The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“CONGRESSIONAL HISPANIC CAUCUS” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Justice was published in the House of Representatives section on pages H9248-H9249 on Dec. 4, 2019.
The Department is one of the oldest in the US, focused primarily on law enforcement and the federal prison system. Downsizing the Federal Government, a project aimed at lowering taxes and boosting federal efficiency, detailed wasteful expenses such as $16 muffins at conferences and board meetings.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
CONGRESSIONAL HISPANIC CAUCUS
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mrs. Trahan). Under the Speaker's announced policy of January 3, 2019, the gentleman from New York (Mr. Espaillat) is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the majority leader.
General Leave
Mr. ESPAILLAT. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the subject of my Special Order in the Record.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from New York?
There was no objection.
Mr. ESPAILLAT. Madam Speaker, as the whip of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, I am pleased to lead this monthly Special Order hour. This afternoon's topic comes at a critical time for our Nation and for the communities we represent who are all concerned with the state of healthcare and harmful actions of the Trump administration.
There is no more personal an issue than one's health, and as such, this should be top on the minds of Members of Congress.
It was the late Martin Luther King, Jr. who said in 1966 that of all the forms of inequality, injustice in healthcare is perhaps the most shocking and inhumane.
Healthcare is a priority of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, and we want to use today's opportunity to discuss the state of Latino health in the United States of America. The Affordable Care Act was landmark legislation that extended healthcare coverage to more than 20 million Americans either through Medicaid expansion or tax credits to purchase quality and comprehensive healthcare insurance products.
In the Latino community, at least 4 million Latino adults and 600,000 Latino children have gained health insurance coverage thanks to the ACA. And we cannot forget that the ACA extended health insurance coverage for children through age 26. Especially for children and young adolescents, the uninsured rate for Latino children has decreased considerably, from 11.5 percent to around 7.5 percent.
The gains in health insurance coverage for these children and preventive healthcare and reduction in the severity of chronic conditions is a testament to the good and constructive health policy that Democrats are committed to. However, the Trump administration has sought to undermine the ACA and the benefits it brings to the Latino community.
Earlier this year in a bipartisan vote, the U.S. House of Representatives felt compelled to rebuke the Trump administration for its promotion of the skinny junk plans that offer no guarantee of essential health benefits. That is no guarantee for mental health treatment; no guarantee for preventive healthcare, which lowers the overall cost of healthcare; and no guarantee for prescription drug coverage.
According to the data collected from the Kaiser Family Foundation, from 2013 to 2017, people of color had higher uninsured rates than non-
Hispanic Whites prior to 2014. And it was only after the Affordable Care Act came into effect that Latinos had larger gains in health insurance coverage from 2013 to 2016 than non-Hispanic Whites. But our work is not done. It is truly not done.
Every day we are working to curb the destructive actions of this administration to harm the gains that we have made in the healthcare arena and well-being of the Latino community overall, and we continue working to close the health equity gaps that the ACA did not address.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Latino Americans are twice as likely to have type 2 diabetes than White Americans. In the United States, adults over their lifetime have a 40 percent chance of developing type 2 diabetes, but the Latino adult has a rate of 50 percent higher. Given that, coverage of and the overall cost of insulin--a necessary treatment for managing diabetes--is a priority for the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.
Since the start of this 116th Congress, the Congressional Hispanic Caucus has invited the CEOs of insulin manufacturers and pharmacy benefit managers to meet with us and explain how and why insulin remains unaffordable for so many Americans. We met with the largest pharmacy benefit managers in this country who collectively comprise 78 percent of the market and cover 180 million individuals with health insurance: CVS Health, Express Scripts, and OptumRx of UnitedHealth Group. In our discussions we were, quite frankly, met with much resistance by all parties in the prescription drug supply chain and pharmacy benefits business.
It is infuriating for patients at the local pharmacy counter; and trust me, it is infuriating to me and my colleagues in the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.
In addition to benefits managers, the CHC met with the CEOs of the top three insulin manufacturers who produce 90 percent of the global insulin supply and 100 percent of the supply for diabetic patients in the United States of America. They are Sanofi, Novo Nordisk, and Eli Lilly and Company.
It may seem impossible, but Dr. Frederick Banting who discovered and cultivated insulin as a treatment for diabetes, sold the patent for his remarkable drug for only $1 to the University of Toronto.
Madam Speaker, he sold this important patent that has saved the lives of millions of people just for $1 to the University of Toronto, yet the price of insulin both with insurance and without it has risen astronomically to the point where diabetic patients must make the decision between purchasing lifesaving insulin versus paying their rent, finding childcare for their families, or getting an education.
We asked them why this is, and, in short, they simply did not have a good answer.
So we are concerned, Madam Speaker, that the patent for insulin which was sold by Dr. Frederick Banting to the University of Toronto for $1 has now been placed in a position that is inaccessible to patients across America who will subsequently die without having that treatment.
But we are committed to shedding a light on this obscured process and making sure that patients receive the therapies they need at the price they can afford. This is our promise. This is our commitment.
We, as the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and greater Democratic Caucus, are committed to fighting for healthcare that lies in stark contrast to this White House administration. That is why we have passed legislation to strengthen the ACA, not to weaken it, not to obliterate it, but to strengthen it, and it is why we will consider landmark legislation later this month to help lower the cost of prescription drugs.
Now, before I conclude, Madam Speaker, I want to lay out some important events taking place as we speak, because they will have an unimaginably detrimental impact on the state of health in the Latino community.
The Trump Department of Justice and Attorney General William Barr abandoned their obligation to defend our current healthcare system and the Affordable Care Act. The State of Texas is seeking to invalidate the ACA and unravel the law that has benefited constituents across America represented in this, the House of Representatives of the U.S. Congress, and this Department of Justice is willing to let this happen undeterred.
This administration told the Texas district court that it was opting to not defend existing regulations such as protections for preexisting conditions. Imagine that, Madam Speaker, not protecting preexisting conditions, meaning that those who suffer from diabetes and those who suffer from hypertension and cardiovascular problems who have preexisting conditions will not be protected and will be out in the cold.
This administration is turning its back on over 130 million Americans, including 17 million children and adolescents with preexisting conditions. With no plan or idea of what to do going forward, they are willing to harm the lives of millions of Americans. This is purely irresponsible, and it is reprehensible.
Neither the Congressional Hispanic Caucus nor Democrats will allow this to happen unchecked. We will continue to work hard to make sure healthcare continues to be made more affordable and more equally accessible for all Americans, especially people whom we represent.
Madam Speaker, I am so grateful for this opportunity. I will now conclude, Madam Speaker. I would like to thank my colleagues who could not be here today or are here today.
And I would like to reiterate that we will defend the Affordable Care Act and make sure that Latinos across America are not further harmed by this administration or partisan politics.
We are committed to lowering the cost of prescription drugs and making sure that insulin remains available and affordable to all communities across America and particularly communities of color that are disproportionately affected by diabetes. And we will raise hell every time that we find another instance of capricious price inflation or market consolidation or an obvious attempt to shift the blame.
With that, Madam Speaker, the Congressional Hispanic Caucus will not cease in our advocacy for the healthcare and the well-being of our communities that we represent here in the Congress and across our country.
This is a crucial time in America where the Affordable Care Act, as presented by the past administration, not only provided access to healthcare for people with preexisting conditions and not only did it allow our children up to the age of 26 to be part of our health plan, but it also provided funding for Medicaid and Medicare. It also provided funding for mental health services, an arena that has, for far too long, been left aside with not having the appropriate funding that it needs, and for people suffering from opioid addiction.
{time} 1445
These are the services that were provided by the ACA. This administration has moved forward to dismantle it and to put people's lives in jeopardy.
Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
____________________
