WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Rep. Scott Peters (CA-52) helped the House pass the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Enhancement Act, a substantial package that builds on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) by lowering health care costs and prescription drug prices.

The framework for all of the provisions in today’s comprehensive bill is the bipartisan State Health Care Premium Reduction Act, originally introduced by Rep. Angie Craig (MN-02) and Rep. Peters in February 2019 and which passed out of the House Energy and Commerce Committee in April 2019. The State Health Care Premium Reduction Act funds health care reinsurance in state-based marketplaces to keep costs down for consumers. A major priority for Rep. Peters, this reinsurance program will cover the costliest medical claims and is expected to reduce premiums by as much as 10 percent for people across the country.

“We must protect and expand accessible, affordable, quality health care for San Diegans – this is even more critical now that we face a pandemic,” said Rep. Peters. “Despite the president’s move last Thursday, threatening the health care of millions by filing a brief asking the Supreme Court to strike down the entirety of the ACA, members of the House are engaged to safeguard the aspects of the Affordable Care Act that work and fix what doesn’t to improve our healthcare system.”

Rep. Peters added, “Our work to enhance American health care, however, cannot stop at simply preserving the basic tenets of the ACA. We must continue to move toward value pricing and away from fee for service, strengthen consumer choices, value prevention over treatment, and actively increase investment in innovation, like diagnostic genome sequencing, gene therapies and biosimilar medicines, which will provide long-term health savings moving forward.”

Rep. Peters has been a vocal champion of smart reforms to the ACA to make it more affordable and accessible for San Diegans. Besides introducing and shepherding the passage of the State Health Care Premium Reduction Act, Rep. Peters has also fought for increased support for servicemembers through the Department of Defense in 2019 and voted to protect the health care of Americans with preexisting conditions.