AMAC touts increased access to healthcare, taxpayer savings of billions in annual Medicaid payments
WASHINGTON, DC – A simple but effective mechanism to increase both choice and access to quality healthcare for the nation’s Medicaid eligible poor, while saving billions in Medicaid and CHIP outlays, was introduced today in the House of Representatives. Under the proposed law, doctors and medical professionals who offer medical care for low-income Americans would receive a tax deduction for each low-income patient they treat for free.
The “Physician Pro Bono Care Act ” was introduced by Rep. Daniel Webster (R-FL) and Collin Peterson (D-MN). The bill has five additional co-sponsors.
Many physicians are dropping out of the Medicaid program due to high administrative costs and procedural burdens. This bipartisan Physician Pro Bono Care Act (H.R. 856) effectively provides Medicaid and CHIP eligible individuals and families access to healthcare, the ability to choose their physicians and to establish long-term patient-physician relationships.
At the same time, the law would provide physicians the opportunity to avoid Medicaid’s and CHIP’s costly administrative burdens and receive a simple charitable tax deduction for their services. The annual net savings of this charitable deduction approach to Medicaid and the CHIP program expenditures would be a multiple of the cost of the deduction.
“This can be a bipartisan win-win to improve access and choice to healthcare for those of limited means, and I urge the Congress to take up this legislation and pass it,” said Dan Weber, president and founder of AMAC. “From the positive feedback we’ve received from physicians, we believe medical care could be offered to as many as 7 million needy people,” Weber added.
“This bill is a creative, commonsense solution that ensures our most vulnerable Americans have access to the care they need, from the doctor they choose, at a price they can afford,” said Rep. Daniel Webster. “This bill removes government bureaucracy and red-tape that obstructs the patient-doctor relationship, and it expands access to doctors for some of the more vulnerable in our society.”
“In addition to expanding care options for those most in need, the Physician Pro Bono Care Act also has the potential to save billions of dollars in federal healthcare expenditures,” said Rep. Collin Peterson. “I look forward to working with Congressman Webster to implement this important reform.”
EDIT AS OF 3/12/19:
Bill Introduced By:
Rep. Daniel Webster (R-FL-06)
Rep. Collin Peterson (D-MN-07)
Additional Co-sponsors:
Rick Allen (R/GA-12)
Jody Hice (R/GA-10)
Mark Meadows (R/NC-11)
Alex Mooney (R/WV-02)
Bruce Westerman (R/AR-04)
Paul Gosar (R/AZ-04)
Pete Stauber (R/MN-08)
Ron Wright (R/TX-06)
Ted Budd (R/NC-13)
Greg Gianforte (R/MT-AL)
Barry Loudermilk (R/GA-11)
Greg Stuebe (R/FL-17)
AMAC is the 1.6-million-member conservative alternative to AARP and has extensively lobbied in support of the measure. The organization will continue its work with House Members to encourage more co-sponsors as well as support from the medical and conservative communities, who supported a nearly identical version of the bill which was introduced in the last session of Congress.
Media Contacts:
Mike Russell – [email protected] • 703-683-5004 ext. 1109
Morgan Assenmacher – [email protected] • 703-683-5004 ext. 1121
One Democrat?
I would like to see strong support for alternative health clinics that stress more natural treatments over just prescribing pharmaceuticals. I bet you at least 60% of health problems are to poor diet and not getting proper nutrition- ie real vitamins and minerals in proper combinations and eating real, non processed foods or close to it.
I can’t but notice how only one Dem is on the support list. Apparently, anything that delays their total control of healthcare is unacceptable.
I am a staunch Republican. I have a loved one who is suffering from an autoimmune disease. He spends most days vomiting and dealing with diarrhea. He has tried to find any type of computer work that he can do during the few hours a day that he can function properly. He is still making small monthly payments on the tremendous medical bills that he was charged before he was allowed to join medicaid. If he had no family to help him and no medicaid he would also have no hope. Communism is terrible, but that doesn’t mean that we can not temper our American medical needs to fit the needs of the Americans who cannot afford those services. Many Seniors would not be alive if not for medicare. Some call Medicare communism, but it fits in with our founding fathers faith and principles and it has been a blessing to our country. Democrats have created a deceptive reputation for loving the poor and needy. But let my fellow Republicans create a true, factual reputation, that shows we do care about the health of every single American. The sick, the mentally and physically disabled, the children, the poor. That’s not socialism that’s Christian.
What about people like me that had Medicaid then got social security benefits before I turned 65?
This will Definetly be abused. No doctor or medical personnel will ever pay taxes and no middle income person will ever be afford medical care. This is just another government scam!
We should set up small, drop-in Clinics in low income areas to provide ordinary medical care close to home. They should have extended hours so the WORKING poor are able to access it. This will cost some money, but decrease the number of visits to expensive emergency rooms for minor illnesses, accidents, etc. Having medical care nearby could save someone’s life. We should offer medical students some forgiveness of educational debts if they agree to work in these clinics for a set period of time during their internship or following graduation.
There is NO SUCH THING as free anything. Someone i.e. the taxpayers are paying for the freeloaders. Medical costs skyrocketed only after the government got involved. Anyone remember LBJ touting Medicare by saying it would never cost more that 7 or 8 billion dollars. See how that worked ougt
Since this is a bi-partisan bill, one should have plenty of reservations. If it is truly ‘simple but effective’, then there would be no need for bi-partisanship. Every one in Congress would vote for it, and devil take the politics. But no, its described as a bi-partisan bill – meant to tell all free market loving voters that they would be silly not to support a bill like this. Remember the St Joseph/St Elizabeth/Presbyterian/etc hospitals once took care of the poor, until the govt stepped in. Best to repeal Obamacare – remember McCain was bi-partisan, until it came time to repeal the Obamacare monstrosity. Then he showed everybody his true fully leftist colours.
Stop giving people everything “FREE”!!! These people need to purchase insurance as everyone else does!!
These Republicans supporting the bill need to cancel their Cadillac insurance plans and use Medicaid as they suggest!!
What a bunch of horse hockey. If you believe that ANY govenment program is going to save ANY money then I have some swap land in Arizona to sell you. Of course the Dems are going to be for this as it brings us on step closer to “single payer’ health care. Shame on the REPs for sponoring such a bill. Some one in another response said it all, “once the govenment got its grimy hands on the health care system in this country it has gone to h*** in a hand basket”.
Nothing is ever FREE….somewhere, someone else pays.
We already give medical freebies to illegals, criminals and every To, Dick and Harry…..I think many politicians who cannot help but pander ought to work for free and be term limited….
Finally a win- win in healthcare!
SO SICK of all of this ALWAYS falling on the TAXPAYERS!!! This will just do the same.
wealth transfer
They need more than just health care. What good is it to have free doctor visits if they still can’t afford the medicines.
Poor Rep. Peterson will be excommunicated from the Democrat Party for signing on to such a Common Sense bill. It will result in fewer people being totally dependent on the Dem Party. THAT cannot be allowed!!! Note that all of the cosponsors are Republicans. Does this tell you anything?
Crazy. Not in the list of authorized Federal government functions. It belongs to the states AND it is not possible to fund it if they taxed us at 100%
Is seniors receiving free health care. I pay for mine. I know in Florida there already programs in place