Majority Leader Hoyer Issues Statement on Additional Health Care Legislation

WASHINGTON, May 8 -- House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Maryland, issued the following statement announcing consideration of a bill that packages seven pieces of legislation to protect and expand affordable health care and lower prescription drug costs:

"Following House passage today of two bills aimed at lowering the cost of prescription drugs and consideration tomorrow of legislation to protect coverage for those with pre-existing conditions, next week I will bring to the Floor a bill to protect and expand access to affordable health care for Americans and lower prescription drug costs.

"Our legislation will be composed of separate bills from the Energy and Commerce Committee to ban junk health insurance plans, bring generic prescription drugs to market more quickly, provide funding for states to establish state-based marketplaces under the Affordable Care Act, require and provide funding for outreach and enrollment, and fund the navigator program that assists Americans during the open enrollment period.

"I want to thank Reps. David Cicilline, Bobby Rush, Kurt Schrader, Kathy Castor, Andy Kim, and Lisa Blunt Rochester for introducing these bills and leading on the issue of health care access and affordability, which is a key part of our 'For the People' agenda. I hope Republicans join with us to strengthen health care and lower prescription drug costs instead of continuing their efforts to sabotage our health care system."

Next week, the House will take up H.R. 987, the Strengthening Health Care and Lowering Prescription Drug Costs Act, which is composed of the following individual bills:

* The CREATES Act (Rep. Cicilline);

* The Protecting Consumer Access to Generic Drugs Act (Rep. Rush);

* The BLOCKING Act (Rep. Schrader);

* A ban on junk plans (Rep. Castor);

* The SAVE Act (Rep. Kim);

* The ENROLL Act (Rep. Castor); &

* The MORE Health Education Act (Rep. Blunt Rochester).