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December 2017

Enough is Enough: Here Are Some of the Ways The Trump Administration And Republicans In Congress Have Waged War on Health Care in 2017

Since taking office earlier this year, President Trump, his administration and allies in Congress have waged an unrelenting war against our health care. Their twin weapons have been repeal and sabotage. The innocent victims are the American people. Their agenda takes  health care away from millions, raises costs for millions more, guts protections for people with preexisting conditions, and purposely destroys the insurance markets.  And they have done it without listening to the American people, health care experts, or engaging in a hint of bipartisanship.

President Trump famously said “the best thing we can do…is let Obamacare explode” and “let it be a disaster because we can blame that on the Democrats.” But as his actions this show clearly, he and his allies in Congress are not letting Obamacare fail, they are making Obamacare fail.

In Congress,  they tried five separate times to completely  repeal health care — starting with the so-called American Health Care Act (AHCA) in the House, then the Better Care Reconciliation Act (BCRA), a partial repeal bill, Graham-Cassidy, and “skinny” repeal bills in the Senate.  At the White House and HHS, they sabotaged open enrollment, took direct aim at birth control, instructed their cabinet secretaries to disobey the law, and  stopped funding the payments that kept out of pocket costs low for millions of our fellow citizens. They just snuck in a repeal of a key provision of the Affordable Care Act that will raise premiums by double digits and increase the number of uninsured by millions, so they can  give massive tax breaks to billionaires and large corporations.

Here is some of what they did  in 2017:

  • On his first day in office, President Trump signed an Executive Order directing the administration to find any ways they could to unravel the Affordable Care Act.
  • The Trump administration cut the number of days people could sign up for coverage during open enrollment by half, from 90 days to 45 days.
  • House Republicans voted for and passed a health care repeal bill that causes 23 million people to lose coverage and guts protections for people with pre-existing conditions.
  • The Trump administration cut the outreach advertising budget for open enrollment by 90 percent, from $100 million to just $10 million – likely to result in 1.1 million fewer people getting covered. Advertising is a critical way for people to know when and how they can get covered.  
  • Republicans refused to move forward on the bipartisan Alexander Murray bill even though it had a filibuster proof majority in the Senate.
  • Senate Republicans tried but failed to pass BCRA, Skinny Repeal and Graham-Cassidy, all of which would cause millions to lose their health coverage and raise premiums by double digits for millions more..
  • The administration ordered the Department of Health and Human Services’ regional directors to stop participating in open enrollment events. Mississippi Health Advocacy Program Executive Director Roy Mitchell said, “I didn’t call it sabotage…But that’s what it is.”
  • The administration dramatically cut in-person assistance that helped people sign up for 2018 coverage.
  • The Trump administration took direct aim at birth control by rolling back a rule that guaranteed women access to contraception. (A court has since delayed their effort.)
  • After threatening for months to stop funding cost-sharing reductions (CSRs) that help lower deductibles and out-of-pocket costs,  the Trump administration stopped CSR payments altogether in October. The CBO found failing to make these payments would increase premiums by 20 percent and add nearly $200 billion to the debt.
  • President Trump signed an Executive Order that would roll back key protections and result in garbage insurance, raise premiums, reduce coverage and expose millions of Americans again to discrimination based on pre-existing conditions.
  • House and Senate Republicans repealed the individual mandate in their tax bill in order to pay for massive tax breaks to the ultra wealthy and big corporations.  CBO predicts millions will lose coverage and premiums will go up double digits.

While the Trump administration and Republicans in Congress want to keep up this war on health care in 2018, the American people are saying “Enough is Enough.” Nearly 9 million people just signed up for coverage through healthcare.gov despite all the sabotage efforts. The Affordable Care Act is more favorable than it has ever been. And millions of people across the country made their voices heard at rallies, town halls and calling their member of Congress to fight these repeal efforts.

The American people are right: enough IS enough.

Protect Our Care Statement On Trump Administration Proposed Rule to Sabotage Health Care Markets

In response to the Trump administration’s proposed rule to expand association health plans,, which will gut protections and raise costs for people with pre-existing conditions and further destabilize the marketplace, Protect Our Care Campaign Director Brad Woodhouse released the following statement:

“Just days after passing a tax bill that throws 13 million people off health insurance and raises premiums by double digits, the Trump Administration has resumed their war on our health care,” said Woodhouse. “Now they want to let insurance companies sell plans that gut protections and charge more for people with pre-existing conditions. This proposed rule attacks the protections most supported by Americans, and is opposed by leading patient and insurance groups. It’s only the latest act of sabotage from a president who wants to raise your costs and take away your coverage. Only Donald Trump could give America this kind of New Year’s present. Unfortunately, it is the American people who will suffer.”

FACT SHEET: ASSOCIATION HEALTH PLANS

ASSOCIATION HEALTH PLANS ALLOW PROVIDERS TO CHERRY PICK HEALTHIER PEOPLE, RAISING COSTS ON PEOPLE WITH PRE-EXISTING CONDITIONS AND DESTABILIZING THE MARKET

Tim Jost: “It Will Destroy The Small-Group Market…We’ll Be Back To Where We Were Before The Affordable Care Act.” “The result could in many cases be that these new association health plans would be considered large employers when it comes to health insurance. Large employers are not subject to the same rules as individual or small-group plans under Obamacare. Most notably, they do not have to cover all of the law’s essential health benefits or meet the requirement that insurance cover a minimal percentage of a person’s medical bills.If that change were made, association health plans would be freed to craft skimpier (and cheaper) health plans that appeal only to businesses with younger and healthier employees. Small businesses left in Obamacare’s marketplace would likely face higher costs and fewer options as the market became less attractive to insurers. ‘It will destroy the small-group market,’ Tim Jost, a law professor at Washington and Lee University who generally supports Obamacare, told me before the order was signed. ‘We’ll be back to where we were before the Affordable Care Act.’” [Vox, 12/29/17]

Georgetown Center on Health Insurance Reforms: Prior To ACA, AHPs Would Set Up Headquarters In A State With Fewer Regulations And Market To States With More Regulations. “Additionally, AHPs would often set up headquarters in one state with limited regulatory oversight and market policies to businesses and consumers in other states with more robust regulation, thereby bypassing those states’ more protective rating and benefit standards.” [Georgetown Center on Health Insurance Reforms, December 2017]

Deep Banerjee, S&P Global Ratings: “No One Healthy Is Now Going To Sign Up In The ACA Risk Pool, Because They Have This Cheaper Option.” “With associations, health care providers can effectively choose the most desirable participants, allowing the healthy to make the switch to save money — and potentially shutting out the less healthy. ‘No one healthy is now going to sign up in the ACA risk pool, because they have this cheaper option,’ Deep Banerjee, a health care analyst at S&P Global Ratings said.” [UPI, 10/12/17]

ASSOCIATION HEALTH PLANS WOULD ALLOW PROVIDERS TO GUT CONSUMER PROTECTIONS AND MAKE IT HARDER TO PURCHASE COMPREHENSIVE COVERAGE

Katherine Hempstead, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation: “The Easier You Make It Not To Buy Comprehensive Coverage, The Harder You Make It Buy Comprehensive Coverage.” [New York Times, 10/11/17]

Vox: Association Health Plans Could Allow Groups To Act As Large Employers Which Do Not Have To Cover Essential Benefits Under The ACA. “The result could in many cases be that these new association health plans would be considered large employers when it comes to health insurance. Large employers are not subject to the same rules as individual or small-group plans under Obamacare. Most notably, they do not have to cover all of the law’s essential health benefits or meet the requirement that insurance cover a minimal percentage of a person’s medical bills.” [Vox, 10/12/17]

Treating Association Health Plans Like Large Employers Would Exempt Them From Guaranteeing Essential Health Benefits And Allow Them To Charge People Based On Health Status And Gender. Treating Association Health Plans like large-employers would exempt them from key consumer protections under the Affordable Care Act. Large employers do not have to offer plans with the Essential Health Benefits like maternity care, prescription drug coverage or mental health and substance abuse services. Insurers for large employers can also charge more based on health status and gender. [Georgetown Center on Health Insurance Reforms, December 2017]

ASSOCIATION HEALTH PLANS HAVE A HISTORY OF FRAUD AND UNPAID CLAIMS

Former Insurance Fraud Investigator: “Fraudulent Association Health Plans Have Left Hundreds Of Thousands Of People With Unpaid Claims.” “Marc I. Machiz, who investigated insurance fraud as a Labor Department lawyer for more than 20 years, said the executive order was ‘summoning back demons from the deep.’ ‘Fraudulent association health plans have left hundreds of thousands of people with unpaid claims,’ he said. ‘They operate in a regulatory never-never land between the Department of Labor and state insurance regulators.’” [New York Times, 10/21/17]

2017: Labor Department Filed A Suit Against An AHP For 300 Employers In Washington State Alleging The AHP Had Charged Employers More Than $3 Million In Excessive Fees And Violating Its Fiduciary Duty By Using Assets For Personal Interests. “The problems are described in dozens of court cases and enforcement actions taken over more than a decade by federal and state officials who regulate the type of plans Mr. Trump is encouraging, known as association health plans. In many cases, the Labor Department said, it has targeted ‘unscrupulous promoters who sell the promise of inexpensive health benefit insurance, but default on their obligations.’ In several cases, it has found that people managing these health plans diverted premiums to their personal use. The department filed suit this year against an association health plan for 300 small employers in Washington State, asserting that its officers had mismanaged the plan’s assets and charged employers more than $3 million in excessive ‘administrative fees.’ Operators of the health plan violated their fiduciary duty by using its assets ‘in their own interest,’ rather than for the benefit of workers, the government said.” [New York Times, 10/21/17]

2016: A Labor Department Lawsuit Revealed An AHP Had Concealed Financial Problems And Left $3.6 Million In Unpaid Claims. “The Labor Department filed suit last year against a Florida woman and her company to recover $1.2 million that it said had been improperly diverted from a health plan serving dozens of employers. The defendants concealed the plan’s financial problems from plan participants and left more than $3.6 million in unpaid claims, the department said in court papers.” [New York Times, 10/21/17]

A Health Plan For New Jersey Small Businesses Collapsed With $7 Million In Unpaid Claims. “In another case, a federal appeals court found that a health plan for small businesses in New Jersey was ‘aggressively marketed but inadequately funded.’ The plan collapsed with more than $7 million in unpaid claims.” [New York Times, 10/21/17]

In Florida, A Man Pleaded Guilty To Embezzling $700,000 In Premiums From An AHP To Help Build A Home For Himself And Was Sentenced To 57 Months In Prison. “A Florida man was sentenced to 57 months in prison after he pleaded guilty to embezzling about $700,000 in premiums from a health plan that he had marketed to small businesses. The Labor Department and the Justice Department said he had used some of the plan premiums to build a home for himself.” [New York Times, 10/21/17]

In South Carolina, A Man Pleaded Guilty To Diverting Nearly $1 Million From An AHP For Churches And Small Businesses, Leaving $1.7 Million In Unpaid Claims. “A South Carolina man pleaded guilty after the government found that he had diverted more than $970,000 in insurance premiums from a health plan for churches and small businesses. ‘His embezzlement and the plan’s consequent failure left behind approximately $1.7 million in unpaid medical claims,’ the Labor Department said.” [New York Times, 10/21/17]

In Louisiana, Two People Pleaded Guilty To Using Money From The AHP For Spa Treatments, Diamond Cuff Links, Foreign Travel And Other Personal Expenses. “And in Louisiana, two people pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges after the government found that they had taken money from the medical benefit fund of a trade association and used it to pay for spa treatments, diamond cuff links, evening gowns, foreign travel and other personal expenses.” [New York Times, 10/21/17]

One AHP Scheme Shows How AHPs Can Move From State To State. Families USA chronicled an AHP scheme involving the American Trade Association, Smart Data Solutions, and Serve America Assurance. They found:

  • “Even after one state identifies a problem, the company may continue to operate for years in other states. North Carolina issued a cease and desist order to stop many of the players in this case from selling insurance in 2008.”
  • “But by June 2010, when Maryland issued a cease and desist order, the plans sold by these players had been identified in at least 23 states.2 „ Estimates of total premiums paid to these companies for unauthorized, unlicensed plans range from $14 million to $100 million.”
  • “This particular scheme operated through associations that went by many different names. (At least one of the players in this case was involved in a previous case concerned with fraudulent insurance sold through an association of employers in 2001-2002.”
  • “Consumers are often ill-protected when they buy coverage through an association, and the web of relationships among salespeople, associations, administrators, and actual insurers can be difficult for regulators to unravel and oversee. Consumers may be encouraged to join fake associations to buy health insurance so they have an illusion of coverage—and the insurers collect membership dues and premiums while illegally avoiding state oversight).” [Families USA, October 2010]

GAO Report In 1992 Showed Similar AHPs Left At Least 398,000 Participants With More Than $123 Million In Unpaid Claims And More Than 600 Plans In Almost Every State Failed To Comply With State Laws. “Back in 1992, the Government Accountability Office issued a scathing report on these multiple employer welfare arrangements (known as MEWAs; they’re pronounced “mee-wahs”) in which small businesses could pool funds to get the lower-cost insurance typically available only to large employers. These MEWAs, said the government, left at least 398,000 participants and their beneficiaries with more than $123 million in unpaid claims between January 1988 and June 1991. Furthermore, states reported massive and widespread problems with MEWAs. More than 600 plans in nearly every U.S. state failed to comply with insurance laws. Thirty-three states said enrollees were sometimes left without health coverage when MEWAs disbanded…’MEWAs have proven to be a source of regulatory confusion, enforcement problems and, in some instances, fraud,’ the GAO wrote at the time.” [Washington Post, 10/12/17]

KEY STAKEHOLDERS CAME OUT AGAINST PRESIDENT TRUMP’S EXECUTIVE ORDER ON AHPS SAYING THEY WOULD DESTABILIZE THE MARKETS, RAISE COSTS AND GUT PROTECTIONS FOR PEOPLE WITH PRE-EXISTING CONDITIONS

American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Diabetes Association, American Heart Association, American Liver Foundation, American Lung Association, Arthritis Foundation, Crohn’s And Colitis Foundation, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, Epilepsy Foundation, Lutheran Services In America, March Of Dimes, Muscular Dystrophy Association, National Health Council, National Multiple Sclerosis Society, National Organization For Rare Disorders, United Way Worldwide, Volunteers Of America, Womenheart: “This Order Has The Potential To Price Millions Of People With Pre-Existing Conditions And Serious Illnesses Out Of The Individual Insurance Market And Put Millions More At Risk.” “This order has the potential to price millions of people with pre-existing conditions and serious illnesses out of the individual insurance market and put millions more at risk through the sale of insurance plans that won’t cover all the services patients want to stay healthy or the critical care they need when they get sick…Together, these actions would likely split the market between those who need the comprehensive benefits provided under current law and those who are currently healthy and can gamble with substandard coverage. Siphoning off healthy people into risky, low-value plans, could leave millions of Americans with chronic or serious illnesses in an unsustainable insurance pool with rising premiums and fewer choices. It could also leave those who are healthy seriously underinsured when they face an unexpected health crisis.” [Letter, 10/12/17]

American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network: “Health Care Changes Could Leave Millions Of Cancer Patients And Survivors Unable To Access Meaningful Coverage.” “Today’s executive order jeopardizes the ability of millions of cancer patients, survivors and those at risk for the disease from being able to access or afford meaningful health insurance. Exempting an entire set of health plans from covering essential health benefits like prescription drugs or specialty care and allowing expansion and renewability of bare-bones short-term plans will split the insurance market. If younger and healthier people leave the market, people with serious illnesses like cancer will be left facing higher and higher premiums with few, if any, insurance choices.  Moreover, those who purchase cheap plans are likely to discover their coverage is inadequate when an unexpected health crisis happens leaving them financially devastated and costing the health care system more overall.” [ACS CAN, 10/12/17]

American Hospital Association: “These Provisions Could Destabilize The Individual And Small Group Markets, Leaving Millions Of Americans Who Need Comprehensive Coverage To Manage Chronic And Other Pre-Existing Conditions.” “Today’s Executive Order will allow health insurance plans that cover fewer benefits and offer fewer consumer protections…In addition, these provisions could destabilize the individual and small group markets, leaving millions of Americans who need comprehensive coverage to manage chronic and other pre-existing conditions, as well as protection against unforeseen illness and injury, without affordable options.” [AHA, 10/12/17]

American Medical Association: “The Executive Order’s Proposal To Expand Access To Association Health Plans And Allow Short-Term Plans To Cover Longer Time Periods May Weaken Important Patient Protections And Lead To Instability In The Individual Health Insurance Market.” “The AMA supports patient choice and promoting market competition, and supports the concept of association health plans. We have concerns, however, the Executive Order’s proposal to expand access to association health plans and allow short-term plans to cover longer time periods may weaken important patient protections and lead to instability in the individual health insurance market.” [AMA, 10/12/17]

American Academy Of Actuaries: “These Effects Could Include Tilting The Market In Favor Of Entities With Weaker Benefits Or Solvency Standards And Weakening The Protections For Consumers With Pre-Existing Health Conditions.” “‘Creating exemptions from the Affordable Care Act (ACA) insurance market rules can have far-reaching and unintended effects,’ said Academy Senior Health Fellow Cori Uccello. ‘These effects could include tilting the market in favor of entities with weaker benefits or solvency standards and weakening the protections for consumers with pre-existing health conditions.’” [AAA, 10/12/17]

Small Business Majority: “These Changes Would Be Bad For Small Businesses And Their Employees Because They Could Lead To Higher Premiums, Unbalanced Risk Pools And Lower-Quality Insurance.” “We are extremely disappointed this administration continues to undermine the Affordable Care Act (ACA), as evidenced today when President Trump signed an executive order allowing insurance companies to sell health insurance products across state lines and making it easier for groups to establish association health plans (AHPs). These changes would be bad for small businesses and their employees because they could lead to higher premiums, unbalanced risk pools and lower-quality insurance. While President Trump’s order would make it easier for a few select small businesses with younger and/or healthier employees to purchase association health plans that might be cheaper in other states, the tradeoff is that this would result in the emergence of parallel insurance markets for small businesses, leading to major spikes in premiums for small firms that remain in the small-group market.” [SBA, 10/12/17]

Consumers Union: “Executive Order On Health Plans Destabilizes Insurance Markets, Hurts Consumers, Drives Up Costs.” “While this executive order claims to help improve consumers’ access to affordable care, it would have the exact opposite effect. Allowing insurers to sell substandard association health plans that aren’t required to cover basic services and benefits will further fragment and destabilize the insurance markets as a whole. This action splits the market into two, pitting the healthy against those with preexisting conditions and life-threatening illnesses — but ultimately both groups lose in this new scheme.” [Consumers Union, 10/12/17]

American Federation Of Teachers: [Donald Trump] “Is Ignoring The Rule Of Law, Refusing To Compromise, And Doing An End-Run Around Congress In Order To Strip People Of Their Healthcare.” “Donald Trump owns the unwinding of the Affordable Care Act. He is ignoring the rule of law, refusing to compromise, and doing an end-run around Congress in order to strip people of their healthcare. Millions of Americans will be worse off because of his actions. This is an ongoing pattern of the Trump administration’s callous sabotage of Obamacare, and it will cause real harm to American families, leading to increased premiums and loss of coverage for those most in need of healthcare and flooding markets with cheap, limited ‘junk’ insurance.” [AFT, 10/12/17]

NETWORK Lobby: “The Trump Administration Continues To Do As Much As Possible To Destabilize The American Healthcare System, Increase Costs For Families, And Prevent People From Accessing The Care They Need.” “The Trump Administration continues to do as much as possible to destabilize the American healthcare system, increase costs for families, and prevent people from accessing the care they need. Today’s executive order is the latest attack on our healthcare, following a long line of attempts to repeal and cripple the ACA. This executive order will drive up premiums for many—especially middle-class families and people with pre-existing conditions—to further undermine the ACA. It is morally reprehensible to hurt people through unjust policies for political gain.” [Statement, 10/12/17]

KENTUCKY’S EXPERIMENT WITH ASSOCIATION HEALTH PLANS SHOW THE NEGATIVE IMPACTS THEY COULD HAVE

Kentucky Experiment Showed AHPs Destabilize The Market And Caused Insurers To Leave Individual Market Or Not Sell New Policies Subject To Higher Standards. “In 1994, Kentucky passed a set of health insurance reforms (for the individual and small-group markets) that were very similar to the ACA’s market reforms.  These included a requirement for insurers to accept all applicants regardless of their health status, restrictions on exclusions of pre-existing health conditions, and a requirement that premiums be set without regard to health status, claims experience, or gender.  Premium variations for age, family size, and geographic factors were limited, and plan benefits were standardized.  Insurers in the state resisted the reforms and lobbied to repeal parts of it. In 1996, Kentucky’s legislature passed legislation that repealed many of the market reforms.  Crucially, the law exempted associations of employers or individuals from the premium-rating and benefits requirements, a loophole that allowed associations to sell coverage under a much weaker regulatory scheme.  In part because healthy individuals could buy association plans, the risk of adverse selection against the reformed individual market increased.  Nearly all insurers left Kentucky’s individual market or declined to sell new policies that were subject to the stronger rating and benefits standards.  In 1998, the Kentucky legislature passed a bill that repealed many of the state’s remaining health insurance reforms.” [Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 11/29/17

Protect Our Care Statement On Federal Open Enrollment Numbers

In response to the news that 8.8 million people signed up for health insurance on the federal marketplace, Protect Our Care Campaign Director Brad Woodhouse released the following statement:

“A day after Republicans repealed a key provision of the Affordable Care Act and declared the law ‘dead,’ the results of open enrollment made clear the ACA is very much alive and demonstrated just how out of touch the GOP’s priorities are,” said Woodhouse. “More than 2 million new customers signed up for ACA coverage. The Affordable Care Act is working, and people’s lives are improving because of it. Despite widespread sabotage by the Trump Administration, including cutting the open enrollment period in half and dramatically slashing the advertising budget, these numbers prove that people want and need the affordable, quality health coverage the ACA provides, they rely on it for health and financial peace of mind and any further attempts at sabotage will be met with severe resistance. It’s time for the GOP to abandon efforts to take away people’s health care.”

Susan Collins Failed to Deliver On Her Health Care Promises

In response to a statement put out by Senators Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Lamar Alexander (R-TN), Protect Our Care Campaign Director Brad Woodhouse issued the following statement:

“After casting a vote for health care repeal in the middle of the night, Susan Collins admitted that she failed to deliver on her promises to Mainers,” said Woodhouse. “First she asserted she wouldn’t vote for repeal without health care stabilization bills being signed into law. Then she claimed she wouldn’t vote for repeal without a concurrent vote on the stabilization bills. Then she said she wouldn’t vote for repeal without a promise of their becoming law in the future. Now, she has basically said she trusts Paul Ryan – who has shown no indication of support for these measures – to make this happen.

“At the end of the day, we’re left with 13 million Americans who will lose their health insurance, millions more who will see their premiums increase and assurances which are getting weaker and weaker with each subsequent press release. Millions of Americans – and hundreds of thousands of Mainers, who just one month ago overwhelmingly voted to expand Medicaid – will suffer because of it.”

Protect Our Care Statement on Senate Passage of GOP Tax Scam, Sneaky Health Care Repeal

In response to the Senate passing the GOP tax scam containing sneaky repeal, which will kick 13 million Americans off of their insurance, raise premiums double digits for millions more and slash Medicare by $25 billion, Protect Our Care Campaign Director Brad Woodhouse released the following statement:

“After rejecting health repeal over the summer, today, in the early hours of the morning, Senate Republicans voted to kick 13 million people off of their health insurance, raise premiums double digits for millions more and trigger a $25 billion cut in Medicare – all so the wealthiest and large corporations can get a tax break,” Woodhouse said.

“One of the primary reasons this tax bill passed with sneaky repeal was because Senator Susan Collins was assured Congress would pass two bills to stabilize the marketplace. Make no mistake: none of these bills will mitigate the damage done by this repeal vote the Senate just took.

“And to the shock of no one, before the bill even passed, Sens. Lindsey Graham, Bill Cassidy and others were plotting to bring back the GOP’s full health repeal legislation. Apparently kicking 13 million Americans off of their health insurance and raising premiums double digits wasn’t enough – the Republicans want to dump 32 million, raise premiums 20 percent and cut Medicaid by $4.1 trillion. Those who have previously opposed such measures, like Sens. Collins and Lisa Murkowski, must pledge to oppose any further repeal efforts – the health care system has already been harmed enough.”

Protect Our Care Statement on House Passage of GOP Tax Scam, Sneaky Health Care Repeal

In response to the House passing the GOP tax scam containing sneaky repeal, which will kick 13 million Americans off of their insurance, raise premiums double digits for millions more and slash Medicare by $25 billion, Protect Our Care Campaign Director Brad Woodhouse released the following statement:

“Today, Republicans made clear their claims about expanding health care access, lowering the deficit and evening the playing field for the middle class were complete lies,” Woodhouse said. “This legislation will kick 13 million people off of their health insurance, raise premiums double digits for millions more and trigger a $25 billion cut in Medicare – all so the wealthiest and large corporations can get a tax break.

“This bill is atrocious in all aspects. It was written in a dark room without outside analysis or bipartisan input. When nonpartisan analyses found that GOP claims were severely misleading, Speaker Paul Ryan just said they were wrong. When asked to make the conference report public, Chairman Kevin Brady responded by releasing its text at 5:30 on a Friday afternoon. When experts warned about rushing the bill through, Republicans ignored them, to the point that GOP Members literally cannot name the tax brackets in the bill they voted in favor of. And all of this was done to pass a massively unpopular bill that guts health care for the middle-class and makes the one-percent even richer.

“The Republican war on health care has not gone unnoticed by the American people. Health care has dominated every Congressional recess, it’s the number one issue on the minds of voters, it powered Democrats in last month’s elections in Virginia, Maine and New Jersey and the GOP’s efforts to repeal and sabotage the law have contributed to historically-low approval ratings for President Trump and congressional Republicans. Republicans are going to get their tax scam – but at great cost to American health care and to the GOP’s own political standing.”

Protect Our Care Statement On Potential Inclusion Of Alexander-Murray In Senate Spending Bill

In response to the news that the Senate plans to include the Alexander-Murray legislation in its must-pass spending bill this week, Protect Our Care Campaign Director Brad Woodhouse released the following statement:

“This is not nearly enough to offset the damage caused by this tax bill, and for senators to pretend otherwise is wrong and short-sighted” said Woodhouse. “13 million people will lose health insurance due to sneaky repeal and millions more will see their premiums rise double digits, and Alexander-Murray will do virtually nothing for these people even it is able to pass the House, far from a sure thing.

“Perhaps Senators Collins and Murkowski think this legislation will allow them to justify supporting a tax scam benefiting the wealthiest and big corporations at the expense of everyone else, but it provides little comfort to the American people losing sleep over their health care being put in jeopardy by the GOP tax scam.”

Tell Bob to Put a Cork In the Tax Bill

Sen. Bob Corker wins from the tax bill, while Tennesseans lose

SEN. CORKER COULD SEE MORE THAN $1 MILLION WINDFALL FROM THIS TAX BILL …

Economist Dean Baker estimates that Sen. Bob Corker could see a more than $1 million windfall from a provision in the latest tax bill Corker is now supporting.

WHAT AVERAGE TENNESSEANS GET …

  • $1.46 trillion added to the debt
  • 262,000 Tennesseans will lose health coverage
  • $2,970 higher premiums for a typical middle class family in Tennessee
  • $2,189 age tax for people over 50 in Tennessee because of higher premiums
  • $25 billion in Medicare cuts, including $539 million in Tennessee alone – and laying the groundwork for even more

She Did What?! Susan Collins’ Position on the Tax Bill Hurts the Middle Class, the Environment and Health Care, Undermining Her Claims to Leadership on All of These Issues

For years, Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine) has claimed to support the middle-class, favored the expansion of health care coverage and pledged to protect the environment. The GOP tax scam hammers the middle class, guts health care coverage and will irreparably hurt the environment. Who is harmed under this bill, and why does Sen. Collins continue to support it?

Mainers’ Health Because Premiums Will Rise and Medicare Cuts Are on the Horizon. Analysis from the Center for American Progress found that Mainers will see their premiums increase $2,350 under this tax bill. 50,000 Mainers will lose their insurance, and Medicare funding will see a $120 million cut in 2018. The immediate cuts are not the only cuts facing health care, either. In a letter to Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR), CBO Director Keith Hall made clear what Republicans have long said won’t be the case: Medicaid cuts are coming, to the tune of $18 billion. And Republicans, from Paul Ryan to Marco Rubio, are now admitting these cuts will be the next step. Sen. Collins previously highlighted Medicaid cuts as one of her primary concerns with GOP health care legislation and told CBS, “I don’t want seniors to have the anxiety of wondering whether the tax bill somehow is going to trigger a cut in Medicare.”

Middle Class Mainers’ Pocketbooks. The tax scam benefits the wealthiest earners at the expense of the middle class Per JCT analysis, “high-income households would get the largest tax cuts as a share of after-tax income, on average, while households with incomes below $30,000 would on average face a tax increase.” Sen. Collins previously criticized tax cuts for the highest earners.

Saddling Future Generations with More Debt. The tax bill would raise the budget deficit by nearly $1.5 trillion according to every independent analysis which has been conducted. The Joint Committee on Taxation found that the bill would cost $1.63 trillion, the Penn Wharton Budget Model found that it would cost $1.64 trillion and the Tax Foundation found that it would cost $1.78 trillion. Sen. Collins previously said she didn’t want the tax bill to “blow a hole in the deficit.”

Allowing More Drilling in Alaska. Buried in the bill is a provision allowing drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR). ANWR drilling is a clear giveaway to the country’s largest oil companies at the expense of the planet, and is unpopular on both sides of the aisle. Twelve GOP Members of Congress recently urged its removal from the bill, and poll found wide opposition across eight key GOP Congressional districts. Sen. Collins previously was the only Republican to vote against ANWR drilling in a budget proposal.

Sen. Collins, it’s clear that the vast majority of this country will be harmed under this bill. It’s massively unpopular, with the opposition nearly doubling those who favor it. And Mainers are already furious about it. It’s not too late to change your vote – come out against this appalling piece of legislation, and instead return to the principles you’ve claimed to want to advance.

Protect Our Care Statement In Response to GOP Finally Releasing Tax Scam Text

In response to the text of the GOP tax scam – which kicks 13 million people off of their insurance, raises premiums double digits for millions more and cuts Medicare by $25 billion – finally being released, Protect Our Care Campaign Director Brad Woodhouse released the following statement:

“This GOP tax plan was negotiated behind closed doors, and now they’re releasing it as a Friday night news dump on the weekend before the vote because they want this hidden from the American people and only shared with their donors,” said Woodhouse. “They know the American people reject giving tax breaks to billionaires and big corporations at the expense of health care for middle class families. The more people learn about this plan, the worse things will get for its supporters. Thirteen million Americans will lose their insurance, tens of millions more will see their premiums increase by double digits and Medicare will be slashed by $25 billion, all to give a tax break to the wealthiest and corporations..

“After being written in a back room, without hearings, expert input or a bipartisan debate, and passing the Senate in the middle of the night, this bill went through conference in complete secrecy, with Democratic amendments refused and Democratic Members being given just two hours to examine it. And of course, this comes just days after a special election in Alabama where the Trump/GOP agenda was soundly rejected and just a month after GOP electoral losses across the country where healthcare played the dominant role.

“This bill is a mockery of the democratic process  This bill gives the top 0.1% a $200,000 tax break while raising health care premiums for people by 10%. That is indefensible. Any GOP Member of Congress who cares about their constituents’ health care should vote against it.”