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Dear ,
I hope you and your family are doing well! Below, please find a few updates on my work last week for the residents of Arizona’s First Congressional District.
We Live in a Time of Miracles, And Congress Is Doing Everything We Can to Prevent Them
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| Click here or on the image above to review my full remarks from last week’s speech. |
In case you missed it, I delivered a speech on the House floor last week to note that interest spending on the national debt will be the second biggest expenditure in all of government this fiscal year — at $1.2 trillion based on current CBO projections. Even accounting for the revenue-raising proposals suggested by both parties would still only account for 2.5% of GDP, falling far short of what we borrow each year at approximately 8% of GDP. Over the next 30 years, 100% of our debt will be composed solely from interest and healthcare spending. To really emphasize the impact of our nation's debt, it's imperative that we invest in technology that promotes the health and well-being of our brothers and sisters and reduces overall health care spending.
Two of the biggest changes coming in the next few decades – synthetic biology and artificial intelligence – will be game changers for society. The absurd reality is that nearly every dime of government is spent on borrowed money. In fact, we are borrowing money to pay for our borrowed money! AI technology today is at the point where you can basically have a medical lab attached to you; mentoring your health, what illness you have, and much more. If we embrace AI, the benefit to society is remarkable.
Accepting My Nomination of the Healthcare Leadership Council's "Champion of Healthcare Innovation" Award
I am pleased to announce that I was chosen to receive the Healthcare Leadership Council's "Champion of Healthcare Innovation" award, which is presented to lawmakers for ongoing support of patient-centered medical progress. The Healthcare Leadership Council (HLC), a coalition of chief executives from all disciplines within American healthcare, is the exclusive forum for the nation’s healthcare leaders to jointly develop policies, plans, and programs to achieve their vision of a 21st century system that makes affordable, high-quality care accessible to all Americans. Thank you to the Council for noticing my continuous efforts to make our brothers and sisters healthier.
The House Ways & Means Committee Sheds Light on the Growing Antisemitism on College Campuses
Over the past few months, universities have been the hotspot of rampant protests across the country. The Ways and Means Committee invited several witnesses to speak on how these protests have promoted antisemitic beliefs and acts, including:
- Shai Davidai, a Columbia University Assistant Professor
- Jonathan Pidluzny, the Director of Higher Education Reform at the America First Policy Institute
- Talia Dror, a Cornell University student
- Kenneth L. Marcus, the founder and chairman of the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law
- and Ted Deutch, the CEO of the American Jewish Committee and former Congressman from Florida
Professor Davidai and student Talia Dror helped give insight to the committee of campus environment at universities like Cornell and Columbia during these protests. Both explained how the initial protests intended for the protection of innocent women and children in Gaza quickly morphed into blatant antisemitism, with chants such as "From the River to the Sea, Palestine shall be free" being used as an example. Mr. Pidluzny and Mr. Marcus gave similar historical accounts of how antisemitism has risen in America and how Israel is used as a scapegoat for individuals to express their hate. Former Congressman Deutch agreed and explained how important it is for congressional committees to address the expansion of hatred in America, and how blatant antisemitism has grown since October 7th.
In turn, I asked the witnesses how these protestors, who, a few years ago in 2020, were fighting and protesting against hate and racism in the Black Lives Matter protests, have changed their values to allowing hate against Jews, since it fits their narrative of being Pro-Palestine. I also emphasized the importance of social media in this matter and how it allowed for the loudest voices to get the most attention; voices that usually promote hate.
My Amendments to the NDAA for Fiscal Year 2025
Last week, I was pleased to see that several amendments I've been working on for the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2025 passed the House of Representatives. The first amendment I authored ensures the Pentagon's audit is conducted using AI developed by both the Secretary of Defense and Inspector General of the Department of Defense to help streamline the internal review process. The second amendment requires the Comptroller to conduct a study on the potential cost-saving measures of incorporating AI and multi-domain, attributable autonomous, semi-autonomous, unmanned systems, capabilities and processes into each branch of the military and its civilian workforce. I was also grateful to co-author an amendment alongside two of my Ways & Means Committee colleagues that requires the Director of the Defense Health Agency to conduct a study on how the agency can increase access to telehealth services, including how telehealth can improve mental health treatment outcomes.
Serious Schweikert Solutions: The Clean Claims Act
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| Click here or on the image above to hear more about my legislation. |
The Clean Claims Act would establish a demonstration program through Section 1115 waiver authority to test the efficacy of real time, artificial intelligence powered claims development tools. The goal of this Serious Schweikert Solution is to move away from the current “pay and chase” and long processing time for the claims appeal process at CMS. As it’s currently written, 500 practitioners (volunteer/opt-in) would learn how an AI processing platform works to record their physician/patient encounters. The technology would then submit a clean claim to CMS for payment.
How Can the Federal Government Recklessly Spend at the Cost of Hardworking, Taxpaying Americans?
You read that right. The average annual household income for Arizona's First Congressional District is less than what the Federal Government spends every SECOND. What takes a hardworking Arizonan 365 days to earn is still less than what our Federal Government gets to recklessly spend every second. If this frightens you just like it does me, you can sign up for my Daily Debt Monitor for more metrics and comparisons on how outrageous spending is costing taxpaying Arizonans. This free text message subscription sends exclusive, daily updates on the growing debt before anyone else. Head to my website to register for free.
What I’m Reading & Why It Matters
According to a new study, scientists found that a state-of-the-art AI tool can classify normal and abnormal chest X-rays in a clinical setting as well as professional radiologists. Using AI to classify chest X-rays will significantly reduce the workload of radiologists in a field that is already understaffed. An AI tool was recently utilized to analyze chest X-rays of 1,529 patients from four hospitals in Denmark. To analyze the efficacy of the AI tool, two board-certified radiologists were used as a reference standard. The AI tool identified abnormal chest X-rays with a 99.1% sensitivity rate. The radiologists were most surprised how sensitive the tool was for chest diseases across the board. The results were so profoundly positive that there was not a single chest X-ray in their database where the algorithm made a major mistake.
In other news, a Swiss company, Climeworks, has just opened a new plant called Mammoth, which is now the largest direct carbon capture and storage plant. This new plant, “aims to remove 36,000 metric tons of carbon from the air each year" – which would equate to removing over 8,600 cars rom our roads. Mammoth works by capturing carbon dioxide from the air, then transporting the gas to a facility where it is mixed with water and pumped deep underground. After this process, “this carbonated water reacts with the natural porous basalt rocks, turning into solid carbonate minerals which solidify underground within the upper mantle.” Climeworks is already working on its third-generation direct air capture technology, which will be distributed in the U.S. and then, if successful, expand around the world. |