On Friday, U.S. Sen. Doug Jones will host a constituent healthcare forum in room 105 of the Hank Sanders Technology Building on the campus of Wallace Community College – Selma (WCCS) at 10 a.m.

During the forum, Jones will discuss a number of healthcare-related issues, including increasing access to healthcare across Alabama, protecting the nation’s healthcare law and the maternal health issues disproportionately affecting women of color and women in rural areas.

During his tenure in the Senate, Jones has been an outspoken advocate for improving and expanding healthcare in Alabama and has taken a slew of actions aimed at that end.

Along with introducing legislative to incentivize the expansion of Medicaid in Alabama and other holdout states, Jones successfully made the case to change the Medicare wage index, which has had a damaging effect on financially-strained hospitals in the state, before the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

Additionally, Jones has introduced legislation aimed at addressing the nursing shortages impacting rural areas, as well as legislation to ensure women have access to affordable healthcare coverage during and after pregnancy and stop the maternal mortality crisis plaguing black women.

“Every Alabamian should have access to affordable, quality health care,” Jones said. “I’m going to continue to do everything I can in the Senate to make it easier for folks to get the health care they need, and I want to be sure to hear from people across the state about the health care issues they’re facing and what we can do to help.”