House Democrats Pass Legislation to Lower Health Care and Prescription Drug Costs, Ban LGBT Discrimination with Passage of Equality Act
This week, House Democrats continued to focus on expanding access to affordable, quality health care and lowering the cost of prescription drugs. On Thursday, the House passed H.R. 987, the Strengthening Health Care and Lowering Prescription Drug Costs Act, a legislative package of seven individual bills. H.R. 987 protects and expands access to health care by banning junk insurance plans that don’t provide the coverage Americans need and providing funding for efforts to assist Americans with signing up for health coverage. The bill also addresses the skyrocketing cost of prescription drugs by bringing generics to market more quickly. Health care continues to be a top priority for the American people, and I urge the Senate to take up this bill quickly, pass it, and send it to the President to sign.
The House also passed H.R.5, the Equality Act, this week. I was proud to bring this legislation to the Floor today as we recognized International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia. The bill bans discrimination against LGBT Americans in housing, employment, public education, jury service, credit and financing, and public accommodations. With millions of LGBT Americans still facing discrimination in the United States, H.R. 5 is long overdue, and I urge the Senate to take up this bipartisan bill so our nation can take an important step on the long path toward a more perfect union.
Finally, this week was National Infrastructure Week, and House Democrats continued to discuss our commitment to building twenty-first century infrastructure, which is a core component of my Make It In America plan to create jobs and expand economic opportunity. Several committees have held hearings to assess our nation’s infrastructure challenges, and I am pleased that House Democrats and the President recently agreed that we ought to pass a $2 trillion infrastructure package. I am hopeful we can make progress on an infrastructure deal in the near future and that the President will lead the way in identifying new revenue for this important investment.
Democratic News Update
On Health Care
On H.R. 5, the Equality Act On Infrastructure