Bill targets expedited healthcare access, FDA approvals

A group of legislators introduced last week legislation designed to increase healthcare access while expediting Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for treatments approved in other countries.

Sens. Ted Cruz (R-TX), John Cornyn (R-TX), James Lankford (R-OK), and Mike Braun (R-IN) introduced the Creating Capacity for Communities in Need Act, which would allow physician-owned hospitals to expand their facilities, beds and surgical rooms and provide relief for medical facilities overwhelmed by the surge in patients as a result of coronavirus.

Cruz also introduced with Sen. Ben Sasse (R-NE) the Pandemic Healthcare Access Act, which seeks to expand access to Health Savings Accounts to anyone with a health plan for the duration of this public health crisis.

“My number one priority has and continues to be doing everything possible to stop this global pandemic,” Cruz said. “We’ve taken important steps, but there is much more work to curb the spread of COVID-19 and ultimately defeat it. That’s why I introduced bills to create more capacity to treat patients in communities that have been hit the hardest, make it easier for people to access their healthcare, and speed up the approval process for certain drugs and devices that could prevent or treat COVID-19.”

Cruz said the legislative efforts serve as steps Congress can take to flatten the curve and slow the growth of the pandemic.

“The sooner we act, the sooner we can protect more Americans from contracting this dangerous virus, and the sooner we can save more lives,” he said.