Senator Warren Highlights MAAIA in Mental Health Package Markup

On November 8, the Senate Finance Committee held a markup of the Better Mental Health, Lower Cost Drugs and Extenders Act. This committee markup was designed to incorporate additional priorities from Senators across the Committee. Senator Warren (D-MA), a sponsor of the Medicare Audiology Access Improvement Act (MAAIA) along with Senators Grassley (R-IA) and Rand Paul (R-KY), used the opportunity to speak about the provisions of this legislation and the well-documented relationship between mental health and audio-vestibular health.

In her comments, Senator Warren emphasized the importance of ensuring adequate care for hearing loss in older adults. Committee Chairman Senator Wyden (D-OR) and Ranking Member Senator Crapo (R-ID) spoke in support and expressed a commitment in response to the request to help advance the MAAIA.