Sandra Fluke: Rush Limbaugh deserves health care, not the Presidential Medal of Freedom Donald Trump and Rush Limbaugh would prevent every American from accessing affordable health care. But Democrats fight for coverage for all of us.

Sandra Fluke | Opinion contributor

Show Caption Hide Caption Rush Limbaugh gets Medal of Freedom from Trump President Donald Trump asked the first lady to bestow Rush Limbaugh with the Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian award at the State of the Union.

In 2012, when Rush Limbaugh spewed hateful rhetoric about me because I was fighting for access to reproductive health care, it was a national scandal. In 2020, when President Donald Trump spews hateful rhetoric about access to health care and awards Limbaugh the Presidential Medal of Freedom, it’s the State of the Union.

In 2012, I was a law student. In 2020, I’m proud to be the president of Voices for Progress, where we fight for comprehensive, affordable access to health care for all, among other issues. We’re committed to not allowing Limbaugh and Trump’s hateful, discriminatory views about who deserves what health care to become this nation’s policy.

The cruel irony of this year’s State of the Union address is that Trump used the podium to evoke the pain a family feels when a loved one is sick and to pray that Limbaugh’s treatment will be successful. Yet, in the same speech, he lied to the American people, falsely tarnishing Democratic efforts to increase health care access as “a socialist takeover of our health care system." In truth, his administration and the Republican Senate are working to deny affordable access to life-saving care.

Limbaugh doesn’t deserve the Presidential Medal of Freedom, but he does deserve comprehensive, affordable access to health care, and so does every other person in this country, whether they’re a woman, an undocumented immigrant or a family struggling to make ends meet.

Trump opposed bill to lower drug costs

While Trump told the country he would “always” protect people with preexisting conditions, in reality, his administration is backing a lawsuit that would eliminate their coverage.

By gutting the Affordable Care Act that Voices for Progress members fought for, preexisting condition coverage protections for as many as 135 million Americans could be eliminated. If Trump really is protecting their care, why won’t he remove the administration from the lawsuit?

State of the Union prime time: Trump turned the State of the Union speech into a reality show. Rush Limbaugh was its star.

Since before his election, and again at this week’s State of the Union, Trump has claimed he would help lower the price of prescription drugs. Yet drug prices have only continued at a steep increase and, worse yet, he gave Big Pharma (and their wealthy executives) billions of dollars in tax breaks in 2017.

Recently, the House of Representatives passed the Elijah E. Cummings Lower Drug Costs Now Act. Members of Voices for Progress, including business leaders, entrepreneurs and philanthropists, played a key role as a counterbalance to Big Pharma and helped pass this legislation.

The Trump administration opposed the bill, causing members of Congress to chant about H.R. 3 in response to his State of the Union remarks. If the president really was trying to lower drug prices, why won’t he tell Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to take H.R. 3 out of his legislative graveyard and pass it so the president can sign it into law?

This spring, we aim to help pass legislation guaranteeing that no patient ever receives a surprise medical bill. We’ll go up against the private equity lobbyists who are spending millions of dollars in ads to block meaningful legislation. Will President Trump keep his State of the Union promise and support it?

Taking back the Senate is top priority

Trump hurled hateful, racist rhetoric about immigrants throughout his speech, and his administration’s actions match. His new public charge policy creates a discriminatory “wealth test,” making many immigrant families too fearful to access the health insurance programs they need.

Despite Democratic efforts to block this rule, with a Republican Senate and Trump in the White House, it will continue to go forward. This is not the country that we are.

More on health care solutions: Here's how we can fix American health care, save money and meet patients' needs

To reverse that rule and make sure everyone in the country has access to affordable, comprehensive health care, we must vote out the Republican senators who voted to repeal the ACA, ignoring the demands of Americans around the country to protect it. The House has passed critical legislation, like H.R. 3, that will lower the cost of health care, but it won’t become law until we have a Senate that refuses to do President Trump’s bidding.

It’s time to replace Trump and McConnell’s Republican majority with senators who will put the health of all Americans ahead of corporate interests. That’s why, at Voices for Progress, taking back the Senate is a top political priority this year.

The hateful rhetoric of Rush Limbaugh did not silence me in 2012, and the lies of Donald Trump will not silence us now in our work toward a future in which everyone has access to quality and affordable health care. Join us as we make our voices heard in November.

Sandra Fluke is the president of Voices for Progress, a part of Tides Advocacy. Follow her on Twitter: @SandraFluke