Congress Votes to Gut Health Care

(Press Release) The U.S. House of Representatives narrowly voted to approve a proposal that would gut health care in the United States.

In response, CPPP Associate Director Anne Dunkelberg issued the following statement:

“Today the U.S. House voted to move us all backward on health care, against the will of the majority of Americans.

“Now our eyes are on the U.S. Senate to reject this scheme and stand up for the health and financial security of all Americans. Our hearts are with Texans, especially low- and moderate-income ones, who will suffer from damage to the foundation of our health care safety net.

“The Affordable Care Act, while far from perfect, aimed to ensure that Americans do not have to live sicker or die younger simply because they don’t have much money. People with pre-existing health conditions should have access to health care without the threat of financial catastrophe.

“The ironically named ‘American Health Care Act’ (AHCA) raids huge sums of money from programs that make coverage affordable to low- and moderate-income Americans and resurrects discrimination by insurance companies based on a person’s medical conditions.

“Today’s House vote was ugly and irresponsible – voting over the loud objections of every health care provider organization and patient advocacy organization and without a Congressional Budget Office score to show how much the bill costs and how many would lose coverage.

“We are grateful to members of the Texas Congressional delegation who voted no, including Congressman Will Hurd and the Democratic members of the delegation. We thank the Texans who called and wrote to their members of Congress, turned out to rallies and expressed their support for health care. Your energy will be needed to defend against this scheme in the U.S. Senate.”

Background:

Impacts of the AHCA on Texas would include:

Dramatic cuts to Medicaid. The bill cuts $839 billion from Medicaid over 10 years. The CBO found that by 2026, federal Medicaid spending would be 26 percent lower than under current law. Texas will receive an estimated $15 billion less in federal Medicaid funding over the next decade. The state budget and local budgets are unlikely be able to absorb this huge cost shift, likely resulting in state Medicaid cuts to who is enrolled, what is covered, what providers are paid, or all three. The vulnerable populations covered by Texas Medicaid today – children in low-income families and low-income seniors, individuals with disabilities and children with special health care needs, and pregnant women – will face new barriers to health care.

Millions will lose coverage. 24 million fewer people with insurance under the bill by 2026, including an estimated 2.5 million Texans. Coverage becomes less affordable for millions. The bill both reduces funding for financial help with premiums in the Health Insurance Marketplace and redirects help to higher-income individuals. Today, tax credits are weighed to give the most help to the people with the lowest-incomes and people who face the highest costs due to age or living in an area with more expensive insurance. Under the bill, premium costs would climb most dramatically for older enrollees age 50-64, lower-income enrollees, and enrollees in rural areas where insurance costs are generally higher. On top of that, out-of-pocket costs like deductibles will rise dramatically. The bill would raise total out-of-pocket health costs – premiums, deductibles, and copays – by an average of $2,687 per year for people with coverage today in Texas’s Health Insurance Marketplace.

Resurrects discrimination against people with pre-existing conditions. Today, there is a nationwide, unequivocal protection for people with pre-existing conditions. The bill creates a state option to let insurers resume charging more—possibly much more—to people with pre-existing conditions. A last-minute amendment added in a completely inadequate amount funding for high-risk pools, which have failed to provide adequate or affordable coverage in Texas and elsewhere. The bill contains no assurances that coverage would remain affordable for people with pre-existing conditions.

Removes standards for coverage. The bill lets states eliminate the ACA’s essential health benefits requirements that ensure coverage includes basic services like mental health and opioid treatment, prescription drugs, hospitalization, and maternity. Even if people with pre-existing conditions could find affordable plans under the bill, they could end up enrolled in plans that don’t cover key benefits that they need.

Tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans and medical industries. The cuts to Medicaid and Marketplace subsidies are used primarily to pay for big tax cuts to the wealthiest Americans and medical industries including insurers and pharmaceutical companies.