of low-income families losing their health insurance coverage through the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The letter was signed by House Education and Labor Chairman Bobby Scott (D-VA), Ho… Continue Reading
Chairman Scott Statement on Fifth Circuit Court’s Ruling in Texas Case
12.18.19 WASHINGTON - Chairman Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement released the following statement regarding the Fifth Circuit Court's decision in Texas v. United States. "Today, Republican attorneys general and the Trump administration took another step toward stripping access to affordable health care from millions of Americans. The latest challenge to the Affordable Care Act is legally frivolous. The argument that the absence of a monetary penalty for failing to purchase coverage inva… Continue Reading
Committee Chairs Call on Trump Administration to Abandon Rollback of Anti-Discrimination Protections in Health Care
08.15.19 WASHINGTON - Today, Education and Labor Committee Chairman Bobby Scott (VA-03), Ways and Means Chairman Richard Neal (MA-01), and Energy and Commerce Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) sent a letter to Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar urging the Department to withdraw a proposal that would severely undermine civil rights protections under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). On June 14, 2019, the Department of Health and Human Services published a proposed rule that would … Continue Reading
Top Democrats File Amicus Brief Opposing the Unlawful Expansion of Junk Insurance Plans
07.24.19 WASHINGTON - Top House Democrats filed an amicus brief in federal court this week opposing the Trump administration's unlawful expansion of association health plans (AHPs), which purposefully circumvents key consumer protections in the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The brief was filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for District of Columbia Circuit, which is hearing the administration's appeal of a district court ruling that the administration's attempt to expand is unlawful. In the brief, the Democr… Continue Reading
Committees Call on White House and DOJ to Stop Withholding Documents on Decision to Attack the Constitutionality of the ACA and Undermine Pre-Existing Condition Protections
05.14.19 WASHINTON-Five House Committees sent letters to the White House and the Department of Justice demanding documents in response to a request made more than a month ago regarding the Trump Administration's sudden decision to reverse its legal position in court and assert that the entire Affordable Care Act (ACA) should be held unconstitutional. The letters were signed by Committee on Oversight and Reform Chairman Elijah E. Cummings, Committee on Energy and Commerce Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr., Co… Continue Reading
Scott, Foxx Statement on Surprise Medical Billing
05.09.19 WASHINGTON - Chairman Bobby Scott (VA-03) and Ranking Member Virginia Foxx (NC-05) released the following joint statement after the White House summit on surprise medical billing. "Last month, this Committee held the first-ever congressional hearing on surprise medical billing. That discussion revealed bipartisan support for a solution that protects patients and their families from the financial and emotional harm of unexpected out-of-pocket health care costs. We remain committed to working ac… Continue Reading
Education and Labor Committee Approves Bill to Reverse the Trump Administration’s Expansion of Short-Term, Junk Health Plans
04.09.19 WASHINGTON - Today, the Committee on Education and Labor approved H.R. 1010, legislation to reverse the Trump administration's "Short-Term, Limited Duration Insurance" rule. The bill would strengthen consumer protections and shield Americans from higher health care costs by halting the expansion of short-term health plans, otherwise known as junk plans. On August 3, 2018, the Trump administration finalized a rule to expand short-term, limited duration plans, adding to the long list of its effor… Continue Reading
House Chairs Seek Documents from Trump Administration on Sudden Decision to Stop Defending Health Care Law
04.09.19 WASHINGTON -Five House Committee Chairs sent letters to the Department of Justice (DOJ), the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the White House requesting documents and information regarding the involvement of White House officials in the Administration's troubling decision to not defend the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The letters were signed by Committee on Education and Labor Chairman Bobby Scott, Committee on Oversight and Reform Chairman Elijah E. Cum… Continue Reading
Chairman Scott: AHP Ruling is a Victory for Workers, Consumers
03.28.19 WASHINGTON - Chairman Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement after a federal court partially invalidated the Trump administration's rule expanding the reach of Association Health Plans (AHPs). "Today's ruling is an important victory for workers and consumers who would be harmed by the administration's decision to expand the reach of association health plans. The Department of Labor's final rule is one of numerous examples of this administration's efforts to sabotage the Affordable C… Continue Reading
House Health Committee Leaders Blast Trump Administration’s Refusal to Defend the ACA, Imperiling Health Care for Millions
03.26.19 WASHINGTON - House Education and Labor Chairman Bobby Scott (D-VA), Energy and Commerce Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), and Ways and Means Chairman Richard Neal (D-MA) issued the following joint statement today after the Trump administration wrote to the Fifth Circuit urging the court to uphold the district court ruling in Texas v. United States striking down the entirety of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). "The Trump Administration is now actively supporting a lawsuit that would cause millio… Continue Reading