VIDEO: Rep. Bobby Scott (D-VA03) Headlines “Lower Costs, Better Care” Bus Tour Stop in Norfolk

Congressman Bobby Scott Headlines “Lower Costs, Better Care” Bus Tour Stop in Norfolk

Congressman Scott and Health Care Advocates Join Protect Our Care on a Six-Week, 16 State, 12,000+ Mile, Nationwide Bus Tour to Celebrate How The Biden-Harris Administration and Democrats in Congress Are “Driving Down Health Care Costs” for Virginians

Watch the event in Norfolk HERE.

Download high-resolution photos from the event HERE.

Trump has doubled down on his plans to repeal the Affordable Care Act and replace it with “concepts of a plan,” while JD Vance has expressed his support for returning to the days that people with pre-existing conditions are placed in separate, high-risk pools.

“Unfortunately, all of this great progress is now at risk because Donald Trump, JD Vance and the authors of Project 2025 have already told us what they’re going to do,” said Congressman Bobby Scott (VA-03). “Project 2025, a blueprint for a second Trump term, would repeal the work of the Inflation Reduction Act, which lowered health care costs and drug costs. It also includes radical proposals like ending access to free emergency contraceptives, and kicking Planned Parenthood off Medicaid programs. And when Trump says he has a ‘concept’ to improve health care, they hope we will forget the fact that he had an actual plan when he was president of the United States.”

“More than 193,000 Virginia seniors take one of the first ten drugs that were selected for Medicare price negotiation, and they’re going to see those new prices take effect in 2026,” said Rhena Hicks, co-executive director of Freedom Virginia. “The Inflation Reduction Act also requires drug companies to pay a penalty to Medicare if they raise prescription drug prices faster than inflation. That money is then returned to the seniors who are price-gouged by these companies. These are great provisions, but they only apply to people who are on Medicare. We need to build on the success of the Inflation Reduction Act by passing state legislation to create a Prescription Drug Affordability Board. This board would be empowered to create upper payment limits on certain high-cost prescription drugs. The General Assembly earlier this year passed legislation to do just that with bipartisan support, but it was vetoed by Governor Glenn Youngkin. Youngkin is one of many elected officials who want to let Big Pharma and big insurance companies call the shots.”

“Having access to high-quality health care and having it be affordable is a truly life or death issue,” said Jillian Goodwin, a Norfolk resident who lives with cystic fibrosis. “Some of us may remember what health insurance used to be like. Insurance companies could charge more for having pre-existing conditions like cystic fibrosis, cancer, diabetes, or even just being a woman. That phrase ‘pre-existing condition’, it’s one that we are all familiar with, but if I’m being honest, it’s one for me that’s a little peculiar. I know that the ‘pre’ is in reference to the coverage period of the insurance plan, but in my life, there is no ‘pre.’ My entire existence has been one of chronic illness. Insurance companies also used to impose lifetime and annual caps on coverage, which was abolished under the Affordable Care Act. This one is huge for me. One of my prescription drugs costs $350,000 a year … It’s a drug that I’m going to have to take for my entire life in order to maintain my health. So I would have easily blown through any kind of lifetime or annual cap on any insurance plan.”

“Now, I’m a senior citizen, and if you know senior citizens, they generally have more than one illness,” said Laurice Yarn, a Virginia Beach resident who lives with ulcerative colitis. “That means, coupled with the other things, I could be paying sometimes as much as $1,000 a month for drugs. I am extremely thankful that the Inflation Reduction Act is helping me. Without Medicare, I would not have these medications, a med cap of $3,000 is good, and the $2,000 is going to be even better. I look forward to that. The Inflation Reduction Act is helping me save money … we need to protect this law against any attempts to take it away. Our former President … will strip the Affordable Care Act from the people who need it most. We are all Americans, and we want the best for ourselves and for the others in our country. That is who we are. We look out for each other.”

“The Affordable Care Act helped save my life,” said Laura Packard, a cancer survivor and health care advocate.  “I was here in Virginia Beach a few months ago to go to Representative Kiggans’ office. We were delivering hundreds of petition signatures of her constituents to her calling on her to support and defend the Affordable Care Act. Unfortunately, she won’t do that, but we are not going back. We are going forward to a day where every Virginian has the health care they need and deserve.”

“Protect Our Care’s Care Force One is crisscrossing the nation with one message: lower costs are here and we’re not going back!” said Katie Baker, Virginia state director for Protect Our Care. “We are at a crossroads. As the Biden-Harris administration continues to improve access to quality and affordable health care, Republicans, including Jen Kiggans, are fighting to raise costs on veterans and working families.”

Kiggans has refused to answer whether she would vote to repeal the Affordable Care Act, expressed her opposition to the Inflation Reduction Act, voted to cut veterans’ health care, and refused to answer whether she would vote for the Right to Contraception Act.

The event was held at the Teamsters Local 822 Union Hall. A video recording of the event is available HERE. High-resolution photos from the event are available HERE.

This week, the “Lower Costs, Better Care” tour will continue in New Mexico. Over six weeks, Care Force One will travel to more than 16 states, make more than 50 stops, and travel nearly 12,000 miles. More information on the tour is HERE.

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Protect Our Care is dedicated to making high-quality, affordable and equitable health care a right, and not a privilege, for everyone in America. We educate the public, influence policy, support health care champions and hold politicians accountable. We fight to expand access to affordable, high-quality health insurance, lower the cost of health care for individuals and families, and reduce inequities in health care based on gender, income, race, ethnicity, geography, or sexual preference.