Lower Costs, More Transparency Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. BUCSHON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 5378, the Lower Costs, More Transparency Act.

This bill, which was a product of thorough bipartisan work across three committees, is one of the strongest healthcare bills I can remember voting on since coming to Congress in 2011. Honestly, it really is. I want to say that again: It is one of the strongest healthcare bills I can remember voting on since coming to Congress.

I thank Chair Rodgers, Ranking Member Pallone, and the members of the other two committees for their hard work on getting this bill to the floor.

At nearly $13,000 per person, or about 18 percent of the GDP, U.S. national health expenditures far exceed other high-income countries, and they continue to rise at unsustainable rates.

Congress must enact serious reforms that spur competition and show taxpayers where all of these healthcare dollars are going. They are certainly not always going to them.

The problem is not limited to one part of our healthcare system, and so the solution must also reach across the entire system. This legislation seeks to increase transparency and lower costs related to hospital care, outpatient services, and prescription drugs, among other things. It also reauthorizes community health centers and supports disproportionate share hospitals.

Finally, we cannot get control of our national debt and deficit unless we first have transparency in our healthcare system, one of the largest expenditures that the Federal Government has. This bill is a tremendous step in that direction.

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to support this legislation, and I urge all my colleagues to support it.

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