U.S. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) addressed the rising cost of health care during a hearing in Washington, D.C., following the end of a 43-day federal government shutdown.
In his prepared remarks, Crapo highlighted the impact of the shutdown on Americans, noting disruptions to essential services and delayed paychecks for federal workers and servicemembers. He stated, “After the longest shutdown in history, the federal government has reopened. For 43 days, Americans lived with disruption and uncertainty. Essential food assistance was paused, paychecks for servicemembers and federal workers were withheld, and air travel was delayed for safety.”
Crapo emphasized bipartisan agreement that health care costs are too high but criticized current approaches. “Both sides agree the cost of health care is too high. But sending billions of dollars to insurance companies while premiums continue to rise and the deficit continues to grow is not a solution,” he said.
He called for addressing underlying causes rather than relying on increased spending: “We need to address the root causes of the explosive increase in health care costs, rather than mask them with unsustainable spending.”
Discussing policy options, Crapo argued that Obamacare had failed to reduce costs and that subsidies only conceal price increases without solving structural issues. He also noted problems related to temporary COVID-era premium credits and fraud.
“In fact, only three to four percentage points of the underlying premium increase confronting patients is the result of the expiration of the enhanced COVID credits,” Crapo explained.
He encouraged colleagues to consider alternatives beyond extending pandemic-era credits: “Some will argue that time has run out to consider alternatives to extending the COVID credits. I encourage my colleagues to avoid this conclusion and instead keep an open mind in search of a bipartisan outcome.”
Crapo proposed several measures such as expanding access to health savings accounts (HSAs), leveraging tax code provisions like medical expense deductions, creating a commission at CMS for future policymaking guidance, funding cost-sharing reduction subsidies for low-income enrollees, enacting pharmaceutical benefit manager (PBM) reform with Ranking Member Wyden’s support, expanding telehealth flexibility, reforming clinician payment systems, supporting independent practitioners, encouraging preventive measures and innovative treatments.
He concluded by stating: “We cannot transform our broken health care system overnight, but this Committee has a proven record of bipartisan success. Today’s hearing is the first step in building the foundation for reform.”
