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Health Care

“As an emergency medicine physician, I know how important it is for people I serve to have access to quality, affordable health care. I will always fight to lower costs for families, protect Medicare for seniors, and find bipartisan solutions that will improve our nation’s health care system for all.”
- Congressman Raul Ruiz, M.D.

In Congress, Dr. Ruiz has consistently worked to lower health care costs for American families. Most recently, Dr. Ruiz voted for the Inflation Reduction Act, which became law in 2022, lowering prescription drug costs and insulin costs for seniors and reducing health care costs for families with insurance through Covered California. Dr. Ruiz has also gotten legislation signed into law to strengthen and expand Medicaid. His bill, the Medicaid Services Investment and Accountability Act, became law on April 18, 2019, and helps children and families suffering from mental health disorders access the care they need.

Dr. Ruiz understands that after a lifetime of hard work, our nation’s seniors deserve access to quality, affordable health care. That is why he is a staunch defender of Medicare and has worked to strengthen it over the years. His bipartisan bill, the Protecting Seniors' Access to Medicare Act, became law on February 9, 2018, as part of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018. This law helps seniors access the health care they need by eliminating the Independent Payment Advisory Board tasked with reducing Medicare spending. He has also had legislation signed into law that will help seniors avoid harmful coverage gaps that leave them without access to health care just because they inadvertently missed their initial sign-up period for Medicare. His bill, the Beneficiary Enrollment Notification and Eligibility Simplification (BENES) Act became law on December 27, 2020, as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act 2021.

Over the years, Dr. Ruiz has worked to expand health access in rural communities like ours. He’s gotten two bills signed into law to address the shortage of providers in our region and across the country by expanding the teaching health center program. His bill to strengthen this key program, the Teaching Health Centers Graduate Medical Education Extension Act, became law on December 27, 2020, as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act 2021. Additionally, Dr. Ruiz secured $300 million for the teaching health center program in the American Rescue Plan, which included his bill, the Expanding Teaching Health Centers Act.

As a physician, Dr. Ruiz will always fight to protect our communities’ health. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, he worked to make sure our region received our fair share of vaccines and resources. After writing to major pharmacies, President Biden, the California Secretary of Health and Human Services, and FEMA, he worked with local health care entities, health centers, and pharmacies to bring vaccine clinics to medically underserved regions and take vaccines directly to his constituents. He also participated in over 10 local vaccine clinics and events from 2021 – 2022.