Chairman Alexander Issues Statement on Senate’s Health Care Work

WASHINGTON, Sept. 26 -- Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., Senate Health Committee Chairman, issued the following statement on the Senate's health care work:

"I will consult with Senator Murray and with other senators, both Republicans and Democrats, to see if senators can find consensus on a limited bipartisan plan that could be enacted into law to help lower premiums and make insurance available to the 18 million Americans in the individual market in 2018 and 2019.

"I would have voted for the Graham-Cassidy proposal because it meant more money and more state decision-making for Tennessee, and would have helped control the federal debt.

"But Graham-Cassidy primarily would have affected 2020 and beyond. I'm still concerned about the next two years and Congress has an opportunity to slow down premium increases in 2018, begin to lower them in 2019, and do our best to make sure there are no counties where people have zero options to buy health insurance."