In Congress The following are some of the health-related bills introduced during the first month of the new 110th United States Congress, which convened January 4. On the first day of the congressional session, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) and a group of Democratic senators introduced a far-ranging bill aimed at setting new national priorities for reproductive health care. Included in the bill, S. 21, the Prevention First Act, are requirements for equity for contraceptive coverage in health insurance; emergency contraception education and information; compassionate assistance for rape emergencies; pregnancy prevention programs in at-risk communities; accurate contraceptive information in school sex education programs; and assistance to local entities "to reduce teen pregnancy HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases and to support healthy adolescent development." H.R. 15, the United States Health Insurance Act, introduced in the House of Representatives January 4 by Representative John Dingell (D-MI), would provide every individuals residing in the United States with a card entitling the person to "universal, best standard of care," including inpatient, outpatient, and emergency care; prescription drugs, durable medical equipment, long-term care, mental health services, dental services, chiropractic services, basic vision care and correction, and hearing services including hearing aids. The bill specifies that any money Congress appropriates for Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program would be applied to the universal coverage program. Health Partnership Act of 2007, S. 325, introduced in the Senate by Senators Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) and George Voinovich (R-OH) and companion legislation, H.R. 506, introduced in the House of Representatives would invite states, local governments, and tribal groups to submit applications to the federal government for funding to implement expansion and improvements to current health programs as a way develop reforms and innovative approaches. S. 334, Healthy Americans Act, introduced January 18 by Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR), would replace current employer-based health insurance with lifetime guarantees of coverage to workers, with premiums to be paid through the tax system and subsidies for those unable to afford the premiums. Businesses would pay fees tiered to their size and revenue to help fund the basic benefits package. S.316, the Preserve Access to Affordable Generics Act, introduced by Senator Herb Kohl (D-WI) would make it illegal for drug makers who hold patents on so-called "blockbuster" drugs to pay generic manufacturers to withhold cheaper competitive drugs from the market. Kohl noted that it’s estimated consumers could save $26 billion over the next five years by using generic versions of 14 popular drugs that are scheduled to lose patent protection before 2010. On January 30, Senators John Rockefeller (D-WV), Charles Schumer (D-NY), Herb Kohl (D-WI), and Patrick Leahy (D-VT) introduced a bill, S. 438, the Fair Prescription Drug Competition Act of 2007, aimed at another practice of drug companies whose patents are about to expire—the marketing of what the companies call "authorized generics" but are really patented drugs under a different label. The companies market such "authorized generics" during the 180-day period the law gives true generics to enter the market, thereby discouraging the real generics from entering the market, Rockefeller said Genetic Discrimination S. 358, the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2007, introduced by Senator Olympia Snowe (R-ME), and a companion bill, H.R. 493, introduced in the House of Representatives, would prohibit discrimination on the basis of genetic information in health insurance and employment. Snowe noted that the legislation is proactive, intended to address genetic bias before discrimination becomes entrenched, and she noted the need to protect the privacy of genetic information that is increasingly being used in determining individual treatments for illnesses. Bills referred to in this summary can be read and tracked on the Library of Congress website at http://thomas.loc.gov. |
