00:00I want to bring this conversation back to where I think it belongs, and that's with the people
00:05that we are all here to represent. Secretary Kennedy, while you're here, your boss is en route
00:13to my district in Las Vegas, trying to rebrand the one big, beautiful bill. But back home,
00:19my constituents aren't buying what President Trump is trying to sell, because they're living
00:24the real-life consequences of higher cost, less certainty, and real fear about losing their
00:33coverage and their access to care. During the majority's field hearing in Las Vegas last
00:38year, they shut out the public and brought in a paid actor. I took a different approach.
00:44I invited my constituents to share their real stories about what these health care cuts would
00:51actually mean for them. And what I heard wasn't a matter of politics, but rather of survival.
00:58One of those constituents is Deja, a mother of a medically complex child, Shea. Shea was born
01:04at 30 weeks. He spent three months in the NICU and came home on an oxygen and feeding tube, one
01:12he still depends on to survive today. He needs in-home nursing, specialist, and ongoing care,
01:19all made possible by Medicaid. Without it, his family would face inaccessible costs and co-pays,
01:27leaving Shea at risk of failing to thrive. I've also heard from another constituent, Richard,
01:34who told me that at the beginning of this year, his marketplace premiums went up $1,700 a month.
01:42He said he and his wife are effectively out of the economy. They don't go out. They don't
01:47get to go to restaurants. There's no discretionary spending because they're just trying to make
01:53sure that he has access to care. So families like Deja's and Richard's, to them, the health
02:00care affordability crisis is real and it's urgent. So let me bring it back to the basics,
02:08cost and coverage. What are you doing right now, Mr. Secretary, to lower premiums and to protect
02:15coverage for families like Deja's and Richard's? Well, first of all, first of all, I would say,
02:22Congressman, there are no cuts to Medicaid. You look at the Congressional... What are you doing,
02:27Mr. Secretary, that's my question is, what are you doing right now? What are, what are,
02:32what are your priorities to reduce cost and ensure coverage for the American people? Well, we have,
02:41we negotiated the lowest drug prices in history and we're implementing those now with the MFN. This
02:48is one of many things. And how does that address coverage? Well, in terms of insurance coverage,
02:55we're doing many, many things within the agency. We are, um, uh, we're, uh, President Trump is right now,
03:07what are you doing? You're the Secretary of Health and Human Services, reclaiming my time. I'm asking
03:13about tangible actions and results. To me, the fact that you can't answer a basic question, like
03:21bringing down cost and coverage, which should be your top priority, not some podcast, but actually
03:28addressing the needs of people. Um, now, like others, I want to make America healthy. I agree with the goal
03:36of
03:37moving from a sick care system to a true health care system focused on prevention. And prevention
03:42starts with the basics, clean air, clean water, and reducing exposures to toxins. So I'm struggling to
03:49reconcile the reports that some at EPA are working to roll back protections that would increase exposure
03:57to heavy metals in drinking water, arsenic, lead, mercury, and chromium. These are toxins linked to cancer,
04:06to heart disease, to stroke, and permanent brain damage in children. So just one question,
04:13were you consulted on those efforts to roll back those EPA protections? Yes or no?
04:19Uh, no, I haven't been, but I'm happy to talk to you right now about a long list
04:24of things that we're doing to roll back insurance premiums. And I would begin now with the skin
04:29substitutes. Our reform on that is reducing premiums and Medicare by six percent this year.
04:36So have you aligned your goals dealing with the reforms to the EPA protections
04:46and how that is making people sicker, not healthier? That was my question.
04:51Yeah, I could not answer those questions because it's not in my- You can't answer the question as the
04:57Secretary- It's on my, it's on my agency. You don't coordinate with the EPA, Mr. Secretary? Your
05:01department is not involved with rolling back protections that would increase exposure to heavy
05:08metals, materials, even though it affects people's health? Is that what you're telling me? You don't
05:13coordinate? I'd say calm down, Congressman. Don't tell me-
05:21Your time is over. And Richard, do not tell me to calm down. Health care is real. And if you
05:28can't answer basic questions, then maybe come prepared next time. I'm answering the question. You
05:33don't give me the chance to answer. You haven't given me a chance to answer. I'm happy to answer your
05:38question. You said you weren't- And you cut me off when I started to answer. You said you-
05:42You started screaming at me. You did not consult with EPA. Okay, the time has expired. We're going to move
05:46on, Mr.
05:47Yacom. People scream when they don't have much to say. You obviously don't have anything to say
05:51because you can't even uphold what it is you're doing to reduce cost and coverage. Mr. Horsford,
05:56you're two minutes over. Give me a chance to answer the question. We're moving on to Mr. Yacom.
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