Political Quotes

“Mr. President, today I am pleased to introduce the Ensuring Access to COVID-19 Vaccines for Seniors Act with Senator Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia. It is critical that a future COVID-19 vaccine be made available to Medicare beneficiaries with no cost sharing, which is the goal of our legislation. The CARES Act, which Congress passed overwhelmingly and was signed into law at the end of March, included provisions requiring Medicare to cover FDA-approved COVID-19 vaccines with no-cost sharing. These provisions are designed to ensure that as soon as there is an approved and available COVID-19 vaccine, seniors across the Nation would be able to get the vaccine for free under Medicare. Vaccines are one of the best public health interventions in our lifetime and we must do everything we can to encourage everyone to get the vaccines recommended by their doctors. One of the most effective ways to improve vaccination rates is to remove barriers such as cost. In fact, working with my colleagues, I was able to include provisions in the Affordable Care Act to ensure that vaccines are covered by insurance with no cost-sharing. This not only makes our population healthier, but it also saves money in the long-term. While the COVID-19 vaccine development and testing protocols are ongoing, it is very likely that the first vaccines will be made available under an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) by FDA.…”