On Thursday, through a line of skillful and at times ruthless questioning, California Congresswoman Katie Porter got the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to commit to free testing for all Americans who may be carrying the coronavirus.

Porter first filleted Health and Human Services (HHS) official Dr. Robert Kadlec on his apparent lack of knowledge about what the out-of-pocket costs would be for most Americans seeking a test for the coronavirus. Using a whiteboard to demonstrate her calculations, she informed him the average cost would “conservatively” come to $1,331 per person, adding that “we live in a world where 40% of Americans can not even afford a $400 unexpected expense.”

The congresswoman then turned to CDC director Dr. Robert Redfield and asked, “Would you like to know who has the coronavirus and who doesn’t?”

After a long pause. Redfield replied, “Yes.”

“Not just rich people, but everyone who might have the virus,” she prompted.

“All of America,” he replied.

Porter then pointed out that there were a number of federal regulations that applied to the CDC that allow the director to authorize payment for the treatment and care of individuals “subject to exam and quarantine, isolation and conditional release.”

“That I know about,” he replied. “My office did tell me about that.”

“So you’re familiar,” Porter responded. “Dr. Redfield, will you commit to the CDC right now using that existing authority to pay for diagnostic testing for each and every American regardless of insurance?”

As he began to answer, and started to say, “We’re going to do everything we can to make sure everybody can get the care they need,” Porter immediately cut him off and said, “Not good enough.”

The first-term Congresswoman, a rising Democratic star, continued to grill Dr. Redfield on whether he would commit to the government paying for those tests. After he said the CDC will work with HHS on how to “operationalize” that, Porter appeared to give him an ultimatum.

“Dr. Redfield, I hope that answer weighs heavily on you. Because it is going to weigh heavily on me and on every American family,” she said, adding, “You don’t need to do any work to operationalize. You need to make a commitment to the American people so they come in to get tested. You can operationalize the payment structure tomorrow.”

Dr. Redfield eventually conceded the point, both agreeing in principle to providing free coronavirus tests to anyone who could not afford them, and then giving his adversary some credit for that decision. “I think you’re an excellent questioner, so my answer is yes,” he said.

“Excellent,” Porter responded. “Everybody in America hear that? You are eligible to go get tested for coronavirus and have that covered regardless of insurance. Please, if you believe you have the illness, follow precautions, call first, do everything the CDC and Dr. Fauci [director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases]—God bless you for guiding Americans in this time. But do not let a lack of insurance worsen this crisis.”

You can watch the exchange here: