Todd Young: “I want to thank Mr. Upton for his work on the 21st Century Cures Act, finally making medical breakthroughs a national…”

“I want to thank Mr. Upton for his work on the 21st Century Cures Act, finally making medical breakthroughs a national priority. With this bill, we will extend the longevity and improve the lives of millions of Americans now and in the future. And in the process, we will dramatically reduce the taxpayer money we spend to treat sick Americans. With all that in mind, I want to highlight an amendment that my thoughtful and hard-working colleague, Dr. Harris of Maryland, and I have worked on, and I urge my colleagues' support. This amendment would create within NIH a structure for a medical prize program. The United States is currently spending $632 billion per year through just one program, Medicare, to cover health services of qualified beneficiaries. To help lower taxpayer costs as well as improve patient outcomes, this amendment will offer modest monetary rewards to those outside of government who can develop significant medical breakthroughs. The medical prize program will encourage scientists and entrepreneurs, especially those that don't typically receive NIH grants, to develop cost-saving, life-improving cures for some of the most debilitating diseases that afflict our young and old. With those thoughts in mind, I urge your support of the amendment, and I reserve the balance of my time.”