Regular readers of this blog know I often criticize ObamaCare, formerly known as The Affordable Care Act of 2010. It was passed without a single Republican vote by the Obama administration and has failed to achieve its promoted goals of lowering the cost of healthcare and providing healthcare coverage for every American.

Democrats counter with their own criticism of Republicans, claiming they have no alternatives to offer. While this is certainly untrue, it is true that Republicans failed to deliver on their promise to abolish ObamaCare and replace it during the first two years of the Trump administration, thanks largely to rebel Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona, who despised President Trump.

But now, the Republican-controlled House of Representatives has passed three new bills to improve healthcare with bipartisan support. It’s up to the Senate now to see these bills become law.

Grace-Marie Turner, writing for Galen.org, gives us the details of these three new bills:

• By a big 320-71 bipartisan vote Monday night, the chamber passed the Lower Cost, More Transparency Act,a major team effort of the three major committees with jurisdiction over health policy issues—Energy and Commerce, Education and Labor, and Ways and Means.
• The House passed in June a companion bill, the CHOICE Arrangements Act, that gives small businesses more options in providing health coverage and gives employees more flexibility in how they spend their health coverage dollars.
• On Tuesday, the House reauthorized opioid treatment and prevention programs through the SUPPORTAct, passed soon after a Senate health committee passed its own version of the measure.

She also notes that all three bills went through the normal legislative process, starting with subcommittee hearings to vet the details of the bills, and not via a huge, clumsy, opaque “omnibus” special bill that no legislator has time to read or consider. The three bills each incorporate numerous targeted bills sponsored by individual members.

She goes on to explain: “These are important milestones toward patient-focused health care.  Dozens of members worked together through the Healthy Futures task forces that began work in 2020 to set out an agenda for health reform and engage members in the details of policymaking.  The overall goal is to give people access to choices of more affordable health coverage and care in a revived market catering to their needs and preferences.”

How do these bills improve healthcare?

• The Lower Cost, More Transparency billrequires hospitals, health insurers, labs, and other providers to make accurate, accessible price information available to patients and consumers.  It addresses the obfuscation of drug prices by pharmacy benefit managers that can inflate prices and co-payments for patients, and would lower out-of-pocket costs for seniors who receive outpatient medications in a hospital-owned setting.
• The CHOICE Act (“Custom Health Option and Individual Care Expense Arrangement Act” or the “CHOICE Arrangement Act”) recognizes the difficulties small businesses have in providing health coverage to their workers and gives new options to businesses in vulnerable small group markets. The bill includes the Self-Insurance Protection Act and would codify access to more and more affordable coverage options through Association Health Plans.It also would codify and improve the Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangements that would give employees more options of health coverage with tax-preferred dollars.
• The third vote reauthorizes the landmark SUPPORT Act(the Substance Use-Disorder Prevention that Promotes Opioid Recovery and Treatment for Patients and Communities Reauthorization Act of 2023). All three bills build on Trump administration policies. President Trump signed the original substance abuse law in 2018 to address the nation’s opioid and mental health crises.  This legislation also has bipartisan support in the Senate.

The House of Representatives has now shown that there is bipartisan support for improving our healthcare. It’s time the Democratic-controlled Senate do the same for the sake of the America people. Let’s hope both sides can come together, even in an election year, to put the American people ahead of partisan politics.