|
(Washington, D.C.) With major health care initiatives expected to be taken up this year in Congress, U.S. Representative Mike Ross (AR-04) has been awarded a coveted seat on the Health Subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, where he has served since 2005.
“I believe two of the greatest domestic challenges facing our nation today are energy and health care and I am pleased to have received an appointment to both the Energy and Health Subcommittees so I can play an active role in making this country stronger,” Ross said.
“Access to affordable health care is one of the greatest needs of the Fourth Congressional District and it is one of the most important issues facing our nation,” Ross said. “I am honored to have this opportunity to serve on the Health Subcommittee because there are a number of important health care issues that we will undertake this year. Whether it be fixing the flawed Medicare Prescription drug bill so that seniors have access to cheaper prescription medications, or helping our small businesses and the self-employed better afford health insurance for their employees and themselves, health care is one of my top legislative priorities in Congress.”
Ross also won a seat on the Energy and Air Quality Subcommittee, as well as a seat on the Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection Subcommittee.
“In addition to working on health care legislation, we must put our nation on a path towards energy independence,” Ross said. “I look forward to using my seat on the Energy and Air Quality Subcommittee to put forward common sense legislation that will help us solve our energy crisis and invest in alternative and renewable fuels, like ethanol and biodiesel, which will create new economic opportunities across rural America and help us realize an economic revival in the Delta.”
The Energy and Commerce Committee has jurisdiction over public health issues, the supply and delivery of energy, and general issues concerning interstate and foreign commerce, among many other issues. The Committee’s jurisdiction also extends over five Cabinet-level departments and seven independent agencies--from the Energy Department, Health and Human Services, the Transportation Department to the Federal Trade Commission, Food and Drug Administration, and Federal Communications Commission—and sundry quasi-governmental organizations. It is the oldest legislative standing committee in the U.S. House of Representatives, having been created over 200 years ago.
-30- |
|
