Issue Position: Better Health Care - Better Patient Protections

Issue Position

Healthcare is expensive. Prescription drug costs have skyrocketed. I have fought for legislation that ensures we pay the cheapest possible prices for your prescriptions. We must balance the need for better health care and additional health insurance options with the need to restrict over-prescribed drugs such as opioids.

I have seen first-hand the services for both the patient and the patient's family provided by palliative care. In 2014, I was awarded the Hospice Champion Award from the Kentucky Hospice and Palliative Care Association for my work on House Bill 145 during the 2014 session.

House Bill 1 (2020) -- supported by M. Meredith; this bill would have been the first step towards real accountability for public assistance programs. In order for these programs to properly serve our most vulnerable friends and neighbors, we must be able to catch fraud and misuse. The ultimate goal of this bill was to finally eliminate the barriers that keep people from getting and keeping a job.

House Bill 12 (2020) -- supported by M. Meredith; this measure would have a positive impact on roughly 500,000 Kentuckians. House Bill 12 limits out-of-pocket costs for insulin prescriptions. The legislation mandates the cost of insulin would be capped at $100 per prescription for a 30-day insulin supply.

House Bill 463 (2018) -- primarily sponsored by M. Meredith; aimed at saving Kentuckians money on prescriptions, this measure provides transparency to consumers by letting them know if the cash price of a prescription would be cheaper than the cost sharing (co-pay) if they were using their insurance.

House Bill 1 (2012) -- supported by M. Meredith; this landmark piece of legislation set out the mandatory prescribing and dispensing standards for controlled substances in Kentucky. The bill, which was signed into law, focused on the regulation of pain clinics and prescription drug abuse in Kentucky.

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