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Health Care

Where I Stand

Despite some recent improvements, healthcare costs are still too expensive for many people in Maine. Some recent studies have found as many as one-in-four Maine people do not take their medications (as prescribed) due to cost, and even more find the burden of paying for prescription drugs and healthcare to be a source of serious financial strain.

Healthcare should be accessible to everyone in Maine; that’s why lowering the costs of healthcare and prescription drugs is a cornerstone of our work in Washington. Congress must ensure the American healthcare system prioritizes prevention, and rewards keeping people healthy. Additionally, mental health is important along with physical health, and Congress should take steps to removing existing barriers for accessing these services.

Americans are paying almost twice as much per person for healthcare compared to citizens of any other country on earth – and our health outcomes, in terms of indicators like longevity and infant mortality, are below those of most other developed countries. That’s why Congress needs to also focus on the root causes of excessive healthcare costs and prevent the closure of healthcare facilities — including hospitals, nursing homes, and pharmacies — so that Maine people have access to care across the state.

What I've Done

  • Helped pass the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) one of the largest steps ever to lower healthcare costs for Maine people. The bill:
  • Caps Medicare patients’ out-of-pocket costs at $2,000 a year.
  • Caps insulin prices at $35 a month for Medicare beneficiaries.
  • Prevents pharmaceutical companies from increasing prices faster than inflation.
  • Makes vaccines free for Medicare beneficiaries.
  • Saves Maine people an average of $600 a year on their ACA coverage, by making ACA premium subsidies more generous; and
  • Enables Medicare to be able to negotiate the price of prescription drugs.
  • Passed the bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which on top of expanding gun safety provisions for the first time in nearly thirty years, makes long overdue investments in mental health, by providing funding for:
    • Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics.
    • Pediatric Mental Healthcare provider workforce grants.
    • Implementation for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.
    • School-based mental health.
  • Introduced legislation to require private health insurance plans cover — at no cost to the patient — three primary care visits and three behavioral health care visits each year.