Rural Healthcare Funding

Last fall, I supported legislation that created a Rural Health Transformation Program. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid recently announced that Minnesota would receive $193 million from this program in 2026. This investment is a helping hand for rural clinics and hospitals that often struggle with limited staff or aging equipment. In plain terms, the money will be used to help hire and train more doctors and nurses to work in rural areas, upgrade medical equipment, and expand "telehealth" services, which let patients see specialists via video visits from their own homes. By focusing on everyday health needs like heart care and diabetes, this funding is all about making healthcare more reliable, modern, and convenient for everyone in Greater Minnesota, ensuring that your zip code doesn't determine the quality of your care.

I recently had the opportunity to meet with RiverView Health to discuss how this funding is especially impactful for community-owned, not-for-profit health systems, like it, that are facing financial strain. I look forward to ensuring this funding helps organizations like RiverView Health. 

Hearing with Health Insurance CEOs

I joined my colleagues on the House Ways & Means Committee for a hearing with the CEOs of the nation's largest health insurance companies to address a growing crisis: why health care costs are soaring while the quality of coverage declines. We looked into the few companies that own everything from the insurance plan to the pharmacy and the doctor’s office, and how they use that power to raise costs. 

I also had the opportunity to ask Cigna Group CEO David Cordani about rural EMS providers in my district who are struggling with compensation issues. It is unacceptable that our first responders, who cover hundreds of square miles in rural communities, are operating on razor-thin margins due to unfair reimbursement rates. I specifically asked Mr. Cordani why Cigna is effectively only paying for half of an EMS response by refusing to reimburse the cost of driving to a scene and only paying once a patient is in the ambulance. I will continue to follow up with Cigna and other insurance companies to ensure fair pay for our rural EMS. 

Healthcare For All Act

Last month, I joined my House colleagues in passing the Lower Health Care Premiums for all Americans Act to reduce the cost of health insurance. Instead of using temporary fixes, this bill tries to fix the root causes of why insurance is so expensive. For example, it targets the "middlemen" in the drug industry to ensure the discounts they get are actually passed on to you, and it provides direct funding to help stabilize the insurance market so prices don't spike every year.

The most helpful part of this plan for many people is that it gives you more power and more choices. If you work for a small business or work for yourself, you’d be allowed to join together with others to get the same "bulk discount" rates that giant corporations get. It also lets your boss give you tax-free money to pick out your own health plan, rather than being stuck with whatever one plan the company offers. By cutting through red tape and encouraging more competition between insurance companies, the bill aims to save the average person about 12% on their premiums.

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