Diana Harshbarger

Mrs. HARSHBARGER

Mrs. HARSHBARGER. Madam Speaker, I am prepared to close. I urge a ``yes'' vote, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mrs. HARSHBARGER. Madam Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Fitzpatrick).

Mrs. HARSHBARGER. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise today in strong support of H.R. 2319, the Women and Lung Cancer Research and Preventive Services Act of 2025 led by my colleague Representative Brendan F. Boyle. Lung cancer is the third most common cancer in the United States, and it claims the lives of more Americans than any other type of cancer. Globally, over 600,000 women die every year from lung cancer, and we know that nearly 20 percent of lung cancers occur in individuals who have either never smoked or smoked less than 100 cigarettes over their lifetime. These findings demonstrate that we need to be doing more to understand the risk factors beyond just smoking cigarettes and improve both our strategies and tools for screening, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention, especially among women who face unique risk factors. H.R. 2319 would allow us to strengthen and advance emerging research opportunities that we rely on to reduce the burden of lung cancer mortality. Further, this bipartisan bill requires an interagency review between the Department of Health and Human Services and the Departments of War and Veterans Affairs to determine the current research landscape in identifying new areas of research to explore. H.R. 2319 is an opportunity to take another critical step in our fight against cancer in the United States. Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mrs. HARSHBARGER. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material in the Record on this bill.

Mrs. HARSHBARGER. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2319) to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to conduct a review to evaluate the status of research on lung cancer in women and underserved populations, and for other purposes.

Mrs. HARSHBARGER

Mrs. HARSHBARGER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the valiant military service of Manuel Lee Campbell of Johnson City in Washington County, Tennessee, or simply ``Lee'' for those who know him best. As a partner of the 50th Anniversary Vietnam War Commemoration, I had the honor of recognizing Lee in-person at one of our local ceremonies last year. SP-5 Campbell was drafted by the U.S. Army in September 1966, where he completed Basic Training and Advanced Infantry Training at Fort Jackson, South Carolina, and soon received orders to report to Oakland Army Base, California for deployment to Vietnam. He arrived at Bien Hoa Airbase, Vietnam and was transported to the 90th Replacement Battalion and then to the 199th Light Infantry Brigade Main Base in March 1967. He served as a Combat Infantry Radio Telephone Operator in Charlie Company, 4th Battalion, 12th Infantry. The company would deploy from base camp to ``the field'' on Eagle Flights by ``Huey'' helicopters and would then set up a Command Post, with most combat missions conducted at the platoon level. SP-5 Campbell has described his duties as endless Search & Destroy patrols through jungles and rice paddies during the day and setting up ambush defensive perimeters with 3-man positions at night. Despite the daunting challenges of the mission, which required contacting the elusive enemy, the Viet Cong (VC) Guerrilla forces, and surviving the ensuing firefights, SP-5 Campbell and the Charlie Company succeeded in gathering vital operations intelligence for the U.S. Army. On July 2, 1967, PFC Campbell was Wounded in Action in a firefight with the VC on a Search & Destroy patrol. For his bravery and sacrifice to our country, PFC Campbell received the Purple Heart. Despite his injury, PFC Campbell remained in Vietnam in service to our great Nation. While assigned to Headquarters Company at the 199th Infantry Brigade Main Base, shortly after midnight on January 30, 1968, SP-4 Campbell witnessed the infamous Tet Offensive begin, where the North Vietnamese Army and the Viet Cong launched a series of well-coordinated attacks on cities, towns, and large military bases all over South Vietnam. SP-4 Campbell courageously served as part of the last line of defense for Brigade Headquarters, and we thank him and his comrades for ensuring our enemy never broke through the Brigade's perimeter defenses. Finally in March 1968, SP-5 Campbell returned to the 90th Replacement Battalion and back to the Bien Hoa Airbase for the flight home. Please stand with me to honor SP-5 Campbell for his bravery and dedication, which will always be treasured by our Nation, our community in East Tennessee, and everyone who knows him.

Mrs. HARSHBARGER

Mrs. HARSHBARGER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor National Rural Health Month and to honor the men and women who keep healthcare alive in America's small towns and rural communities. As co-chair of the Congressional Bipartisan Rural Health Caucus, I am proud to join my colleagues in leading an effort to ensure the millions of Americans who live in rural areas, including the hardworking people of Tennessee's First District, receive the same quality of care as anyone else in the Nation. In northeast Tennessee, rural healthcare is a lifeline to people, especially those who live in remote areas and are limited or have no mode of transportation. They depend on a nurse to drive during the night and before dawn to check on a patient or the pharmacist who knows every family by name and stretches every dollar to keep medicine affordable. It is the doctor who stays late to see one more patient because there is no one else to take the next shift. These are the people who form the backbone of our rural healthcare communities, and they deserve a system that works as hard for them as they do for us. The truth is, rural healthcare has always faced an uphill battle. When a rural hospital shuts down, it just doesn't take away healthcare. It takes away jobs, stability, and peace of mind. It means longer drives for emergency care, fewer options for expectant mothers, and limited access for seniors and veterans who depend on those services the most. The systems that are supposed to support them is too often buried in bureaucracies. Pharmacy benefit managers are manipulating drug prices, restricting choices, and squeezing out small-town pharmacies that are fighting just to survive. These PBMs never see a patient, but they control what medicines people can get and at what cost. That is wrong, and I have been proud to lead bipartisan legislation to bring transparency, accountability, and fairness to that system because patients and pharmacists alike deserve better. I have made it my mission to champion these policies that put people, not politics, first. Under President Trump's leadership, we signed the Working Families Tax Cuts Act into law this year. This critical legislation included the single largest investment in rural healthcare in history. That is $50 billion for a Rural Health Transformation Fund to reinvest Federal savings directly into the communities that need it most, expanding telehealth, and recruiting and retaining rural healthcare workers. We are committed to ensuring telehealth remains an option for those living in rural communities. Telehealth provides expanded access to specialists, closes the distance between patients and providers, and gives families faster, more reliable care. I have legislation, the Rural Physician Workforce Production Act, that would help bring more doctors to rural communities by giving rural hospitals the resources they need to train and retain more physicians. I have fought to strengthen our Nation's drug supply chain by supporting domestic pharmaceutical manufacturing, including facilities like USAntibiotics in Bristol, Tennessee, where we are proving that these lifesaving antibiotics can and should be made right here in the United States and not halfway around the world. Mr. Speaker, these aren't abstract policy debates. They are about real people and real places. They are about the mom who drives an hour to find a pediatric specialist. They are about the veteran who can't get his prescription filled because his local pharmacy closed. They are about the nurse who works back-to-back shifts because there aren't enough hands to go around. Those stories are what drive my work every single day. That is why I have joined my co-chair, Representative Tokuda, in introducing a resolution to recognize November 20, 2025, as National Rural Health Day. This resolution recognizes the challenges we face, but more importantly it affirms our commitment to solving them. I thank Representative Tokuda for her continued commitment on working together to address the pressing healthcare issues facing our rural communities. We must fight for a healthcare system that serves patients, not big insurance companies; that values rural providers, not red tape; and ensures no community, no matter how small or remote, is left behind. We thank the doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and first responders who keep rural America healthy. Their work saves lives. Their compassion gives hope, and their dedication holds our communities together. As long as I have the privilege to serve the people of Tennessee's First District, and as co-chair of the Rural Health Caucus, I will continue that fight. We are united in our shared mission to strengthen rural healthcare, protect patient access, and preserve the small-town values that make this Nation strong.

Mrs. HARSHBARGER

Mrs. HARSHBARGER. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the opportunity to speak on faith tonight. You know, the Bible so beautifully defines faith. In Hebrews 11:1, it says: ``Faith is the assurance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen.'' This Nation is in the midst of spiritual warfare--make no bones about it--for the soul of not only America but for the world. There is an assault on Christianity, and we have to be diligent in sharing our faith if we profess to be Christians. As my colleague, Mr. Babin, just quoted, Psalm 33:12 declares: ``Blessed is the Nation whose God is the Lord.'' America is a Nation that is blessed, in large part, because we are rooted in Judeo-Christian values. I want to speak about faith as it pertains to politics. During the earliest beginnings of our Nation, it was abundantly evident that Christianity played a formative role in shaping our Nation's founding. Christian principles shaped the Founders' thinking in a profound way. They believed that humans are created in the image of God with an informed conscience of what is right and what is wrong. They believed that humans are inherently sinful, and because of that, we always would need laws and a system of checks and balances. They believed God is the source of moral standards and that legislation should be in agreement with the moral law. They believed that religious liberty is a God-given right and must be protected. There was a British politician who served in the late 1700s, early 1800s. He was against the slave trade, and he devoted his life to promoting Christian values. His name was William Wilberforce. He wrote: ``I am disturbed when I see the majority of so-called Christians having such little understanding of the real nature of the faith they profess. Faith is a subject of such importance that we should not ignore it because of the distractions or the hectic pace of our lives.'' He goes on to say: ``I would suggest that faith is everyone's business. The advance or decline of faith is so intimately connected to the welfare of a society that it should be a particular interest to a politician.'' Being a Christian in a secular society is not an easy task, but we have examples who left benchmarks for not just our country to follow but for the world to follow. This generation of leaders has a tremendous opportunity to leave a Christ-honoring legacy that can possibly change not only our country but the world. We should let our faith be the catalyst for every decision that we make. I am thankful, as a Christian, I can share my faith from a platform that very few people will ever have the opportunity to share from, and that is right here in the House of Representatives. Wilberforce's work is an example to generations going forward to integrate faith, reason and courage into our engagement with those we have been called to serve. I am honored to be part of Faith Month ``for such a time as this.''

Mrs. HARSHBARGER

Mrs. HARSHBARGER. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague, Chairman Gus Bilirakis, who I affectionately call Gus, and Ranking Member Pallone for supporting this act. We have the opportunity today to vote on legislation centered around something that brings us all together, and that is music. Today, we will take the American Music Tourism Act under consideration. It is a bipartisan piece of legislation that I am proud to have led through the House alongside my co-lead, Representative Nanette Barragan. It will require the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Travel and Tourism to develop a plan to boost music tourism, welcoming both domestic and international visitors to experience the rich musical heritage we have across America. It also ensures that Congress stays informed, with regular reports on our progress, our success, and any challenges that we face. Importantly, let me emphasize this bill will not require any additional taxpayer dollars. It is a smart, efficient, and unique way to support our economy without increasing spending. Whether it is New Orleans, the birthplace of jazz; Seattle, where they rock out to grunge; the cradles of hip hop, which are L.A. and New York; or Austin, which proudly calls itself the Live Music Capital of the World, our Nation is overflowing with the rich history of music. For those of us in Tennessee's First District, which I represent, this bill is especially personal. We are home to treasures like Dollywood in Pigeon Forge, the home of Dolly Parton, and the Birthplace of Country Music, which is in Bristol, Tennessee--places that just don't celebrate our culture but also drive tourism, create jobs, and strengthen our communities. I can't forget a little town in my district called Sneedville, Tennessee, and that is the home of Morgan Wallen. My favorite song is ``The Way I Talk.'' I thought for a long time, Mr. Speaker, that he wrote that about me, but I have come to find out that he didn't. As a tribute to Dolly Parton, all I have to say is that we have been working longer than ``9 to 5'' to get this bill across the finish line. I am so thankful for the strong bipartisan partnership that made it possible today. Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support this legislation.

Mrs. HARSHBARGER

Mrs. HARSHBARGER. Mr. Speaker, I was not recorded because I was absent due to a prior family engagement. Had I been present, I would have voted YEA on Roll Call No. 10, NAY on Roll Call No. 11, and YEA on Roll Call No. 12. personal explanation

Mrs. HARSHBARGER

Mrs. HARSHBARGER. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mrs. HARSHBARGER. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Bishop).

Mrs. HARSHBARGER. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Moore).

Mrs. HARSHBARGER. Thank you, Ranking Member Pallone. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Balderson).

Mrs. HARSHBARGER. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone), the ranking member of the Energy and Commerce Committee.

Mrs. HARSHBARGER. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from West Virginia (Mrs. Miller).

Mrs. HARSHBARGER. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Tonko).

Mrs. HARSHBARGER. Mr. Speaker, I join my colleagues here today to honor the life and legacy of my good friend, Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers, from the great State of Washington. Through her 20 years of service, she has made an incredible impact in the Halls of Congress and touched the lives of so many Members who have had the privilege of working alongside of her. I will begin by just giving my remarks. Mr. Speaker, it has been an honor to serve in the Halls for the past few years, but an even greater one to do so beside my colleague, Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers. Cathy has served in Congress for nearly 20 years, and she has made incredible sacrifices, accomplished incredible feats, and dutifully served her constituents every step of the way. As I have gotten to know Cathy, I have learned that she leads with a servant's heart. It is her incredible affinity for helping others that has allowed her to find success and accomplish so much during her time here. She never sought the spotlight or the prestigious position she held in Congress for her own gain, but did so because of her colleagues who encouraged and trusted her. She has paved the way for countless women in the GOP, inspiring us with her leadership, wisdom, and dedication, and she has achieved some of the highest levels of success, become a beloved friend to countless colleagues, and in my opinion, leaves us 20 years too soon. Thank you, Cathy, for everything you have done for us. I might add, I am going to miss our prayer time, and I am going to miss walking around the Capitol praying for our Nation and just the incredible mentor you have been to me. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. Guthrie), our new chairman of Energy and Commerce.

Mrs. HARSHBARGER. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Florida (Mrs. Cammack).

Mrs. HARSHBARGER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and submit extraneous material on the subject of this Special Order.

Mrs. HARSHBARGER. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Bilirakis).

Mrs. HARSHBARGER

Mrs. HARSHBARGER. Exactly. Exactly. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the work and legacy of my dear friend and colleague, Congresswoman Debbie Lesko, from the great State of Arizona. I have had the privilege of working alongside Congresswoman Lesko for almost 4 years. In that time, I have had the opportunity to get to know her, working on the Energy and Commerce Committee and the caucuses we share. Congresswoman Lesko is a true civil servant, leader, and dedicated mother and grandmother to a wonderful family. I know they will be grateful to be able to spend more time with her at home. Throughout her career in Congress, Mrs. Lesko has dedicated herself to defending the very principles that our Nation was founded upon. She stood up for religious freedom, speaking boldly in favor of faith-based institutions faced with encroachments from the Federal Government. She has defended life, introducing legislation to prevent the dismemberment of unborn children in the womb. She stood up for justice, launching the Protect Kids Caucus to defend the innocent children in our schools' healthcare and government programs. Mr. Speaker, Congresswoman Lesko's unwavering commitment to faith, family, and freedom has left an incredible mark on these Halls and the lives of countless Americans. While her leadership will be deeply missed, her legacy of service will continue to be remembered for years to come. Thank you, Debbie, for being a wonderful friend to me. I will miss you. We are going to charge for the seat you are going to vacate if somebody wants to sit there. Okay?

Mrs. HARSHBARGER

Mrs. HARSHBARGER. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend and co-chair, Representative Tokuda. You know, there is not a whole lot of difference--there is as far as distance--between Hawaii and Tennessee, but we have the same health challenges in rural health to be exact. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize National Rural Health Day and to highlight the work and cause of the Congressional Bipartisan Rural Health Caucus, which I am proud to co-chair with my colleague, Representative Tokuda of Hawaii. Over 60 million hardworking, everyday Americans live in rural communities throughout the United States, and as my co-chair, Representative Tokuda, is fond of citing--with nearly 97 percent of our Nation being designated as rural. Compared to their counterparts living in urban and suburban areas, rural Americans experience lower life expectancy, poorer health status, and more difficulty accessing quality and affordable healthcare. Rural patients face these challenges due to the limited number of rural healthcare providers; higher rates of people being underinsured and uninsured, and long journeys to healthcare providers, sometimes people lacking transportation entirely. Having served as a community pharmacist in rural east Tennessee for over 37 years, I understand the unique healthcare challenges and obstacles faced by our patients and healthcare providers each and every day. It is crucial that Congress takes action to address the issues that rural healthcare providers and patients grapple with, such as workforce shortages, supply scarcities, and reimbursement challenges, limited access to telehealth, and difficulties ensuring their patients receive the care they need. The Congressional Bipartisan Rural Health Caucus is here to provide a forum for Members of Congress to advocate for legislative action that will help increase access to quality, affordable healthcare and mental health services for all rural Americans. As co-chair, I will continue to work to advance the cause of ensuring the long-term sustainability of rural communities. This Congress, I introduced the bipartisan Rural Physician Workforce Production Act, which improves Medicare reimbursements and enhances the current structure of the Medicare-funded graduate medical education program, bringing more medical residents and doctors to rural areas in need. I also worked with my fellow colleagues in the Tennessee delegation to introduce the Rural America Health Corps Act, which would provide incentives for healthcare professionals to work in rural health facilities in exchange for forgiving medical school loans. In addition to these bills, I am a proud cosponsor of the Save Rural Hospitals Act, bipartisan legislation that will aid in curbing hospital closures in rural communities by ensuring fairness in Medicare hospital payments. This legislative work is absolutely critical. This week, I am pleased to help introduce with Representative Tokuda and other members of the Bipartisan Rural Health Caucus a resolution supporting the goals and ideals of National Rural Health Day. National Rural Health Day is the third Thursday of every November, and it was established to honor rural communities and the contributions and efforts of rural healthcare providers to address the unique challenges faced by the patients they serve. Given the healthcare disparities faced by rural Americans and the continued difficulty experienced by rural healthcare providers in just keeping their doors open, it is vital that Congress prioritizes improving patient care and access in rural areas. Our rural healthcare professionals and patients showcase a selfless and community-minded spirit, and it is altogether fitting and proper that we celebrate rural healthcare providers and the millions of Americans that rural healthcare providers serve. In recognizing and celebrating National Rural Health Day, we join a diverse coalition of rural healthcare stakeholders to express a commitment to advancing policies to improve healthcare accessibility and affordability in rural areas in our country. Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Tokuda and my colleagues for joining in this cause.

Mrs. HARSHBARGER

Mrs. HARSHBARGER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 5526, the Seniors' Access to Critical Medications Act. I thank my co-lead, Democrat Representative Wasserman Schultz, and House Energy and Commerce Chair Rodgers and Ranking Member Pallone for allowing me to advance this important legislation. I spent 37 years working as a pharmacist in almost every area of pharmacy, and I know firsthand the importance of providing patients with serious illnesses timely and reliable access to their lifesaving medications. Under the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' interpretation of the physician self-referral law, which is known as the Stark Law, it states that it is unlawful for a medical practice, such as a community oncology practice, to deliver a prescribed and filled drug to a patient by mail or courier, UPS or Fed Ex. CMS' interpretation doesn't even allow for a family member or a caregiver to pick up the patient's drug on their behalf. For Medicare seniors living in rural areas who don't have transportation or who are too sick to pick up their lifesaving drug, they are just simply out of luck in a lot of cases, or they are forced to rely on a nameless or faceless mail order pharmacy benefit manager, where these ``distant middlemen'' cannot quickly fine-tune necessary short-term changes or adjustments in their therapies. Some patients will go without their oral chemotherapy medication because they can't get transportation to pick their prescription up. It can change the entire outcome for those patients. We shouldn't have obstacles in the way of patients receiving the medications they need. The bipartisan Seniors' Access to Critical Medications Act simply ensures that cancer patients, as well as other patients, have timely access to the appropriate oral medications they need by allowing delivery of these medications or allowing family members or caregivers to pick up their medicines. I have heard from dozens upon dozens of Tennessee oncologists and other specialty physicians and patients, as well as others around the country, who have been deeply impacted by the unnecessary hurdles created by CMS' misguided interpretation of the Stark Law. During the pandemic, CMS recognized these barriers and issued a Stark waiver, lifting the restrictions that hindered patient access to these crucial medications. This bill restores those flexibilities, and I urge all my colleagues to support H.R. 5526 to protect Medicare beneficiaries' ability to receive the medications they need when they need them.

Mrs. HARSHBARGER

Mrs. HARSHBARGER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 3433, the Give Kids a Chance Act, which is bipartisan legislation to help speed up the process for getting treatments to children with cancer and other rare diseases. I am pleased that this bill also includes a modified version of bipartisan legislation I have been leading with Democratic Representative Juan Vargas: the United States-Abraham Accords Cooperation and Security Act. This section of H.R. 3433 will establish a U.S. Food and Drug Administration office in the Abraham Accords region, creating a staging ground for technical assistance and friend-shoring collaboration between the U.S. and Abraham Accords countries, for development of and bringing to our markets lifesaving drugs. I thank House Committee on Energy and Commerce Chair Rodgers and Ranking Member Pallone for working with me to advance this important initiative. Chair Rodgers has been a strong ally in developing this. Our continued dependence on adversarial countries like China for pharmaceutical products endangers our medical supply chains and jeopardizes our national security. More than 80 percent of the active pharmaceutical ingredients for drugs sold in the U.S. are imported from foreign countries, primarily China and India. As our country works toward securing critical healthcare supply chains from reliance on adversarial countries like China, the strategy of friend-shoring or near-shoring has emerged as part of the solution for industries where domestic production is not yet fully available. Leveraging the Abraham Accords countries' robust biopharmaceutical industries to help diversify and protect our access to crucial medical supply chains that don't rely on China is a commonsense step to work with our natural allies in our quest to safeguard our access to vital medical products. We need to begin this process of fortifying our medical supply chains as soon as possible because we have a big hill to climb. With adoption of H.R. 3433 and establishment of an FDA technical assistance office in the Abraham Accords region, we begin climbing that hill. Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support this bipartisan legislation.