At a time of widespread political disagreement, there seems to be consensus on at least one thing: Congressional lawmaking is moving at a plodding pace. From healthcare to infrastructure to tax reform to essentially every other national priority, we are seeing, to date, mostly incremental progress. Knowing this, it’s quite surprising to watch legislation I believe will jeopardize medical care and increase costs for millions of people move to President Trump’s desk with blinding speed.

The issue is Senate Bill 670, the Over-the-Counter Hearing Aid Act of 2017, authored by Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass. This bill means what it says – it would make hearing aids available over the counter – but it fundamentally fails the test of regulatory reliability and, most importantly, patient safety.