Health Care Archives - Congresswoman Cheri Bustos

Making Health Care More Accessible and Affordable

Health care is a deeply personal issue to me.

My sister-in-law, Barb, died several years ago without health insurance. Barb and her husband both worked full-time, but they couldn’t afford health insurance and when she got sick, she couldn’t afford the most effective cancer treatment she needed to survive.

Even those who can afford insurance are not immune to the extremely high costs of operations and prescription medications. A few months after my sister-in-law passed away, my brother Danny died, leaving behind a wife and two daughters. His insurance would not cover his cancer treatment because an experimental drug was required. I support legislation that will help make quality health care more affordable so no families have to go through the suffering my family did.

Another major issue across our nation is the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Since the ACA has been implemented, we’ve seen significant improvements in health care delivery. Whether it’s providing free preventative care, expanding Medicaid coverage to hundreds of thousands of Illinoisans, eliminating pre-existing condition discrimination, ending lifetime limits on care or allowing young adults to stay on their parents plan until age 26, by just about every metric, the ACA has been a success.

However, there are always ways that we can build upon these successes and make improvements to reduce health care costs and improve accessibility.

More on Health Care

Press Release

November 4, 2019

ICYMI: BUSTOS INTRODUCES SIX NEW PIECES OF LEGISLATION TO GROW OUR WORKFORCE, SPUR ECONOMIC GROWTH AND PROTECT FIRST RESPONDERS

Bustos’ Bill to Provide Relief to Gold Star Spouses and Spouses of Injured Servicemembers Clears Committee WASHINGTON – In case you missed it, Congresswoman Cheri Bustos (IL-17) introduced six new pieces of legislation during the month of October to fight for hardworking Illinoisans, grow our workforce, spur economic growth, protect first responders and implement key […]

Press Release

November 1, 2019

BUSTOS URGES ILLINOISANS TO REVIEW THEIR HEALTH CARE OPTIONS DURING HEALTH EXCHANGE OPEN ENROLLMENT PERIOD

WASHINGTON – Today, Congresswoman Cheri Bustos (IL-17) urged Illinoisans who receive their coverage through the individual market—or considering doing so—to review their health insurance options during the annual health exchange’s open enrollment period. Open enrollment lasts from November 1st until December 15th. Illinois residents should visit GetCovered.Illinois.Gov to find the coverage that is best for […]

Press Release

October 29, 2019

BUSTOS, ROE AND KUSTOFF INTRODUCE BILL TO SUPPORT RURAL HEALTH WORKFORCE

WASHINGTON – Today, Representatives Cheri Bustos (IL-17), Phil Roe (TN-01) and David Kustoff (TN-08) introduced the bipartisan, bicameral Rural America Health Corps Act in the House to help address workforce shortages in rural health care. Specifically, this legislation would improve the National Health Services Corps (NHSC) by creating a program to provide new dedicated student […]

Press Release

September 26, 2019

PHOTOS: BUSTOS DISCUSSES HEALTH CARE BILL AT THE ATLANTIC FESTIVAL

WASHINGTON – Today, Congresswoman Cheri Bustos (IL-17) participated in The Atlantic Festival where she joined staff writer, Vann R. Newkirk II, on stage as part of a discussion on “Health Equity in America.” Specifically, Congresswoman Bustos and Newkirk covered Bustos’ Social Determinants Accelerator Act of 2019. This legislation would create a federal grant program to […]