For the past six years, my congressional office has received calls, emails, letters, meetings and visits from Eastern Kansans detailing the disastrous effects the president’s failed healthcare law – the Affordable Care Act – has had on their families and small businesses.
I have heard from Kansans about their premiums increasing by 51 percent and even going up more than 300 percent. And while these Kansans are being forced to pay extremely expensive health premiums, other Kansans have notified my office that their healthcare plans are being canceled.
One Kansan stated that her healthcare plan was canceled and the new plans offered to her would result in her premiums tripling.
Sadly, similar stories such as these can be heard all across our country. Whether it is premium increases, policy cancellations or a multitude of other issues, the Affordable Care Act is full of broken promises that aren’t working.
In a recent Fox News editorial, Grover Norquist spoke about the penalizing effect Obamacare has had on Health Savings Accounts and Flexible Spending Accounts, pointing out that, “ObamaCare imposed several taxes that hit the tens of millions of Americans who use Health Savings Accounts and Flexible Spending Accounts. Specifically, the law forbid families from using HSA and FSA dollars for over the counter medications.”
This is an issue that I have been working on in Congress as there are millions of people who have used Health Savings Accounts and Flexible Spending Accounts to pay for their medical expenses.
In short, under Obamacare, people were required to get a prescription from their doctors to use their Health Savings Accounts and Flexible Spending Accounts for over-the-counter medication. The end result is that families are spending more to see their doctor to get basic over-the-counter medications, and doctors are spending valuable time prescribing cold medicine as their more critical patients wait for attention.
That’s why I am re-introducing a bill – the Restoring Access to Medication Act – that repeals a provision of the Affordable Care Act, Section 9003, that prevents folks with Health Savings Accounts and Flexible Spending Accounts from using their funds to pay for over-the-counter medications.
I am pleased to say that this bill passed the House of Representatives in the 114th Congress by a strong, bipartisan vote. Now, with a more unified government, I am hopeful that we can get it quickly signed into law.
This legislation is a commonsense solution that will help put healthcare cost management back where it belongs – in the hands of the American people.
House Republicans are working to repeal the Affordable Care Act and transition to a more patient-centered healthcare system. We have already begun taking steps to help make healthcare costs much more affordable while ensuring certain aspects of the Affordable Care Act, such as allowing dependents to stay on their parent’s healthcare plan until the age of 26, are strengthened.
The time is now to fix our broken healthcare system, and I look forward to working with my colleagues to create a more patient-centered solution.
Congresswoman Lynn Jenkins represents Kansas’ Second Congressional District and is a member of the House Ways and Means Committee. Thinking of submitting an op-ed to the Washington Examiner? Be sure to read our guidelines on submissions.
