REP. ANGIE CRAIG INTRODUCES LEGISLATION TO CREATE A PUBLIC OPTION, LOWER HEALTH INSURANCE COSTS FOR MINNESOTANS

The following information was released by the office of Minnesota Rep. Angie Craig:

Today, U.S. Representative Angie Craig introduced legislation to create a public option and lower health care costs for Minnesotans struggling to afford sky-high insurance premiums.

Rep. Craig's Medicare-X Choice Actbuilds on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and Medicare frameworks to create a Medicare Exchange plan that would offer affordable health insurance options to families, individuals and small businesses and increase competition in the health insurance market. The bill would also permanently extend the ACA enhanced premium tax credits that Congressional Republicans allowed to expire at the end of 2025, codify the "family glitch" fix and provide funding for a national reinsurance program policies that Rep. Craig has long championed.

Americans are facing skyrocketing insurance premiums following the expiration of the ACA tax credits and the implementation of President Trump and Republicans' One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which cut nearly $1 trillion from Medicaid last year. As a result,17,000 Minnesotans have dropped their MNSure coverage the health insurance plan they purchased through the state's ACA marketplace this year alone.

"Even before Republicans made historic cuts to Medicaid and stripped the American people of the ACA tax credits they relied on to afford health coverage, it was too expensive to be sick in this country," said Rep. Craig. "Now, thousands of Minnesotans have lost MNSure coverage and countless others are paying through the roof just to access the basic health care they need. But it doesn't have to be this way. A public option will offer folks across this country lower premiums for quality care, and that's why I'm proud to be introducing this common-sense legislation in the house to actually lower health care costs and increase competition in the marketplace."

Since coming to Congress in 2019, Rep. Craig has worked to lower health care costs and make quality care accessible to every Minnesotan.

In April, sheintroduced the Patient Refunds for Bad Denials Act to hold health insurance companies accountable for above-average denial rates and refund patients for medical payments that should have been covered by insurance. And in February, sheintroduced the Patient Debt Relief Act to ease the burden of medical debt on Minnesotans by protecting individuals from predatory debt collection practices and requiring hospitals to offer more manageable repayment options.

In 2022, the provision of Rep. Craig'sbill that capped insulin copays at $35/month for Medicare recipientswas signed into law as part of the Inflation Reduction Act. That same year, Rep. Craigsuccessfully pushed the Biden Administration to close the "family glitch" a move that lowered health care costs for an estimated 62,000 Minnesotans.

In 2019, Rep. Craig introduced her first health care bill, theState Health Care Premium Reduction Act, which would provide funding for state reinsurance programs to directly lower premiums, out-of-pocket costs and deductibles, and make the ACA tax credits permanent.

Senators Michael Bennett (D-CO) and Tim Kaine (D-VA) have introduced companion legislation in the Senate. Reps. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) and Mike Quigley (D-IL-05) are original co-sponsors in the House. Her bill is supported by Minnesota Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith.