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Democratic 2022 United States Representative

Raul Ruiz

U.S. Representative Raul Ruiz, M.D., grew up in the community of Coachella, California, where both of his parents were farmworkers.

Dr. Ruiz achieved his lifelong dream of becoming a physician through public education. After graduating from Coachella Valley High School, Dr. Ruiz graduated magna cum laude from UCLA. He went on to Harvard University, where he earned his Medical Degree, as well as a Masters of Public Policy from the Kennedy School of Government and a Masters of Public Health from the School of Public Health, becoming the first Latino to earn three graduate degrees from Harvard University. He completed his Residency in Emergency Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh and a Fellowship in International Emergency Medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. During his training, Dr. Ruiz served as a consultant to the Ministries of Health of both Serbia and El Salvador.

 

HEALTH CARE

As an emergency medicine physician, I know how important it is for people in the 36th District to have access to quality, affordable health care. Some improvements have been made to our health care system, such as allowing parents to insure their children until the age of 26, making prescription drugs more affordable for seniors, and ensuring that people with preexisting conditions cannot be denied insurance coverage. However, our system remains imperfect and expensive, wasting billions every year and we must continue working to improve it.

I am first and foremost a physician, and the health of our communities is my chief concern. I will continue to fight to protect the Medicare and Social Security benefits that seniors have worked hard to earn and find bipartisan solutions that will improve our nation’s health care system. Good ideas don’t belong to a single party, and I will continue to reach across the aisle to improve healthcare for the residents of California’s 36th Congressional District.

Recently Introduced Legislation: 

  • H.R. 4030, the Diversifying Investigations Via Equitable Research Studies for Everyone (DIVERSE) Act, which would increase diversity in clinical trial participation through outreach to underrepresented populations to improve health outcomes and access to lifesaving vaccines, medications, and treatments.
  • H.R. 4014, the Physician Shortage GME Cap Flex Act of 2021, which would address the national physician workforce shortage by empowering new teaching hospitals in underserved areas to increase the number of Medicare-funded residency training slots in their programs.
  • H.R. 2163, the SAFE Step Act, which would improve step therapy protocols and ensure patients are able to safely and efficiently access the best treatment for them.

Dr. Ruiz's Health Care Legisaltion Signed into Law: 

  • H.R. 5605, the Advancing High Quality Treatment for Opioid Use Disorders in Medicare Act, was signed into law as part of the Substance Use-Disorder Prevention that Promotes Opioid Recovery and Treatment for Patients and Communities Act on October 24, 2018. My bill expands access to wraparound services for seniors with opioid use disorders.
  • H.R. 3917, the Extend funding for Special Diabetes Program Act, was signed into law as part of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 on February 9, 2018. This bill helps tribes manage, prevent, and treat diabetes in their communities.
  • H.R. 3394, the Teaching Health Centers Graduate Medical Education Extension Act, was signed into law as part of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 on February 9, 2018. This bill helps address the physician shortage crisis in underserved communities by increasing the number of residents in health centers across the country. 
  • H.R. 849, the Protecting Seniors' Access to Medicare Act of 2017, was signed into law as part of H.R. 1892, the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 on February 9, 2018. This bill will protect seniors' access to the health care that they need by eliminating the Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB), an unelected panel created through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) tasked with reducing Medicare spending.
  • H.R. 5714, the EDU Act of 2018, was signed into law as part of the Substance Use-Disorder Prevention that Promotes Opioid Recovery and Treatment for Patients and Communities Act on October 24, 2018. 10/24/2018. This bill reduces the chances of addiction both for seniors and anyone who might have access to their medicine cabinets.
  • H.R. 1839, the Medicaid Services Investment and Accountability Act of 2019, was signed into law on April 18, 2019. My bill makes essential reforms to Medicaid that puts patients first – helping children and individuals with mental health issues access the care they need.
  • H.R. 6261, a bill to provide coverage of COVID-19 testing at no cost for Tribal members receiving health services through the Indian Health Service, was signed into law as part of H.R. 6201, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act on March 18, 2020. My bill ensures that tribal members do not have to pay out of pocket for COVID-19 tests.
  • H.R. 6282, the Commission on America’s Medical Security Act, was signed into law as part of the CARES Act on March 27, 2020. My bill helps ensure that we don’t have to fight another pandemic relying on other countries to get the supplies we need here in the U.S.
  • H.R. 6283, the Good Samaritan Health Professionals Act, was signed into law as part of the CARES Act on March 27, 2020. My bill ensures that providers risking their own health and well-being to help serve another community battling the COVID-19 pandemic will not be prohibited from doing so just because they do not hold insurance in that state.
  • H.R. 2281, the Easy MAT for Opioid Addiction Act, was signed into law as part of the Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2021, and Other Extensions Act on December 11, 2020. My bill will help increase the number of patients who make it to long-term treatment and will ease the burden on already overcrowded emergency departments.
  • H.R. 2477, the Beneficiary Enrollment Notification and Eligibility Simplification (BENES) Act of 2019, was signed into law as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act 2021 on December 27, 2020. My bill will ensure that seniors will no longer be forced to wait for Medicare, facing harmful coverage gaps and potentials leaving them without access to health care, just because they inadvertently missed their initial sign-up period.
  • H.R. 2815, the Training the Next Generation of Primary Care Doctors Act of 2019, was signed into law as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act on December 27, 2020. My bill expands the teaching health centers program to aid continued physician growth in areas that have historically not had enough doctors to serve the community.
  • H.R. 1889, the Environmental Justice for Coronavirus Affecting Communities Act, was signed into law as part of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 on March 11, 2021. My bill will improve health outcomes in underserved communities where air quality is a problem.
  • H.R. 949, the Expanding Teaching Health Centers Act of 2021, was signed into law as part of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 on March 11, 2021. My bill expands this program to ensure continued physician growth in areas that have historically not had enough doctors to serve the community.
  • H.R. 1373, the Urban Indian Health Parity Act, was signed into law as part of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 on March 11, 2021. My bill provides critical funding to facilities that serve low-income tribal members in urban areas. 
  • H.R. 1708, the Tribal Health Care Protection Fund Act, was signed into law as part of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 on March 11, 2021. My bill strengthens Tribal health care by ensuring that facilities still have the financial resources to operate despite a drop in services provided during the Covid-19 pandemic.