Post by bot on Jul 23, 2017 19:27:37 GMT -5
Republicans Must Abandon Repeal, Work With Democrats to Improve the ACA
Now that it’s clear that Senate Republican leaders don’t have the votes to jam through their TrumpCare bill, Majority Leader McConnell said he would bring a bill to the Floor that would repeal the Affordable Care Act without replacing it. This plan – already abandoned by the House in January due to lack of support – would leave millions of Americans without health insurance and dramatically increase premiums.
Here is what the Congressional Budget Office said in January 2017 about the House Republican bill that would have repealed the Affordable Care Act without replacing it:
•18 million more Americans will become uninsured next year
•32 million more Americans will become uninsured by 2026
•Americans will see premiums increase by 20 to 25 percent next year
•By 2020, Americans will see a 50 percent increase in premiums
•Premiums will increase by 100 percent by 2026
•75 percent of Americans will live in an area with no marketplace insurers in 2026
The Urban Institute also examined the impact of repeal without a replacement:
•82% of the people becoming uninsured would be in working families
•There would be 12.9 million fewer people with Medicaid or CHIP coverage in 2019
•“This scenario does not just move the country back to the situation before the ACA. It moves the country to a situation with higher uninsurance rates than was the case before the ACA’s reforms.” [Urban Institute, 12/6/16]
Republicans have said that they oppose repealing the Affordable Care Act without replacing it immediately:
President Trump: “We’re going to do it simultaneously…. We’re going to repeal it and replace it…. And we’re not going to have a two-year period where there’s nothing… It will be repealed and replaced…. And it’ll be great health care for much less money.” [60 Minutes, 11/11/16]
Vice President Mike Pence: “What the President-elect has made clear is that he also wants the Congress at the same time to pass a replacement bill that will lower the cost of health insurance and literally make health insurance affordable for every American.” [CNN Newsroom, 1/18/17]
Governor John Kasich (R-OH): “To repeal and not to replace, I just want to know what’s going to happen to all these people who find themselves left out in the cold.” [The Atlantic, 1/9/17]
Senator Rand Paul (R-KY): “…you can’t wait six months or a year and leave people floundering about without an alternative.” [Think Progress, 6/30/17]
Senator Tom Cotton (R-AR): “I don’t think we can just repeal Obamacare and say we’re going to get the answer two years from now…. Kicking the can down the road for a year or two years is not going to make it any easier to solve.” [Think Progress, 6/30/17]
Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK): “I will not support a reckless repeal process that leaves people hanging. Repeal must come along with a replacement that reforms and improves health care. That expands access, improves affordability, and provides the flexibility that Alaska needs to develop our solutions.” [Murkowski Remarks to Alaska State Legislature, 2/22/17]
Senator Jeff Flake (R-AZ): “It’s not realistic…The imperative is to do it right and I don’t think that does it right. I don’t think you’ll find much currency for that approach in the Senate.” [Politico, 2/14/17]
Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC): “If we repeal Obamacare, we need to make sure people don’t fall through the cracks until we get a replacement.” [Politico, 2/14/17]
Senator Susan Collins (R-ME): Some of my colleagues have argued for immediate repeal without any replacement…an option that I reject for it risks leaving millions of vulnerable Americans without affordable health insurance and would undo important consumer protections provided by current law." [The Hill, 1/23/17]
Senator Bob Corker (R-TN): “There’s more and more concerns about not doing it simultaneously.” [Politico, 1/9/17]
Senator John McCain (R-AZ): “They have to be done together…We don’t want to have people left out.” [New York Times, 12/6/16]
Senator Jerry Moran (R-KS): ““I am of the view that we can’t pull the rug out from under people who have been, in many instances, forced into Obamacare…this will take some time to make certain that we protect people and their health care.” [Bloomberg, 12/1/16]
It is time for Republicans to abandon their repeal efforts and instead work with Democrats to improve the Affordable Care Act.