When it comes to healthcare, we all agree there is security in knowing you can get good medical attention at a cost you can afford. As Americans, we should unite in pursuit of a system that makes this a reality.
But our current system, despite all the recent debates, remains broken. We pay too much and get too little out of our system and the costs are driving our country deeper into debt. Our families deserve better.
That's why Jim opposed the Obama Administration's recent health care law -- it fell far short of driving costs down. What's more, there are elements of the new law that need to change. For example, Jim believes there are many parts of the new health care law that should be repealed. Jim has supported the following repeals:
Repeal a long-term care insurance program that was a financial ticking time bomb. He believes that program --known as the CLASS Act--should be repealed because it is would be a disaster for taxpayers and would add to the federal debt.
Repeal the 1099 provision that piled cost and unnecessary regulation on small employers.
Repeal of burdensome taxes on medical device companies, many of which have facilities in Utah, which will threaten innovation and job growth and limit treatment options for patients.
Jim is committed to being an independent voice and doing what is right for Utah families. He supports making sure people with pre-existing conditions can't be denied insurance and letting families keep kids up to 26 on their insurance plans.
Jim keeps fighting for change. He supports the following policies that will make healthcare more affordable:
Expand tax credits for individuals and employers to purchase health insurance and more opportunities for small businesses to pool together to provide benefits for employees.
Implement medical malpractice reform as a way to help control costs and prevent doctors from feeling compelled to practice "defensive medicine" out of fear of being sued.
Medicare
Jim knows thousands of Utah seniors rely on this federal health insurance program for the elderly. While it is vitally important to seniors, it is also one of the main contributors to our nation's long-term debt challenge. Jim is working with Republicans in Congress to find a reasonable way to continue this program by increasing efficiency and removing perverse incentives in the program that threaten its long-term sustainability.
State Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP)
This federal-state partnership provides money to states to enroll children from working class families in privately-run health care plans. Jim believes it is our duty to provide quality health care to children so they can grow, learn and thrive. Statistics show that kids who have health insurance--the doorway to improved access to care--have a better quality of life, do better in school and grow to be more productive members of society. Providing health insurance for children is also cost-effective since preventing illness or treating it at the doctor's office is more economical than waiting until illnesses are severe enough for a visit to the emergency room. Jim has worked to protect and expand the program to cover all qualified Utah children.