Kevin Roberts: “I rise today to introduce a bipartisan bill, the Restoring Access to Medication Act of 2011. This bill would repeal the…”

“I rise today to introduce a bipartisan bill, the Restoring Access to Medication Act of 2011. This bill would repeal the portion of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act which requires individuals to have a prescription to spend the money they have saved in their Flexible Spending Accounts. Flexible Spending Accounts, FSAs, Health Savings Accounts, HSAs, and other medical savings arrangements provide plan participants with an affordable, convenient and accessible means to manage their health care expenses. More than 35 million Americans participate in FSAs and more than 10 million Americans participate in a HSA. These accounts allow plan participants to set aside their own dollars on a pre-tax basis to pay for health care expenses, giving individuals control over health care decisions and how to pay for that care. A key benefit of these plans prior to enactment of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, PPACA, was the ability for participants to use the dollars they set aside in these plans to pay for the cost of over- the-counter medications. However, under PPACA, plan participants may no longer use funds from these accounts to purchase over-the-counter medications, unless they have a prescription for the medication. This prohibition takes away choice from individuals about how to manage their health care expenses and adds yet another burden to physicians, as some plan participants will seek a prescription for over-the-counter medications.…”