Commentary

  • 10.17.2019

    Congress Can Act Now to Lower Drug PricesBipartisan legislation would redesign Medicare Part D to lower costs for beneficiaries and taxpayersBy Sens. Chuck Grassley and Ron Wyden It’s no secret that health care is a politically divisive issue. In the past decade, national elections have been decided on it, and control of Congress has changed hands...
  • 10.16.2019

    From foster care to forever homeBy Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa When Iowa attorney Stephanie Kozlowski began representing juvenile delinquents in court, she had no idea it would lead her to become a foster parent. She saw kids were entering the criminal justice system in many cases because of the challenges they faced at home. She also saw a significant...
  • 10.11.2019

    Farm communities need USMCABy Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley of Iowa Farming is about community. It always has been. From the earliest known farming communities in ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia to the modern farms punctuating the landscape of Rural America, people have worked together for centuries to cultivate the crops that feed the...
  • 10.10.2019

    The World Trade Organization is faltering. The US can’t fix it aloneBy Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley and Ranking Member Ron Wyden With the World Trade Organization Public Forum underway in Geneva, it is time for members to confront and address the problems that are eroding the WTO's credibility and effectiveness....
  • 10.08.2019

    Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi’s announcement of a formal impeachment inquiry into the president of the United States means that issue will likely dominate discussion in Washington for months. That’s a shame, because there are so many pressing matters for Congress that are much more consequential to the everyday lives of Americans. One of...
  • 09.26.2019

    The Senate Takes on Campus CensorshipBy Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley Universities have long been centers of political correctness. But campus administrations increasingly seem to be indulging students who, when faced with uncomfortable ideas, complain of feeling “harmed” or “unsafe.” This is reaching its...
  • 09.23.2019

    Let’s prescribe a dose of common sense: End spread-pricing in MedicaidBy Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley Americans from coast to coast disagree about plenty of issues. As a U.S. senator, I know at least one issue that unites all Americans: Drug prices are too high.The soaring cost of prescription medicine has struck a nonpartisan...
  • 09.16.2019

    Oversight is necessary to ensure quality care in nursing homesBy Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck GrassleyOversight is often a vehicle for change in the federal government. In order to solve a problem, you need to know what it is, how bad it is and why it’s happening. Oversight is an important tool to find answers to those questions as well as...
  • 09.10.2019

    Bill takes bipartisan approach to lowering medication costsBy Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley and Sen. Susan Collins We are no strangers to working across the aisle to find solutions to some of America’s most difficult problems. We have banned pharmacy gag clauses, and we are working to hold insulin...
  • 09.04.2019

    Tick Tock. It's Time to Stop Rx Sticker ShockSens. Chuck Grassley and Steve Daines As United States Senators representing the Big Sky state and Hawkeye country, older Montanans and Iowans keep a watchful eye on spending. Like millions of Americans across the country, they are mindful that they need to stretch their savings in order to pay the bills...
  • 08.30.2019

    Tackle student loan debt’s underlying causesSen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa Over the next few weeks, young people in Iowa and throughout the nation will head off to college for the first time. For these students, their years in college will prove to be some of the most formative of their lives. Earning a college degree is an accomplishment, and a...
  • 08.29.2019

    Small and rural communities often depend on trade and export markets to keep the lights on and the doors open at their farms and businesses. The new North American trade deal – the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) – is a critical step to improving access to two of our most important markets: Canada and Mexico.Iowa has a particularly...
  • 08.16.2019

    Improving rural health careBy Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley Rural communities are struggling to keep health care services available to their residents. Like most Americans, Iowans share growing concerns about the rising cost of prescription drugs, out-of-pocket health expenses and surprise medical bills. In states such as Iowa...
  • 08.15.2019

    Perception vs. Reality: What I Learned During my Summer in Washington, D.C.By Rachel Collins of West Des Moines Rachel Collins is a native of West Des Moines and is currently a senior at St. Bonaventure University. She interned in Sen. Grassley’s Washington, D.C. office during the 2019 summer session.  It seems the only reachable consensus...
  • 08.15.2019

    Wind powers big opportunity in rural AmericaBy Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa Iowa’s economy is witnessing incredible growth. Our state’s GDP is growing faster than the national average, outpacing neighboring states like Minnesota, Nebraska, Missouri and Kansas. This steady growth is good news for our state and for hardworking Iowans. It...
  • 08.14.2019

    Environmental advocates should take another look at biofuelsBy Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and former Sen. Timothy Wirth (D-Colo.) The question of how best to address environmental challenges has increasingly become a partisan flashpoint. So, when there is a green solution on which many Republicans and Democrats see eye-to-eye, as we do, it’s...
  • 08.12.2019

    USMCA will bring home the bacon for Iowa, nationSens. Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst of Iowa Our state leads the nation in pork production. In fact, Iowa pork exports account for approximately $2 billion annually. That’s roughly 30 percent of total U.S. pork export revenue, which totals more than $6 billion each year.Mexico and Canada are two of...
  • 08.08.2019

    Celebrating Iowa’s Agricultural Past, Present and FutureBy Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa The Iowa State Fair is a celebration of agriculture and the farming families who feed and fuel the world. It is one of the oldest, largest and most well-known agricultural expositions in the United States. Approximately one million people make their way to the...
  • 08.07.2019

    USMCA will help Iowa businessesBy Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley Manufacturing is critical to our national and state economies. We rightfully take pride in seeing a “Made in America” label because it represents not only a high-quality product, but the prowess of our workers and the economic success and prosperity they bring...
  • 07.31.2019

    Fighting for seniors’ dignity and respectBy Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley The decision to entrust an aging loved one to a facility is a difficult one. It takes planning and research. Families rely on tools such as the Nursing Home Compare website and the Five-Star Quality Rating System, both operated by the Centers for Medicare...