Bucshon pushes stalled health care reform at town hall
While many congressional meetings, since the first of the year, around the country have devolved into shouting matches between members of congress and their constituents, the event in
The first question out of the box questioned
"In my view a lot of the law needs to be repealed," said
The problem though is finding a consensus in
The Congressman was also questioned on the Republican Health Care plan's tax cuts. Under Obamacare much of the discounts for insurance coverage and some of the funding for expansion of
"I believe taxes should be as low as possible on the American people, on all incomes," said Bucshon. "It is unfortunate we continue to have that type of political rhetoric. The reality is when you add all these taxes and you put them in a health care program that is circling the drain. We are throwing our money away."
One element though that the Congressman says he will work to support is the
"I supported Governor (Mike)
Bucshon predicts that even though
He notes that one of the biggest weaknesses in the system is the failure to take on the high cost of health care. "The big problem we have is that the cost of health care is too high," said Bucshon. "We're chasing with insurance coverage a product that is too expensive in the first place."
The congressman said he is working on bills to try and increase price transparency for medical care and has begun meeting with drug companies to try and come up with ways to help bring down the cost of prescriptions.
"I'm working on ideas to try and bend the cost curve on the product, not just on health insurance but health care to get the costs down," he said. "The way we pay for health care is messed up in this country. The health care we get though is the best in the world."
Health care was not the only topic the public had questions about. In response to a question about the growing opiate addiction issue, the Congressman pointed out that congress has funded new programs that allow for more treatment.
"We put our money where our mouth is," said Bucshon. "We put a bunch of money into that, so the states and treatment centers can access federal dollars to get more people treatment."
A question that drew applause was one asking if he would support an independent investigation into the
"I absolutely support an investigation," he said. "There is no doubt the Russian government tried to influence our election. That is not disputable."
The Congressman called the recent missile strikes in
"Any further plans in
Bucshon says he supports the building of a wall and a better policy on immigration. "The goal is to have a stronger physical barrier on the southern border and that I agree with," he said. "We need to look at it in a practical way and if it is doable we should advance that. That alone is not a strategy and I think everyone in this room recognizes that."
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