CBS19

Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger has co-sponsored the Medicare X Choice Act.

She believes the bill, which is a companion piece of legislation to Senator Tim Kaine’s health care bill in the U.S. Senate, would work to lower the cost of health care.

It would do this by allowing Medicare to negotiate its prescription drug prices and allow for more marketplace competition.

It would also allow consumers to voluntarily opt-in to a health care plan similar to Medicare or stick with their current private health care insurance plan.

“This bill is a different option, so within Congress and within our public debate, we’re talking about how do we achieve the goal of having more people with access to affordable quality health care,” said Spanberger. “And this is the path that I think is most beneficial. It is a path of creating better competition, driving down prices of the competition, allowing greater access to health care coverage, but without impacting those who choose to continue with an employer-provided plan.”

Critics say the bill would expand the size of bureaucracy and further entrench the government in health care instead of leaving it to the private marketplace.