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ashoup
In Administration, News

Kicking You While You’re Down: 5 Facts You Need to Know About Medicaid & Why the Trump Administration’s New Proposal Would Hurt People

 

The Trump administration announced that it would allow states to deny Medicaid coverage to some low-income adults if they are not working or have a work-related activity, a move that could affect as many as 22 million people, with the stated goal that it would incentivize people to find a job. The facts speak otherwise. The truth is: the vast majority of people with Medicaid coverage who can work, are working. This policy ignores the reality that many who want to work can’t find a job and kicks people while they are down: targeting people with chronic health conditions, families with a sick child or a parent who needs care, and in particular women. If the goal here is to help people find a job, how does taking away their health care do that? It doesn’t. It only makes it harder. Here are five facts you should know about Medicaid and why the Trump administration’s policy would hurt people.

FACT –  The vast majority of people with Medicaid coverage who can work, are working.

  • 60 percent of nondisabled people with health coverage through Medicaid have a job and are working, including 42 percent working full-time.
  • 51 percent of working adult Medicaid enrollees have full-time jobs year-round, but their salaries are still low enough to qualify for Medicaid coverage, or have Medicaid because their employers do not offer insurance.  
  • Nearly 80 percent of nondisabled people with Medicaid coverage live in a family where at least one person is working, including 64 percent working full-time. The other adult family member may not be working because they have caregiving or other responsibilities at home.
  • A state by state breakdown can be found HERE

FACT – About half of working adults on Medicaid work for a small business and industries that typically do not provide health coverage, like farming.

  • Nearly half of adults who work and have Medicaid coverage work at businesses with fewer than 100 employees, including 42 percent in businesses with fewer than 50 employees.
  • 40 percent of adults who work with Medicaid coverage work in the the agriculture and service industries.

FACT – The Trump administration’s policy would hurt people with chronic health conditions or taking care of a family member.

  • More than one-third (36 percent) of adults with Medicaid are not working because they are ill or disabled but do not qualify for Supplemental Security Income (SSI).
  • 30 percent of adults on Medicaid without a job report they are taking care of a sick loved one or parent. 15 percent were in school; 9 percent were retired; and only 6 percent could not find work.

FACT – The Trump administration’s work requirement policy would hurt women, particularly women of color.

  • Almost two-thirds, or 62 percent, of those who would lose their Medicaid coverage as a result of work requirements are women, and disproportionately women of color.
  • One reason is women are more likely to be the caregivers for other sick family members, including children, or their parents. And women are more likely to be in jobs that do not provide health coverage.

FACT – The Trump administration’s policy may make it harder for Medicaid enrollees to find a job.

Research from Ohio and Michigan has shown that expanding Medicaid coverage makes it easier to find a job and keep a job. This policy does nothing to help people find work, and it may actually have the opposite effect.

ashoup
In Capitol Hill, Stories, Administration, News

The Plot Against Americans: Bombshell Report Reveals Trump Admin’s Master Strategy to Rip Apart Our Health Care System

WASHINGTON, DC – After Politico released a late-night bombshell report revealing that the Trump Administration left a paper trail of their plans to sabotage health care, Protect Our Care Campaign Chairman Leslie Dach released the following statement:

“President Trump left behind a smoking gun in this newly revealed document, and now Americans can see beyond a shadow of a doubt that the Republican plot to sabotage our care started on Day One of this Administration. This newly revealed document confirms what we knew all along – Republicans never had any plan to improve health care for Americans; they always intended to rip apart affordable coverage and vital insurance protections root and branch. After today, President Trump and Congressional Republicans can no longer deny the truth: from the outset, they were hell-bent on waging a spiteful war against Americans’ health care.”

ashoup
In Capitol Hill, Administration, News

Azar Fails Confirmation Questioning, Refuses to Protect Our Care

Following Alex Azar’s refusal to commit to protecting Americans’ care at this morning’s Senate Finance Committee hearing, Protect Our Care Campaign Director Brad Woodhouse released the following statement:

“Alex Azar failed the American people at his confirmation hearing today by refusing to signal an end to the Trump Administration’s sabotage and to promise that he would protect our care. Azar showed that we can’t trust him to defend Americans’ coverage by endorsing Republicans’ wildly unpopular proposal to cut Medicaid through block grants. And as a former Big Pharma lobbyist, Azar failed to offer any assurances he would address spiking drug costs with his out-of-touch claim that costs will always go up. If confirmed as Secretary, Azar would be empowered to accelerate the Republican war on health care. Because of Azar’s failure at today’s hearing, Senators must reject his nomination.”

ashoup
In Administration, Capitol Hill, News

Protect Our Care Memo to Senators: Azar Must Answer for Trump Admin Sabotage

Ahead of tomorrow’s Senate Finance confirmation hearing for HHS nominee Alex Azar, Protect Our Care Campaign Director Brad Woodhouse sent a memo to Finance Committee Senators outlining questions Americans deserve answered about the Trump Administration’s war on our health care, and released the following statement:

“During tomorrow’s confirmation hearing, Americans deserve to find out whether Alex Azar would keep pushing the Trump Administration’s anti-health care agenda if confirmed,” said Woodhouse. “Given Azar’s anti-consumer track record as a Big Pharma lobbyist, he needs to assure the millions of people who have already signed up for 2018 HealthCare.Gov plans that, as Secretary, he would end the Trump Administration’s ongoing sabotage efforts and start giving insurers the stability they need in order to set affordable rates. In addition, Americans deserve assurances from Azar that he would end Republicans’ attempts to weaken Medicaid and deny women access to copay-free birth control. If Azar fails to signal an end to the Trump Administration’s sabotage or refuses to promise that he will faithfully administer the law of the land, the Affordable Care Act, then Senators should reject his nomination.”

ashoup
In Capitol Hill, Administration, News

New Protect Our Care Ad Urges Members of Congress to Oppose HHS Nominee Alex Azar, Stop the GOP’s War On Health Care

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 8, 2018

Ad: “Alex Azar is ready to lead the Republican war on health care into its second year… It’s time for Congressional Republicans to stop their war against your health care. Vote no on Alex Azar.”

Washington, D.C. – Protect Our Care today announced a new digital ad urging Members of the Senate to reject Donald Trump’s nominee to head the Health and Human Services Department, Alex Azar, a former pharmaceutical executive who has agreed to lead the GOP’s war on health care into a second year. The ad comes in advance of Tuesday’s Senate Finance Hearing about Azar.

Azar has agreed to head up the GOP’s war on health care, which has included: (1) a never-ending quest to repeal health care despite the fact that doing so raises premiums by double digits and removes protections for millions of Americans; and (2) extensive administrative action to sabotage the health care law, including cutting the open enrollment sign-up period in half and slashing its advertising budget by 90 percent; stopping cost-sharing reduction payments which raise premiums; and most recently proposing a rule to offer association health plans, junk insurance which guts protections for those with pre-existing conditions.

Watch the ad urging opposition to Mr. Azar here.

“The GOP war on health care is already forcing higher costs and ripping away coverage, and the Trump Administration’s first leader had to resign for abusing taxpayer resources,” said Protect Our Care Campaign Director Brad Woodhouse. “Now they’ve recruited a new general who will embrace the twin weapons of repeal and sabotage, no matter how much higher they force our costs or how many people get hurt.”

Mr. Azar opposes the health care law that covers millions of people, going so far as to say it is ‘circling the drain,’ echoing the Administration’s blatant lie that the law is not working. Despite the GOP’s years-long efforts, the Affordable Care Act is more popular than ever, and nearly 9 million Americans signed up for coverage during the open enrollment period. Alternatively, the GOP’s approach to health care has led to historically-unpopular approval ratings for Congressional Republicans and President Trump and drove widespread electoral losses in November and in the Alabama Senate race.

##

ashoup
In Capitol Hill, Administration, News

“By The Time They Discover They’ve Been Sold A Fraudulent Product, The Promoter Will Be On His Way To The Caribbean”: Responses to the Trump Administration’s Proposed Junk Insurance Rule

Yesterday, the Trump Administration announced a 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. The coverage of these plans has focused on what they are: junk insurance plans. Don’t believe us? Take a look for yourself…

Chris Hansen, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network: “The Rule Proposed Today Will Almost Certainly Result In More People Facing Financial Distress When An Unexpected Health Crisis Happens.” “Consumer groups, state officials and Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans have strenuously opposed similar ideas for years. Association health plans, they say, will tend to attract employers with younger, healthier workers, leaving behind sicker people in more comprehensive, more expensive plans that fully comply with the Affordable Care Act. That could drive up premiums, which already have risen steadily as Republicans have taken aim at President Barack Obama’s signature domestic achievement. ‘Those with serious health conditions like cancer would be left paying ever-increasing premiums for comprehensive coverage,’ said Chris Hansen, the president of the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network. ‘The rule proposed today will almost certainly result in more people facing financial distress when an unexpected health crisis happens.’” [New York Times, 1/4]

Marc I. Machiz, Former Labor Department Investigator: “Any Idiot With A Word Processor Can Create An Association In 10 Minutes…By The Time They Discover They’ve Been Sold A Fraudulent Product, The Promoter Will Be On His Way To The Caribbean.” “Similar health plans have a history of fraud and abuse that have left employers and employees with hundreds of millions of dollars in unpaid medical bills. Marc I. Machiz, who investigated insurance fraud as a Labor Department lawyer for more than 20 years, said the proposed rules were an invitation to more scams. ‘Any idiot with a word processor can create an association in 10 minutes and market it to small employers and individuals who certify that they are self-employed,” Mr. Machiz said. ‘The employers and individuals will pay premiums. By the time they discover they’ve been sold a fraudulent product, the promoter will be on his way to the Caribbean.’” [New York Times, 1/4]

Health Affairs: “The Proposed Rule Itself Acknowledges That Some AHPs Have ‘Failed To Pay Promised Benefits To Sick And Injured Workers While Diverting, To The Pockets Of Fraudsters, Employer And Employee Contributions.” “The proposed rule itself acknowledges that some AHPs have ‘failed to pay promised health benefits to sick and injured workers while diverting, to the pockets of fraudsters, employer and employee contributions from their intended purpose of funding benefits’ and that Congress enacted reforms to address AHP abuse in the past. Yet, by broadening the availability of AHPs and relaxing commonality of interest standards, the proposed rule likely opens the door to additional fraudulent AHP behavior and the insolvency and unpaid claims that accompany it. The rule acknowledges that the Department would need to commit additional resources to AHP oversight if the proposal is finalized to address AHP mismanagement and abuse.” [Health Affairs, 1/5]

Los Angeles Times: CBO: Previous Proposals “Would Have Made Coverage Unaffordable For Many Consumers With Preexisting Medical Conditions.” “Many patient groups and consumer advocates — who are already alarmed by Trump administration efforts to undermine the 2010 health law — fear that less comprehensive health plans will leave Americans without vital protections… By allowing healthier Americans to buy plans that don’t cover expensive medications or other medical benefits, these plans also risk driving up costs for sick patients who need the more extensive coverage. For example, proposals last year by congressional Republicans to allow health plans to offer slimmed down benefits would have made coverage unaffordable for many consumers with preexisting medical conditions, according to analyses by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office.” [Los Angeles Times, 1/4]

The Hill: Association Plans “Would Likely Drive Up Premiums” And “Unlike Obamacare Plans, AHPs Could Charge Higher Premiums Based On Age And Gender.” “Critics say AHPs could still find other ways to cherry-pick only the young, healthy people. ‘You can be sure they are going to design benefit packages to attract healthier people,” and “siphon them away from the individual market,’ said Sabrina Corlette, a professor at the Georgetown University Center on Health Insurance Reforms. Leaving the less healthy individuals in the individual and small group markets would likely drive up the premiums. AHPs could also decline to cover prescription drugs, which could discourage sick people from enrolling and, unlike ObamaCare plans, AHPs could charge higher premiums based on age and gender.” [The Hill, 1/4]

America’s Health Insurance Plans: “We Are Concerned That This Could Create Or Expand Alternative, Parallel Markets For Health Coverage, Which Would Lead To Higher Premiums For Consumers, Particularly Those With Pre-Existing Conditions.” “Supporters of the ACA have said that relaxing the rules on associations could destabilize the individual insurance market, where roughly 17 million people buy their own insurance either on or off the ACA exchanges. And they say enabling individuals to join associations would provide an off-ramp from the exchanges that would drain away the younger, healthier people who are needed to keep premiums in check. ‘We are concerned that this could create or expand alternative, parallel markets for health coverage, which would lead to higher premiums for consumers, particularly those with pre-existing conditions,’ said a Dec. 14 letter from groups including America’s Health Insurance Plans, a top insurers’ trade association.” [Wall Street Journal, 1/4]

Washington Post:”The Rules Would Allow Such Plans To Be Reclassified So They No Longer Would Have To Include A Set Of 10 Essential Health Benefits – Including Maternity Care, Prescription Drugs And Mental Health Services.” “Specifically, the rules would allow such health plans to be reclassified so they no longer would have to include a set of 10 essential health benefits — including maternity care, prescription drugs and mental health services — that the ACA requires of insurance sold to individuals and small companies… Unlike [marketplace plans], the association plans could charge customers different prices depending on their age, gender and location. ‘The potential is that it creates an uneven playing field,’ said Kevin Lucia, a research professor at Georgetown University’s Center on Health Insurance Reforms, who worked on early stages of the 2010 health-care law within the Obama administration.” [Washington Post, 1/4]

Politico: State Insurance Advocates “Have Warned That Lax Rules Could Open The Door To A New Wave Of Poorly Regulated Health Plans That Exclude Coverage Of Key Services. “ However, state insurance regulators and Obamacare advocates have warned that lax rules could open the door to a new wave of poorly regulated health plans that exclude coverage of key services required by the Affordable Care Act, such as hospitalizations and prescription drugs. ‘The Trump administration has declared open season for fraudsters selling junk insurance while those with pre-existing conditions will find health care further and further out of reach,’ said Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee.” [Politico, 1/4]

USA Today: As Proposed, “These Plans Are Governed By State Insurance Rules So Might Not Have As Sweeping Coverage Of What the ACA Considered ‘Essential Health Benefits.’” The regulations would allow the expansion of so-called ‘association health plans,’ which are groups of small businesses and possibly individuals that band together to purchase insurance. These plans are governed by state insurance rules so might not have as sweeping coverage of what the ACA considered ‘essential health benefits,’ such as maternity care, prescription drug coverage or hospitalization. Some states actually require more comprehensive benefits though… Consumers could buy these plans across state lines, although whether doctor and hospital networks would be sufficient remains a question.” [USA Today, 1/4]

Associated Press: Insurance Industry Groups Are Skeptical Of Trump’s Idea, Saying It Could Undermine The Current State Markets.” “The new rule would make it easier for groups, or associations, to sponsor health plans that don’t have to meet all consumer protection and benefit requirements of the Obama law… Insurance industry groups are skeptical of Trump’s idea, saying it could undermine the current state markets. Patient groups are concerned about losing protections. Some state regulators object to federal interference.” [AP, 1/4]

Reuters: “The Rule Could Destabilize Several States’ Individual Insurance Markets.” “Proponents of Obamacare say the rule would undermine the individual insurance market created under the law by allowing young and healthy people to purchase cheaper insurance, leaving the sickest and most expensive patients in the Obamacare markets, driving up costs. Hospitals, insurers and medical groups criticized the rule in December and said it would make health insurance unaffordable for people with pre-existing conditions. The rule could destabilize several states’ individual insurance markets because healthier people could access cheaper insurance, said Evercore ISI analyst Michael Newshel, adding that it is still unclear whether significant numbers of people will opt for the slimmer plans.” [Reuters, 1/5]

ashoup
In Capitol Hill, News

Sen. Susan Collins Keeps Moving the Goalposts on ACA Stabilization Bills

FIRST, COLLINS SAID SHE WANTED ALEXANDER-MURRAY AND COLLINS-NELSON TO BE LAW BEFORE MOVING TO THE TAX BILL

November 19, 2017: “And I Would Like To See That Done Before We Go To The Tax Bill.” Collins: “ It’s a problem for me if it is not mitigated. But there is a way to mitigate the impact that it would have on insurance premiums. I do want to point out that that provision, all that provision says is that a person who chooses not to get insurance cannot be fined for that decision. That’s very different from what we were faced with this past summer and fall when insurance was being taken away from people who wanted to be insured. The fact is that those fines are paid by — overwhelmingly by people who make less than $50,000 a year, 80 percent of the people who pay the fines fall in that category. But I’m worried about the impact on premiums. And that’s why we’re going to need to pass legislation. And I would like to see that done before we go to the tax bill.” [ABC’s This Week, 11/19/17]

AND THEN, COLLINS SAID SHE WANTED THE TWO STABILIZATION BILLS TO BE LAW BEFORE THE CONFERENCE COMMITTEE CAME BACK AND INDICATED SHE GOT PRESIDENT TRUMP TO SUPPORT THE TWO PIECES OF LEGISLATION

November 28, 2017: Collins: “I’m Pushing To Make Sure They Are Passed And Signed Into Law Prior To The Conference Report Coming Back.” “‘I’m pushing to make sure they are passed and signed into law prior to the conference report coming back,’ she said, ‘So I would know for certain that we’re going to be able to mitigate the impact of repealing the individual mandate.’ When reporters pointed out the possibility that there will be no conference committee, that the House just passes the bill as-is, Collins waved away that fear. ‘Everything I’m hearing is that there is going to be a conference committee,’ she said.” [TPM, 11/29/17]

November 28, 2017: Collins Insisted She Secured Support From President Trump For Alexander-Murray And Collins-Nelson. “Collins insisted Tuesday that she secured support from Trump for two bills she says would mitigate the damage of repealing the mandate—one to restore government subsidies to insurance companies that Trump defunded earlier this year and the other to set up a federal reinsurance program. ‘Collins-Nelson would provide seed money for states and authorize high-risk pools. That really helps insurers because it gives them much more certainty about what their claims are going to be like,’ she told TPM in a gaggle with reporters Tuesday afternoon. ‘Similarly, Alexander-Murray would reinstate the cost-sharing reductions and that helps low-income people with their co-pays, and it gives certainty to insurers so they don’t flee the market. So I think the combination of those two would be very powerful.’” [TPM, 11/29/17]

November 28, 2017: Collins: “ A Lot Of My Concerns Are Being Addressed.” “‘A lot of my concerns are being addressed,’ Collins told reporters after a lunch meeting with Trump in Washington.” [Press Herald, 11/28/17]

November 28, 2017: Collins: “While My Preference Is Still That The Individual Mandate Repeal Not Be Included In The Tax Bill, If It Is Included, It Essential That We Mitigate The Impact Of Premiums With The Alexander-Murray Bill And With Bipartisan Legislation I Introduced With Senator Bill Nelson…” “While making her most positive comments yet on the tax reform bill Tuesday, Collins stopped short of announcing her outright support, and she remains in the ‘undecided’ category. ‘I have had a number of good discussions with the White House and with my colleagues, and we are continuing to have productive negotiations. Many of these discussions have focused on my proposals to help middle-income families, including allowing a deduction for property taxes and helping to lower insurance premiums on the individual market to offset any increases that might result from repealing the individual mandate,’ Collins said in a written statement. ‘While my preference is still that the individual mandate repeal not be included in the tax bill,’ she said, ‘if it is included, it is essential that we mitigate the impact on premiums with the Alexander-Murray bill and with bipartisan legislation I introduced with Senator Bill Nelson, D-Florida, that would protect people with pre-existing conditions while lowering premiums through the use of high-risk pools.’” [Press Herald, 11/28/17]

AND THEN, COLLINS VOTED FOR THE SENATE TAX BILL

December 2, 2017: The Senate Passed Its Tax Bill 51-49. Collins Voted In Favor. [Senate Vote 303, 12/2/17]

AND THEN, SHE SAID SHE HAD A “COMMITMENT” TO PASS THE TWO BILLS

December 3, 2017: Collins: “I Got A Commitment That We’re Going To Pass Two Bills, Including The Alexander Murray Bill…And One That I’ve Authored That WIll Help Offset The Individual Mandate Repeal By Lowering Premiums.” “I believe that the amendments that I added on medical expense deductions, on property tax deductions, on helping retirement security for public employees improved the bill. I got a commitment that we’re going to pass two bills, including the Alexander Murray bill…And one that I’ve authored that will help offset the individual mandate repeal by lowering premiums. And I also got an ironclad commitment that we’re not going to see cuts in the Medicaid/Medicare program as a result of this bill.” [Sen. Collins on Meet the Press, 12/3/17]

COLLINS VOTED FOR THE FINAL TAX BILL THAT BECAME LAW

December 20,2017: The Senate Passed The Conference Report Tax Bill 51-48. Collins Voted In Favor. [Senate Vote 323, 12/20/17]

AND THEN, COLLINS SAID SHE ASKED THAT THE STABILIZATION BILLS NOT BE INCLUDED IN THE CONTINUING RESOLUTION BILL AND INSTEAD WOULD OFFER IT DURING THE OMNIBUS BILL IN 2018, ALSO SAYING SPEAKER RYAN REITERATED HIS SUPPORT FOR PASSING HIGH RISK POOLS AND REINSURANCE BILLS

December 20, 2017: Collins And Alexander: “For This Reason, We Have Asked Senator McConnell Not To Offer This Week Our Legislation…Instead, We Will Offer It After The First Of The Year When The Senate Will Consider The Omnibus Spending Bill, [CHIP and CHCs], And Other Legislation.” “United States Senators Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) today jointly released the following statement: ‘Rather than considering a broad year-end funding agreement as we expected, it has become clear that Congress will only be able to pass another short-term extension to prevent a government shutdown and to continue a few essential programs,’ said the Senators.  ‘For this reason, we have asked Senator McConnell not to offer this week our legislation which independent analysts Avalere and Oliver-Wyman say would reduce premiums by about 20 percent for the 9 million Americans who have no government subsidies to help them buy insurance in the individual market. Instead, we will offer it after the first of the year when the Senate will consider the omnibus spending bill, the Children’s Health Insurance Program reauthorization, funding for Community Health Centers, and other legislation that was to have been enacted this week.’” [Alexander and Collins Statement, 12/20/17]

December 20, 2017: Collins Said Speaker Paul Ryan Remained Committed To Passing Reinsurance And High-Risk Pools And “Pointed Out That By Waiting Until Early Next Year, We Will Be Able To Use A New CBO Baseline That Will Result In More Funding Being Available For Reinsurance…” “I appreciate the thoughtful and bipartisan effort that Chairman Alexander has led in the Senate health committee, and I look forward to working alongside him and Ranking Member Murray to enact these bipartisan bills and help make health insurance more affordable. This afternoon Speaker Paul Ryan called me and said that the House remains committed to passing legislation to provide for high-risk pools and other reinsurance mechanisms similar to the bipartisan legislation I have introduced. He pointed out that by waiting until early next year, we will be able to use a new CBO baseline that will result in more funding being available for reinsurance programs that have been proven effective in lowering premiums while protecting people with pre-existing conditions like diabetes, heart disease, and arthritis.” [Collins Statement, 12/20/17]

COLLINS SAID THE DEADLINE IS SLIPPING BUT STILL REMAINED CONFIDENT THEY WOULD BECOME LAW

December 20, 2017: Collins: “I Think The Policy Is More Important Than The Deadline, And The Deadline Is Slipping. And I’m The First To Say I’m Not Happy About That, That I’m Disappointed About That.” “Sen. Susan Collins announced Wednesday that crucial Affordable Care Act stabilization bills will be delayed until 2018 despite the promises she received from Republican leaders that they would be approved by the end of this year. Collins had emphasized passage of the two bills to secure her vote for the tax reform bill. ‘I think the policy is more important than the deadline, and the deadline is slipping. And I am the first to say that I am not happy about that, that I’m disappointed about that,’ Collins, a moderate Republican, told the Portland Press Herald in an interview Wednesday. ‘But I believe that at the end of the day, we’re going to end up where I want us to be – in fact, maybe even with a better bill.’” [Press Herald, 12/20/17]

AND NOW, COLLINS PUNTED ON THE TIMING, SAYING SHE WANTED TO BE DONE BY  2019

Collins Office Statement: “When The Mandate Is Repealed In 2019, We Must Have Other Health Care Reforms In Place To Prevent Further Increases In The Cost Of Health Insurance.” “In an interview with Inside Health Policy published Thursday, Collins said she hopes the policies she proposed will pass and be implemented before 2019, when the repeal of the individual mandate is expected to shrink the individual insurance market by several million people and drive up premiums by at least 10 percent. ‘When the mandate is repealed in 2019, we must have other health care reforms in place in order to prevent further increases in the cost of health insurance,’ Collins’ office said in a statement. ‘Senator Collins believes that averting these price spikes, particularly for low-income families, should be a goal that members of both parties can embrace.’” [TPM, 1/4/18]

ashoup
In News, Stories

Right-Wing Groups Demand GOP Keep Trying Health Care Repeal

In response to the news that 43 right-wing groups sent a letter demanding Republicans continue trying to fully repeal the Affordable Care Act in 2018 no matter the cost, Protect Our Care Campaign Director Brad Woodhouse released the following statement:

“This is what a war on health care looks like,” said Woodhouse. “No matter how many times the American people reject it, Republicans remain determined to repeal health care – ripping coverage away from millions, raising costs for millions more and gutting protections that tens of millions with pre-existing conditions count on. They won’t give up until they’ve turned every American’s health insurance plan into a tax cut for their wealthy campaign contributors.”

ashoup
In News, Capitol Hill, Administration

2018 Is the Year of Health Care

To: Interested Parties

From: Brad Woodhouse, Campaign Director, Protect Our Care

Subject: 2018 Is the Year of Health Care

Date: January 2, 2018

In 2017, the Trump administration and Republicans in Congress waged a war on our health care – from ACA repeal to Medicaid cuts to health care sabotage. Under their planned agenda, costs would rise, coverage would fall and millions of Americans would lose protections against abuses from insurance companies.

The story of 2018 is a simple one: it will be the year the politics of health care will haunt Republicans at the polls. Poll after poll shows that health care is the number one issue on voters’ minds and that they strongly oppose the GOP war on health care. Relatedly, the Affordable Care Act is more popular than ever, and more than 8 million people have already signed up for coverage in open enrollment.

Now, some Republicans want to keep their war on health care going.  They do so at their political peril.

The American people see health care as their top issue.

  • 48 percent in a recent Associated Press-NORC poll rated health care as their top concern for 2018, a number double-digits ahead of the second issue, taxes.
  • Health care topped people’s concerns in a POLITICO/Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health poll. The number one issue people wanted Congress and President Trump to address was to renew funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP).
  • Health care was the most important issue to people in a recent Economist/YouGov poll (18 percent), followed by Social Security (17 percent).

The American people reject President Trump and Congressional Republicans’ approach to health care.

  • The recent AP/NORC poll had President Trump’s approval/disapproval on health care at 30/70. More voters disapprove of his performance on health than any other issue.
  • According to the November 2017 Kaiser Health Tracking Poll, “The majority of the public (60 percent) – including majorities of Democrats (89 percent) and independents (57 percent) – do not trust President Trump to do what’s best when it comes to health care in this country.”
  • FOX News polling showed only 33% of voters approve of President Trump’s work on health care while 60% disapprove.  

And it will cost Republicans politically if they continue their war on health care, like it did last November.

  • The latest Quinnipiac poll showed 41% of voters as being less likely to vote for a Senator or Member of Congress who backed the GOP’s health care plan with only 19% more likely to support them.
  • Health care was the most important issue for people who voted in the Virginia gubernatorial race in November, more than double any other issue, and Ralph Northam beat Ed Gillespie by 54 points, 77-23, among these voters.
  • In Maine, voters backed a referendum to endorse a key element of the Affordable Care Act by an 18-point margin (59-41), the first time the ACA had ever been on the ballot.

The Affordable Care Act is more popular than it has ever been.

  • Pew Research Center: “Today, more Americans say the 2010 health care overhaul has had a mostly positive than mostly negative effect on the country (44% versus 35%), while 14% say it has not had much effect. Overall support for the health care law also has grown since last year. Currently, 56% of the public approves of the law while 38% disapproves, according to a new national survey by Pew Research Center, conducted Nov. 29-Dec. 4.”
  • A Public Policy Poll for Protect Our Care found that 57% say they approve of the Affordable Care Act to just 36% who say they disapprove – a 21 point gap. This is up 5 points from a September poll done for Save My Care, where approval was 54/38.
Sean England
In Administration, News

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.

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