Political Quotes

“Before I was elected to serve in the House of Representatives, I spent nearly 30 years in the nonprofit healthcare field assisting those individuals who were facing life-changing diseases and disability. Additionally, as a member of my home community, I have volunteered for decades as an emergency medical technician, serving my neighbors in their time of trauma or medical emergency needs. I am acutely aware of the challenges many face when it comes to obtaining reasonably priced health care. It is especially critical for rural America, like much of the Fifth Congressional District of Pennsylvania. We are facing a healthcare crisis in our Nation's rural areas. These often disadvantaged populations are still struggling to access affordable, quality care. Many remain uninsured. Many find themselves newly uninsured as a result of the pressures and the demands and the mandates of the Affordable Care Act. Most are underinsured; however, access to quality care really does remain the largest challenge. Even when people gain access to health insurance or coverage, it does not equal access to care. Rural hospitals across the country are closing, leaving patients without access to their emergency rooms and long-term care facilities. When you close a hospital in a rural area, the result is a commute that means the difference, frequently, between life and death. Eighty rural hospitals have closed since 2010. One in three rural hospitals are financially vulnerable.…”