Political Quotes

“I now will turn to an important topic: strengthening domestic manufacturing of medical supplies. This poignant true story from my district illustrates the declining quality and access to USA-made medical supplies. A female patient who is a senior citizen in my district has had to endure a permanent ileostomy for many years. The lifesaving procedure, a very difficult one, requires her to use ostomy supplies daily. For years, she has had access to high-quality bags made of thin plastic material prescribed by her physician. These original bags were comfortable and suited to her critical medical needs. She reached out to me with a distressing situation. As the months of her dependence on these critical supplies wore on, she faced a harsh new reality. Her physician informed her that because the new manufacturers had changed the product design, high-quality bags were no longer available. She had to accept less, but what we found out is ownership of the company had changed. A private equity fund sold the product to an offshore foreign investor that changed the design and quality. Indeed, the new bags were cheapened and very harsh for a patient to endure. The new bags utilized a cheaper, thicker, and stiffer plastic. This design and fabric irritate the patient's skin and, at over 80 years of age, makes it difficult to cut each bag without causing sharp or ragged edges.…”