RISING COSTS OF HEALTHCARE

On 2026-05-19, Representative Henry C. "Hank" Johnson, Jr. (D-GA-4) delivered a floor speech titled "RISING COSTS OF HEALTHCARE" in the House.

RISING COSTS OF HEALTHCARE

Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 85 (Tuesday, May 19, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 85 (Tuesday, May 19, 2026)] [House] [Pages H3554-H3555] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] RISING COSTS OF HEALTHCARE (Mr. Johnson of Georgia was recognized to address the House for 5 minutes.) Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to sound the alarm on skyrocketing healthcare costs in this country. Americans all across the country, including Georgia's Fourth Congressional District, are having a hard time and making very difficult decisions. They have to decide whether it is more important to pay for their groceries--and don't get me started on the cost of gas to go to work--or to provide their family with healthcare. It is estimated that healthcare will cost more than $26 trillion through the year 2036, making healthcare the largest category of Federal spending. This Republican rubber-stamped Congress has failed to advance extensions to the enhanced premium tax credits, causing more families to have to make these difficult decisions--decisions we should not have to make in a country like this, but don't take my word for it. For example, my constituent, Julia has a 34-year-old son that has a brain condition that makes it difficult for him to work. He needs brain specialists and prescriptions to prevent him from having seizures, debilitating headaches, and memory loss, but without healthcare subsidies, his health insurance costs rose 400 percent this year. [[Page H3555]] Because of the high cost of healthcare for her son, Julia, who is responsible for paying all of the bills, has no savings. Extending the subsidies would have helped her put food on the table and make ends meet. Another example is my constituent, Vivian from Tucker, who lives with chronic psoriatic arthritis and suffers from vision problems. Her medication costs $4,000 a month. {time} 1215 Without extensions of the subsidies, she and her husband's healthcare premiums skyrocketed from $50 to $1,300 a month, a 2,400 percent increase. That is a cost they simply cannot afford. Vivian said ObamaCare saved their lives. Lastly, I would like to recognize a student at Georgia State University named Melani, whose parents' monthly premiums went from $250 to $850 a month, a 250 percent increase. As a student, she receives health insurance through her school, but her family's premiums tripled, making their coverage financially impossible. Her parents, who are in their late fifties and early sixties, had to cancel their insurance because the costs are simply too high. The current tax credits are no longer sufficient to meaningfully offset rising insurance prices she told me. Without adequate support, Melani's parents are forced to go uninsured and face the tax penalty, despite desperately wanting to keep their coverage. Mr. Speaker, with Trump's war of choice in the Middle East and rising prices at home, Republicans have turned their backs on the very people who sent them to the Halls of Congress. I believe that healthcare is a fundamental human right. When a loved one is in the hospital, the only question that should be asked is: ``How do we get them better?'' not, ``How much is it going to cost?'' I will continue to speak up and speak out about these issues and fight for the people of Georgia's Fourth Congressional District. ____________________