State Sen. Justin Brown
District 16

For Immediate Release:
May 3, 2024

Capital Building, Room 420
Jefferson City, MO 65101

Contact: Ashley Bax
573-751-5713

Simplifying Health Care Access

Greetings and happy Friday! While most of the talk from Jefferson City this week will be about the 41-hour-long filibuster from Tuesday to Thursday morning, my personal highlight was having my second piece of legislation pass out of the upper chamber and move on to the Missouri House of Representatives.

I filed Senate Bill 751 in an effort to begin making steps towards prioritizing patient care in our health care system and eliminating hurdlers for health care providers. If passed by the General Assembly and signed by the governor, it will open up more entities who are currently not able to receive drugs through the 340B program. This program was created to get needed medicines and treatments into our rural communities at fair prices. Unfortunately, we see too many elements of the health care process restrict this service to pad their own pockets and find loopholes that prevent local pharmacies from being able to distribute these drugs to those who need them.

I wish we, lawmakers, didn’t have to get involved in these issues. However, I have no problem working hard to pass whatever legislation is needed to make sure our communities, be it big or small, get the care, resources and treatments they need to be healthy.

I promise to bring the same passion and logic to budget negotiations that will be long and thorough next week. We got a preview the past few days as a group of senators held the floor for more than 40 hours with the goal of holding up Senate Bill 748, the federal reimbursement allowance (FRA), until certain other bills were acted on. Demanding a timeline from our colleagues and other elected officials is not the purpose of the filibuster and it does not bode well for our final days in session that these are the strategies being implemented. I remain hopeful, however, that as we work to pass a fair and balanced budget, we can negotiate in good faith and work together to do something that is good for all Missourians.

There is just one week remaining until the deadline to pass the budget and have it to the governor, and two weeks until the end of session. It will take many long days and nights to get priorities like SB 751 across the finish line, as well as making sure the state keeps the lights on. I am up for the task and believe we can tackle several more key priorities before the final gavel drops on May 17.  

It’s my honor to serve as your senator for the 16th District. If you have questions or need any assistance, please call my office at 573-751-5713 or log onto my webpage at senate.mo.gov/brown for more information.

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