Congressman Comer talks Farm Bill, drug prices, importance of Fort Campbell

Congressman James Comer, who represents the First District of Kentucky in the U.S. House of Representatives, made several western Kentucky visits on Tuesday. 

He was on Fort Campbell for the ribbon cutting for a new barracks complex that is replacing a much older complex, creating better living conditions for soldiers. Congressman Comer says Fort Campbell remains a vital military asset for this nation and across the world, and he continues to focus on providing funding and support to its endeavors. He says we live in a world full of conflicts, so having a top-notch military force with high standards is a high-priority.

The congressman did express his frustration at the slow-pace in Washington D.C., especially concerning the Farm Bill. He says it’s a critical piece of legislation that shouldn’t be divisive, but it is, and many legislators aren’t willing to compromise, which has kept it from progressing.

He says what will likely end up happening is when the deadline for funding the Farm Bill comes up at the end of September, they’ll vote to extend it once again, which he says is not a permanent solution.

Something that Congressman and the House Oversight Committee will be looking further into are Pharmacy Benefit Managers—the congressman says they started as middle man between pharmaceutical companies and health insurance companies, but they’ve since become part of the problem on rising drug prices. He’s looking to put a stop to that.

While he’s been back in Kentucky, he says he’s gotten to hear a lot from citizens, and most of them are concerned about the same thing—inflation. Congressman Comer says the only way to address that is reign in what he calls government overspending.

Another thing he would like to see address at the federal level is the both personal and national security risks being caused by hackers abroad that are consistently accessing private information—from bank accounts to social security—of private citizens and government agencies.  He says he’s not sure what the answer is, but something must done.