Rep. Keating Supports Equitable Access to Care, Health Act

WASHINGTON, July 27 -- Rep. William Keating, D-Massachusetts, issued the following speech, which was published in the Congressional Record July 25, supporting the Equitable Access to Care and Health Act:

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the Equitable Access to Care and Health Act, or the EACH Act, which seeks to provide a bipartisan, common-sense exemption to the Affordable Care Act for those who uniquely rely on religious methods of healing.

In my home state of Massachusetts, we are very proud of our healthcare system, the system which, as my colleagues know, formed the basis for the Affordable Care Act, the law from which so many Americans benefit today.

As the Massachusetts legislature contemplated the direction of its successful healthcare system, lawmakers saw fit to provide an exemption from its insurance requirements for sincerely held religious beliefs. The exemption grants reprieve for Massachusetts residents who would not otherwise use our traditional healthcare system even if they did carry traditional health insurance. At its essence, the EACH Act seeks to extend a similar reprieve for Americans who would not otherwise benefit from the system created under the Affordable Care Act.

Thank you to my colleague Mr. Davis of Illinois for his leadership on this issue. I urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan legislation.