{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.paul.senate.gov/dr-rand-paul-introduces-the-legalizing-premium-health-care-act/", "Dr. Rand Paul Introduces the Legalizing Premium Health Care Act", "2026-05-20", "2026", "2026-05", "Republican", "Senate", "KY", "Rand Paul", "P000603", "www.paul.senate.gov", "paul", "https://www.paul.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2014 U.S. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) introduced the Legalizing Premium Health Care Act, legislation that will give Medicare beneficiaries the freedom to see the doctor of their choice.\n\nIn recent years, burdensome paperwork requirements and declining reimbursement rates have driven thousands of health care providers, particularly those in private practice, to leave Medicare. As of March 2026, more than 50,000 physicians nationwide had opted out of the program.\n\n\u201cAt 65, seniors are pushed into Medicare, only to discover they can no longer afford to see the doctor they\u2019ve trusted for years,\u201d said Dr. Paul. \u201cThese patients shouldn\u2019t have to abandon their longtime physician or drain their savings just to receive care they\u2019ve already paid for through Medicare taxes. The Legalizing Premium Health Care Act reduces government interference, respects the doctor-patient relationship, and restores patients\u2019 choice in their health care decisions.\u201d\n\nUnder current rules, when a Medicare-eligible provider opts out, patients must pay the entire bill themselves and receive no reimbursement. The Legalizing Premium Health Care Act creates a third option: Medicare will directly reimburse beneficiaries (or the provider filing on their behalf) for covered services at the standard Medicare rate. Seniors would only pay any difference between the provider\u2019s charge and Medicare\u2019s approved amount\u2014dramatically lowering costs compared to paying the full bill.\n\nThe reform applies to a wide range of health professionals, including physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, certified registered nurse anesthetists, certified nurse-midwives, clinical social workers, clinical psychologists, registered dietitians or nutrition professionals, physical or occupational therapists, qualified speech-language pathologists, and qualified audiologists.\n\nRead the bill HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-05-21T06:28:16Z", "2026-05-21T06:29:43Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.paul.senate.gov/dr-rand-paul-introduces-the-legalizing-premium-health-care-act/"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 2.191337989643216, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}