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Health Care Advocates Travel to D.C. to Urge Rejection of Brett Kavanaugh

Advocates from Arizona, Nevada, and Tennessee Discuss Looming Threats to Health Care

Washington, D.C. – Today, health care advocates from Arizona, Nevada, and Tennessee arrived in Washington, D.C., urging the Senate to reject the nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court. Cancer survivors Jeff Jeans of Arizona and Joseph Merlino of Nevada, and Air Force Veteran Kelly Gregory of Tennessee, currently battling terminal breast cancer, visited Capitol Hill, met with senators, and attended the nomination hearing, to discuss the threat Judge Kavanaugh represents to their health health care and that of millions of Americans.

“This judge literally has the power to take us backward in time to the days when people like me were priced out of insurance because of our medical history,” said Gregory, an Air Force veteran from Tennessee currently battling stage four breast cancer, who was mentioned by Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) during today’s confirmation hearing. “Let me be be the last person to die because of a lack of access to health care.”

Judge Kavanaugh has demonstrated a vocal hostility to health care. Just last year he criticized Chief Justice John Roberts for upholding the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act. He has been consistently hostile towards women’s health, previously arguing that employers should be able to deny women coverage for birth control and attempting to force a young woman to continue a pregnancy against her will. And he was approved by the Federalist Society, which has been advocating against the ACA since before it was signed into law.

“As I fought a rare throat cancer, I relied on coverage that I got through the Affordable Care Act’s expansion of Medicaid. If it weren’t for that, I surely wouldn’t be here right now,” said Joseph Merlino, a survivor of cancer in his larynx, who met with Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) this afternoon and urged her to reject the nomination. “Brett Kavanaugh’s hostility towards the ACA and Medicaid is a direct threat to millions of Americans like me who rely on it.”

Tomorrow, oral arguments begin in Texas v. United States, a lawsuit attempting to overturn the benefits provided by the ACA, including those for Americans with pre-existing conditions, brought by 20 Republican state Attorneys General and governors and backed by the Trump Administration in an unprecedented move. While these Republicans spend the afternoon arguing to strip the protections relied on by 130 million Americans, these health care advocates will be meeting with lawmakers, speaking at rallies, and conducting interviews, all to urge Senators to protect Americans’ care and reject Kavanaugh’s nomination.

“I was a Republican who was against the ACA. It took cancer and my having to face my own death to bring compassion for others into my heart, and to understand why the ACA was needed,” said Jeff Jeans of Arizona. “I implore all Senators to find in them the compassion and courage that my former Senator John McCain had and use the power we’ve entrusted to them to fight back against any attempt to take away our health care.”

Reminder: Those Who Know Health Care The Best Say The Texas Lawsuit Is the Worst

Tomorrow, oral argument will be held in the case Texas, et al. vs. United States, et al., which not only threatens protections for people with pre-existing conditions, but a whole host of provisions of tens of millions of Americans rely upon for their care and coverage. If the court rules in favor of the Republican states and the Trump administration, critical Affordable Care Act protections would vanish overnight, unleashing chaos in our entire health care system. Just see what the experts say.

Patient groups, physicians, and hospitals emphasize how much the lawsuit could threaten care for people across the country:

  • American Public Health Association’s Executive Director, Dr. Georges Benjamin, Says the Lawsuit Could Be The Most Dangerous Effort To Destabilize The American Healthcare System Yet. “Overturning the ACA will result in a catastrophic loss of coverage for millions of Americans. According to a new analysis by the Urban Institute, if the ACA is invalidated, more than 17 million people would lose coverage in 2019. That would be a 50% increase in the number of uninsured in just one year, including 12 million people who receive insurance through the marketplaces created by the ACA and 2.3 million young adults who gained coverage through its expansion of dependent care. Striking down the ACA will jeopardize the healthcare of those who need it most. Nearly 12 million low-income Americans who were enrolled in Medicaid through the ACA would likely lose coverage…This lawsuit could be the most dangerous effort to destabilize the American healthcare system yet. That’s why the American Public Health Association has submitted friend-of-the-court briefs opposing this suit, along with many other health organizations, insurers, economists and members of the business community.” [Los Angeles Times, Benjamin, 9/4/18]          

 

  • American Cancer Society, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Diabetes Association, American Heart Association, American Lung Association, and National Multiple Sclerosis Society: “Striking Down These Provisions Would Be Catastrophic And Have Dire Consequences For Many Patients With Serious Illnesses.” Invalidating the ACA in whole or in part “would be devastating for the millions of Americans who suffer from serious illness or have preexisting conditions and rely on those protections under current law to obtain life-saving health care. If either the plaintiffs’ or the administration’s position were adopted by the court, people with serious illness are likely to be denied coverage due to their preexisting conditions or charged such high premiums because of their health status that they will be unable to afford any coverage that may be offered. Without access to comprehensive coverage, patients will be forced to delay, skip, or forego care. Striking down these provisions would be catastrophic and have dire consequences for many patients with serious illnesses.” [American Cancer Society et. al, 6/14/18

 

  • American Medical Association, The American Academy of Family Physicians, The American College of Physicians, The American Academy of Pediatrics, and the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry: “​Invalidating The Guaranteed-issue And Community Rating Provisions—or The ​Entire A​CA—Would Have A Devastating Impact On Doctors, Patients, And The American Health Care System As A Whole.” “Congress declined to do what the Plaintiffs ask this Court to do for a reason: the consequences of repealing the ACA would be staggering…Plaintiffs’ proposed remedies . . . would strip health care from tens of millions of Americans who depend on the ACA; produce skyrocketing insurance costs; and sow chaos in the nation’s health care system​…The ACA’s ‘nationwide protections for Americans with pre-existing health conditions’ has played a ‘key role’ in allowing 3.6 million people to obtain affordable health insurance. Severing those vital insurance reforms would leave millions without much-needed insurance.” [AMA et. al, 6/14/18]

 

  • American Hospital Association, Federation of American Hospitals, The Catholic Health Association of the United States, and Association of American Medical Colleges: “A judicial repeal would have severe consequences for America’s hospitals, which would be forced to shoulder the greater uncompensated-care burden that the ACA’s repeal would create.” The relief sought by Texas and its allies “would have devastating consequences, kicking millions of Americans off of coverage and inflicting on them all the harms that come with being uninsured. These harms would fall on the low-income families least able to cope with them. ​And a judicial repeal would have severe consequences for America’s hospitals, which would be forced to shoulder the greater uncompensated-care burden that the ACA’s repeal would create.” [American Hospital Association et. al, 6/14/18]

 

  • Public Health Scholars and the American Public Health Association: “The Foreseeable Public Health Consequences Of The Injunction Are Nothing Short of Catastrophic.” “Without the ACA, the health of millions of Americans would be harmed. Consider the grim analyses of proposed legislation partially repealing the ACA: In 2017, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (“CBO”) assessed the impact of a bill partially repealing the ACA and found (among other things) that it would, in “the first new plan year following enactment of the bill” alone, increase the number of uninsured Americans by 18 million. That number would grow to 27 million after the “year following the elimination of the Medicaid expansion,” and then to 32 million by 2026. Still more is at stake here: Unlike the injunctive relief plaintiffs seek, the bill analyzed by CBO would have staggered its partial repeal of the ACA to avoid catastrophic results. Here, plaintiffs ask the Court to eliminate, as preliminary injunctive relief, a complex statute in its eighth year of implementation—a statute whose repeal through democratic means has been attempted innumerable times but has never succeeded.” [Public Health Scholars et. al, 6/14/18]

 

  • AARP: Before ACA’s Protections, Discrimination Against Those With Pre-Existing Conditions, Age Rating, And Annual And Lifetime Caps Made Accessing Health Care Out Of Reach For Older Adults. “Uninsured pre-Medicare adults faced nearly insurmountable challenges to securing insurance because they were denied coverage based on preexisting conditions or offered costly policies that excluded coverage for needed care. Even without preexisting conditions, insurance premiums for older adults were as much as 11 times greater than their younger counterparts solely based on their age. Even a healthy person who was age 50 to 64 with no preexisting conditions faced markedly higher insurance premium rates than a younger person. Age rating put the cost of insurance out of reach for many pre-Medicare adults. Annual and lifetime caps—which were easily exceeded by treatment for a single illness such as cancer, heart disease, or diabetes—meant that many older adults either went without treatment until they became eligible for Medicare or incurred financially ruinous medical debt.” [AARP, 6/14/18]

Health insurance companies warn that the lawsuit could lead to mass coverage losses:

  • America’s Health Insurance Plans: “Abruptly threatening or even cutting off billions of federal dollars that allow individuals to purchase insurance and that fund benefits offered through Medicaid or Medicare would have devastating effects.”“The healthcare system, while constantly evolving, cannot pivot to a new (or, worse yet, non-existent) set of rules without consequences. Abruptly threatening or even cutting off billions of federal dollars that allow individuals to purchase insurance and that fund benefits offered through Medicaid or Medicare would have devastating effects.​ Enjoining enforcement of federal laws like the federally-facilitated marketplaces and the products sold on them would be similarly disruptive.” [AHIP, 6/14/18]

 

  • The Ability Of Millions Of Low-Income, Medically Vulnerable People To Access Necessary Treatments Would Be Cast Into Doubt. “The Medicaid program would likewise experience significant disruptions​. Stopping the funding for individuals made newly eligible for Medicaid under the ACA would harm the 34 states that have chosen to expand their Medicaid programs and potentially disrupt healthcare coverage for the 12 million people added as a result of that expansion​…The coverage of millions of low-income and medically-vulnerable patients—and their ability to receive necessary treatments and prescription drugs—would be cast into doubt. At the same time, state Medicaid programs would see drug costs increase considerably for all enrollees (including children, disabled, and elderly) due to the loss of the ACA’s enhanced prescription drug rebates​.” [AHIP, 6/14/18]

Small businesses, economists, and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) demonstrate how DOJ’s lawsuit would jeopardize Americans’ health while harming the economy:

  • Small Business Majority Foundation: “Before the enactment of ACA, this linkage pressured individuals to seek out and then stay put in jobs that provided affordable health insurance—a phenomenon known as ‘job lock’—because people clung to jobs with affordable health coverage even when they might have otherwise chosen to start businesses or pursue more attractive job opportunities with growing small businesses.” Small business owners, their employees, and self-employed individuals have benefited significantly from the many different reforms enacted as part of the Affordable Care Act, especially the creation of the individual marketplaces with tax credits, the optional expansion of Medicaid, and small group market reforms. Millions more working Americans, who are self employed or employees of the Nation’s small businesses, now have health insurance that they would not have had without the Act. The harm they will suffer if the Act is enjoined is just one of many reasons why the public interest is not served by Plaintiffs’ sweeping requested injunction.” [Small Business Majority Foundation, 6/14/18]

 

  • Service Employees International Union (SEIU): “A Decision Striking Down The ACA Not Only Would Strip Health Coverage And Protections From Nearly 30 Million People And Remove Quality Care Incentives For Providers But Also Would Have Catastrophic Economic Consequences.” “Loss of the ACA would cause an enormous surge in the number of uninsured Americans, which would in turn increase the burden of uncompensated medical care costs borne by hospitals and other medical care providers by an estimated $1 trillion between 2019 and 2028. The massive reduction in federal funding would lead to the loss of up to 2.6 million jobs. And because the health care sector accounts for such a large percentage of the overall U.S. economy, eliminating the ACA would result in a $2.6 trillion reduction in total business activity between 2019 and 2023.” [SEIU, 6/14/18]

 

  • Linda Blumberg, Fellow At Urban Institute’s Health Policy Center, And Sherry Glied, Dean Of Public Service At New York University: Lawsuit Would “Damage A Broad Swath Of The American Economy.” “We are economists, so we cannot address the legal questions. But we know what would happen if the court eliminated the ACA’s protections for people with health problems or invalidated the law entirely. The Urban Institute estimates that 17.1 million more people would become uninsured in 2019, a 50 percent increase in the number of uninsured. A decision for the plaintiffs would go beyond coverage losses. The ACA is complex and touches virtually every area of health care. Consumers and providers have relied on it for over eight years. Invalidating the law would eliminate extensions of coverage for those with employer insurance or Medicare, including preventive services with no cost-sharing, dependent coverage for young adults, and closure of the Medicare ‘donut hole’ that lowers prescriptions costs for seniors. It would throw the Medicare payment system into chaos and would require states to change the systems they built for determining Medicaid eligibility. It would damage a broad swath of the American economy.” [Austin American-Statesman, 8/30/18]

Law professors and the American Medical Association question the legality of the Justice Department’s argument:

  • Josh Blackman, Professor At South Texas College Of Law: Writing Off This Case Would Be A Mistake. “Writing off this case would be a mistake, warned Josh Blackman, a professor at South Texas College of Law and frequent commentator on the healthcare law. ‘If the history of the Affordable Care Act teaches us anything, it is that we should not dismiss legal challenges too quickly,’ he said.” [Los Angeles Times, 9/4/18]
  • Law Professors From Both Sides Of The Aisle, Including Jonathan Adler, Ilya Somin, Nicholas Bagley, Abbe Gluck, and Kevin Walsh, Note That Despite Their Different Policy Perspectives, They Agree That DOJ’s Arguments About Severability Are Inconsistent With The Law. “[A] court’s substitution of its own judgment for that of Congress would be an unlawful usurpation of congressional power and violate basic black-letter principles of severability. Yet that is what the plaintiff States and the United States invite this Court to do.​..This time-shifting of congressional intent misapplies severability doctrine. By expressly amending the statute in 2017 and setting the penalty at zero while not making other changes, Congress eliminated any need to examine earlier legislative findings or to theorize about what Congress would have wanted. Congress told us what it wanted through its 2017 legislative actions.” [Jonathan Adler et. al, 6/14/18]

 

  • American Medical Association, The American Academy of Family Physicians, The American College of Physicians, The American Academy of Pediatrics, and the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry: DOJ Seeks To “Change The Federal Government’s Health Care Policy Through The Courts.” “The plaintiffs do not seek redress for any real, concrete injury because they have suffered none. They simply seek to change the federal government’s health care policy through the courts, rather than through the legislature.” [AMA et. al, 6/14/18]

Protect Our Care On PhRMA Lobbyist Jon Kyl Finishing Senator John McCain’s Term

“Now We Will Have Yet Another Senator Whose Priorities Lie with Big Insurance and Drug Companies,” says Brad Woodhouse

Washington, D.C. – Following the announcement that Arizona Governor Doug Ducey will name former Senator and current Big Pharma lobbyist Jon Kyl to fill the remainder of Sen. John McCain’s term, Brad Woodhouse, executive director of Protect Our Care, released the following statement:

“By naming a Big Pharma lobbyist who repeatedly voted against the Affordable Care Act and has continued to call for its repeal to serve the remainder of Sen. McCain’s term, Gov. Ducey has assured we will have yet another Senator whose priorities lie with insurance and drug companies, not the health and wellbeing of the American people.”

BACKGROUND:

Jon Kyl Infamously Opposed Requirements That Health Plans Cover Essential Benefits Like Maternity Care And Hospitalization — Saying “I Don’t Need Maternity Care.”

Jon Kyl Proposed An Amendment That Would Have Allowed Insurance Companies To Sell Plans Not Required To Cover Certain Benefits, Such As Prescription Drug Coverage, Hospitalization, And Maternity Care. “By a vote of 14 to 9, the committee rejected an amendment by Senator Jon Kyl, Republican of Arizona, that would have prohibited the federal government from defining the specific health benefits that insurers must offer. The government would prescribe a minimum package of benefits under all health bills pending in Congress.” [New York Times, 9/26/09]

Jon Kyl: “I Don’t Need Maternity Care.” “Mr. Kyl said that federal benefit mandates would increase the cost of insurance. Senator Debbie Stabenow, Democrat of Michigan, said such requirements were needed because many insurance policies did not cover important services like maternity care. Mr. Kyl insisted, ‘I don’t need maternity care.’ But Ms. Stabenow said, ‘Your mom probably did.’” [New York Times, 9/26/09]

The Affordable Care Act made comprehensive coverage more available by requiring insurance companies to include “essential health benefits” in their plans, such as maternity care, hospitalization, substance abuse care and prescription drug coverage. Before the ACA, people had to pay extra for separate coverage for these benefits. For example, in 2013, 75 percent of non-group plans did not cover maternity care, 45 percent did not cover substance abuse disorder services, and 38 percent did not cover mental health services. Six percent did not even cover generic drugs. If Jon Kyl had his way, insurance companies would once again be able to refuse coverage for these key health services.

Kyl Strongly Opposed The Affordable Care Act And Called For Its Repeal

HEADLINE:  “Kyl: Health Bill A ‘Stunning Assault On Liberty.’” [The Hill, 9/22/09]

Following The Supreme Court’s Decision Finding The Affordable Care Act Constitutional, Kyl Called On The American People To “Overturn The Law By The Choices They Make In November’s Election.” “Because the Supreme Court did not strike down the most onerous provisions, it appears that the American people themselves will have to overturn the law by the choices they make in November’s election.” [Arizona Daily Star, 6/29/12]

Without the ACA, what would disappear?

    • Protections for 130 million Americans with pre-existing conditions, if they buy coverage on their own
    • Improvements to Medicare, including reduced costs for prescription drugs
    • Allowing kids to stay on their parents’ insurance until age 26
    • Ban on annual and lifetime limits
    • Ban on insurance discrimination against women
    • Limit on out-of-pocket costs
    • Medicaid expansion currently covering 15 million people
    • Rules to hold insurance companies accountable
    • Small business tax credits
    • Marketplace tax credits and coverage for up to 8.7 million people nationally, including 121,000 Arizonans.

Jon Kyl Is A Major Pharmaceutical Lobbyist

PhRMA Has Paid Jon Kyl’s Lobbying Firm, Covington & Burling, More Than Any Other Lobby Shop. “Since 1998, pharmaceutical companies have paid Covington & Burling roughly $19 million to lobby on their behalf, making the industry Covington & Burling’s second-largest customer, according to a Tarbell analysis of data from the Center for Responsive Politics. Pharmaceutical companies have paid the firm more than oil and gas, finance and insurance companies combined. And since Kyl arrived, the pharmaceutical industry has accounted for a greater share of Covington & Burling’s lobbying, Tarbell’s analysis shows. In the past three years, PhRMA itself has paid Covington & Burling nearly $3 million — more than it has paid any other lobby shop.” [Tarbell, 11/14/17]

Major pharmaceutical companies have reaped benefits from Republican policy. Here’s how:

Pharmaceutical Companies Have The Highest Profits In The Health Industry. With earnings from only 85 of 118 health care companies announced, profit is already higher for Q2 than it has been for any quarter in the past year. So far, health companies have announced $47 billion in global profit, with pharmaceutical companies making the highest profit margins. Why the sudden growth? In large part, because of Republican corporate tax breaks.

Republican Tax Cut Fueling Pharmaceutical Profits. As Axios reports: “But the larger earnings also stemmed from Republicans’ massive cut in corporate taxes. The income tax expense for drug giant AbbVie, for example, was 93% lower in the second quarter of this year compared to the same period last year.”

At The Same Time, Pharmaceutical Companies Also Reaping Profits By Charging Higher Prices. Between February 1st and July 15th, drug companies raised prices on 255 drugs. As Bloomberg notes, “For all..categories of drugs, list prices rose far faster than inflation. Prices for 10 commonly used diabetes drugs rose 25.6 percent, on average, while average prices for rheumatoid arthritis and other autoimmune treatments rose 40.1 percent.” To learn more the high costs of drug prices, check out a handy explainer video from the Center for American Progress.

NEW POLL: Alaska Voters Want Sen. Murkowski to Reject Kavanaugh — And Will Remember Her Vote

WASHINGTON, D.C. – As Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearing approaches next week, a new survey conducted by Clarity Campaign Labs on behalf of Protect Our Care and Planned Parenthood Action Fund shows that voters in Alaska want Sen. Lisa Murkowski to reject Kavanaugh and stand up for health care protections and women’s constitutional rights, including abortion.

POLL HIGHLIGHTS

  • Alaska voters strongly support current ACA protections, which prohibit insurance companies from discriminating against people with pre-existing conditions, such as cancer, diabetes, or pregnancy. In fact, nearly eight in 10 voters (78 percent) believe the Supreme Court should keep those protections in place.
  • Seventy-one percent do not want to see the Supreme Court restrict women’s constitutional rights, and 45 percent of Alaska voters believe the right to have an abortion is at risk.
  • Alaskans made clear they will hold Sen. Murkowski accountable for her vote on Kavanaugh’s nomination. Forty-five percent would view Sen. Murkowski less favorably if she voted for an anti-ACA nominee by a 29 percent margin. By 33 points, voters would view Sen. Murkowski less favorably if she voted for an anti-Roe nominee (49 percent compared to 16 percent).
  • Almost twice as many voters would be less likely to vote for Sen. Murkowski if she voted to confirm Judge Kavanaugh (41 percent less likely compared to 22 percent more likely).
  • Fifty-five percent of Alaska voters said they would be very or somewhat likely to contact their U.S. senators regarding Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court nomination.

Statement from Leslie Dach, campaign chair of Protect Our Care:

“As this poll shows, Alaskans do not want protections for the more than 130 million Americans with pre-existing conditions taken away from them by the Supreme Court, and they want Senator Lisa Murkowski to vote ‘no’ on Kavanaugh’s nomination. Senator Murkowski has claimed a commitment to health care, and this nomination may be the truest test of where she actually stands yet.”

Statement from Dawn Laguens, Executive Vice President of Planned Parenthood Action Fund:

“Poll after poll confirms what we already know: Americans want the Supreme Court to protect women’s constitutional rights, including abortion, and Alaskans are no different. If Kavanaugh is confirmed, he would turn the balance of the court against both safe, legal abortion and vital health care protections. We’re hearing from people every day, including our supporters in Alaska, who are worried about losing these constitutional rights and access to care. Sen. Murkowski must continue to stand strong for Alaskans and for all of our health and rights.”

Read the full memo here.

Mike Pence Confirms GOP Still Gunning for Americans’ Health Care

Vice President Follows Republican Senators In Calling for Total Repeal

Washington, D.C. – Tonight in Wisconsin, Vice President Mike Pence told reporters that, “We made an effort to fully repeal and replace Obamacare. And we’ll continue. With Leah Vukmir in the Senate, we’ll go back to that,” joining the list of Republicans this week calling yet again for repeal.

Brad Woodhouse, executive director of Protect Our Care, released the following statement in response:

“Tonight, Vice President Pence reminded everyone of Republicans’ real goal: attacking the health care of tens of millions of Americans. If Mike Pence and the GOP have their way, protections for people with pre-existing conditions would be stripped overnight; lifetime limits would once again be the norm; and women and seniors would see gender and age taxes applied to their care. The contrast couldn’t be more clear: the same week Tammy Baldwin introduces legislation to stop junk plans and maintain the protections Americans rely on, the Vice President doubles down on the Republican war on health care.”

WHO CALLED FOR REPEAL THIS WEEK?

Vice President Mike Pence: “We Made An Effort To Fully Repeal And Replace Obamacare. And We’ll Continue.” “We made an effort to fully repeal and replace Obamacare. And we’ll continue. With Leah Vukmir in the Senate, we’ll go back to that.” [Twitter, 8/30/18]

Senator John Thune (R-SD): “It Would Be Nice To Have Members Who Enable Us To Pass [Repeal].” “‘It would be nice to have members who enable us to pass it,’” Senate Republican Conference Chairman John Thune (S.D.) said when asked about the possibility of ObamaCare repeal legislation coming up for a future vote.” [The Hill, 8/29/18]

Senator David Perdue (R-GA): “I’d Love To Have Somebody Take Care Of [Repeal].” “‘I’d love to have somebody to take care of that,’ Sen. David Perdue (R-Ga.) said of repealing ObamaCare.” [The Hill, 8/29/18]

Senator Ron Johnson (R-WI): Hopes Arizona’s Next Senator Will Favor Repeal. “Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) said he hopes the next senator from Arizona will be a ‘strong ally’ who ‘recognizes that ObamaCare is not a proper solution.’” [The Hill, 8/29/18]

Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA): “I Want Somebody Who Is For Affordable Health Care, And Right Now Obamacare Is Not Affordable, Nor Is Health Care.” “Cassidy said he doesn’t know whether the Senate will move another comprehensive health-care reform package, but he expects Republican leaders will push ‘piecemeal efforts to make affordable once more that which has not been affordable since ObamaCare passed.’ … ‘I want somebody who is for affordable health care, and right now ObamaCare is not affordable, nor is health care, which is a direct result of ObamaCare,’ Cassidy said.” [The Hill, 8/29/18]

The Truth Behind Mike Braun’s Health Care Record

Tonight in Evansville, President Trump will campaign for Mike Braun, a long-time supporter of the GOP repeal-and-sabotage agenda and a proponent of repealing the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Braun is also a supporter of the Trump-GOP lawsuit to eliminate the ACA’s protections for 2.7 million Hoosiers living with pre-existing conditions. Here’s a closer look.

Although Braun Has Claimed To Support Protections For People With Pre-Existing Conditions, the Truth Is:

  • Braun Supports A Lawsuit That Would Overturn Protections For People With Pre-existing Conditions. “The Republican, [Braun], however, has also endorsed a Republican lawsuit that would rescind the health care law along with that popular provision.” [Politico, 8/13/18]
  • Braun Is Campaigning On The Repeal Of The Affordable Care Act And Its Protections For People With Pre-existing Conditions. On the subject of the ACA, his website reads, “There is no repairing this broken law; the only option is to repeal and replace every word and regulation.” [Braun For Indiana, Accessed 8/14/18]
  • Braun, June 2018: I Will “Fully Repeal” Obamacare. “In the Senate, I will use my business experience and work with President Trump to fully repeal Obamacare and implement free-market solutions that will provide better healthcare for Hoosiers.” [City-County Observer, 7/26/18]
  • May 2018: The Tea Party Has Endorsed Braun, In Part Because He Supports “Repealing Obamacare.” “Our supporters were proud to endorse Mike, because he is a strong supporter of the Penny Plan, term limits, repealing Obamacare.” [Tea Party, 5/9/18]

Why The Truth Matters:

  • 2,745,700 Hoosiers Live With A Pre-Existing Condition. About one in two Hoosiers, 50 percent, lives with a pre-existing condition. [CAP, 4/5/17]
  • 1,382,000 Indiana Women And Girls Have A Pre-Existing Condition. Approximately 1,382,000 women and girls in Indiana live with a pre-existing condition. [CAP & National Partnership For Women and Families, June 2018]
  • 377,100 Indiana Children Already Have A Pre-Existing Condition. Roughly 377,000 Hoosiers below age 18 live with a pre-existing condition. [CAP, 4/5/17]
  • 643,800 Older Hoosiers Live With A Pre-Existing Condition. 643,800 Indiana adults between the ages of 55 and 64 live with at least one pre-existing condition, meaning attacks on these protections significantly threaten Hoosiers approaching Medicare age. [CAP, 4/5/17]

 

 

Protect Our Care Takes the Health Care Fight to Local Communities Across the United States

Coalition that Defeated Health Care Repeal Announces 48-Stop, 23-State Bus Tour

“Care Force One” Will Travel 11,303 Miles Across the Country, Engaging Americans from Coast to Coast in the Fight Against the GOP War on Health Care

Washington, D.C. – Today, Protect Our Care is announcing its first-ever nationwide bus tour. Kicking off in Bangor, Maine on September 24, the bus, “Care Force One,” will head west to Phoenix, Arizona before coming back east, concluding with an event in West Palm Beach, Florida on November 2. The bus will make 48 stops across 23 states, covering a total of 11,303 miles.

“Republicans in Congress, in states and in the White House have spent the past year and a half attacking our health care. Throughout this bus tour, Americans who are sick and tired of the Republican repeal-and-sabotage agenda will make it clear there’s no hiding from what they’ve done, try as they might, and that we want this war on our health care to end. Now,” said Brad Woodhouse, executive director of Protect Our Care.

The tour will highlight for the public that the Republican war on health care is very much alive, with Republican officials using legislation, regulations and the courts to continue their attacks on protections for the 130 million Americans with pre-existing conditions, for women and older Americans and on  Medicaid and Medicare. Recently pro-repeal Republicans have claimed to support the protections for people with pre-existing conditions in the Affordable Care Act, even as they work to dismantle them.

The Republicans’ repeal-and-sabotage agenda over the past 18 months has included:

  • Supporting legislation to repeal the Affordable Care Act, which threatens protections for women, older adults and people with pre-existing conditions, as well as a whole host of provisions of tens of millions of Americans rely upon for their care and coverage;
  • Pushing regulations that promote junk plans that can discriminate against people with pre-existing conditions and refuse coverage of essential health benefits, such as mental health care, emergency care and maternity care, driving up both risks and costs for consumers;
  • Slashing funding for outreach and enrollment assistance, which experts predicted would lead to 1.1 million fewer people enrolled in the health insurance exchanges across the country and raise costs for those who do enroll;
  • Filing a lawsuit to overturn the Affordable Care Act; then, the Trump Administration made the shocking decision not to defend the Affordable Care Act and actually agree in part with the plaintiffs, arguing that protections for people with pre-existing conditions should be overturned,
  • Gutting and obstructing the Medicaid expansion, which currently covers 15 million people and serves as a lifeline to rural communities from coast to coast, and
  • Jeopardizing improvements to Medicare, including reduced costs for prescription drugs.

At local events across the country, the bus tour will demonstrate that Americans broadly oppose Republicans’ repeal-and-sabotage agenda, which has cut health care coverage dramatically and driven up costs for millions. For example, the Center for American Progress estimates that the Republicans’ tax bill and their junk plans regulations will cause health insurance premiums to be $3,110 higher next year for a typical family of four.

Check out when “Care Force One” is slated to come to you, with additional stops being added along the way. Check out protectourcare.org/bus-tour/ for the latest.

Bangor, ME on Monday, September 24, 2018

Portland, ME on Monday, September 24, 2018

Syracuse, NY on Tuesday, September 25, 2018

Binghamton, NY on Tuesday, September 25, 2018

Philadelphia, PA on Wednesday, September 26, 2018

Harrisburg, PA on Thursday, September 27, 2018

Pittsburgh, PA on Thursday, September 27, 2018

Cleveland, OH on Friday, September 28, 2018

Columbus, OH on Friday, September 28, 2018

Wheeling, WV on Monday, October 1, 2018

Charleston, WV on Monday, October 1, 2018

Cincinnati, OH on Tuesday, October 2, 2018

Indianapolis, IN on Tuesday, October 2, 2018

Lansing, MI on Wednesday, October 3, 2018

Grand Rapids, MI on Wednesday, October 3, 2018

South Bend, IN on Wednesday, October 3, 2018

Milwaukee, WI on Thursday, October 4, 2018

Green Bay, WI on Thursday, October 4, 2018

Madison, WI on Friday, October 5, 2018

Cedar Rapids, IA on Friday, October 5, 2018

Des Moines, IA on Monday, October 8, 2018

Minneapolis, MN on Monday, October 8, 2018

Fargo, ND on Tuesday, October 9, 2018

Minot, ND on Tuesday, October 9, 2018

Billings, MT on Wednesday, October 10, 2018

Butte, MT Thursday, October 11, 2018

Missoula, MT on Friday, October 12, 2018

Reno, NV on Monday, October 15, 2018

Las Vegas, NV on Tuesday, October 16, 2018

Phoenix, AZ on Wednesday, October 17, 2018

Tucson, AZ on Wednesday, October 17, 2018

Denver, CO on Friday, October 19, 2018

Kansas City, MO on Monday, October 22, 2018

Springfield, MO on Monday, October 22, 2018

St. Louis, MO on Tuesday, October 23, 2018

Memphis, TN on Tuesday, October 23, 2018

Nashville, TN on Wednesday, October 24, 2018

Richmond, VA on Thursday, October 25, 2018

Raleigh, NC on Thursday, October 25, 2018

Atlanta, GA on Friday, October 26, 2018

Miami, FL on Wednesday, October 31, 2018

West Palm, FL on Thursday, November 1, 2018

West Palm, FL on Friday, November 2, 2018

NEW REPORT: How the Trump-GOP Lawsuit and the Next Supreme Court Justice Could Take Away Your Health Care

Protect Our Care Details What’s at Stake in Texas Case and the Endless Republican Attack on People with Pre-Existing Conditions

Washington, D.C. Heading into two monumental moments in health care next week — hearings on Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court, beginning September 4, and a hearing on Texas, et al. v. United States, et al in a federal district court on September 5 — Protect Our Care released a new report on the relentless GOP attack on health care and people with pre existing conditions.

“As this report shows, if you are a woman, if you’re over 50, if you’re on Medicaid, or if you have a pre-existing condition, the Republican lawsuit in Texas and the next Supreme Court justice will   determine whether you will continue to have health care,” said Leslie Dach, chair of Protect Our Care. “This report shows just how much Americans have to lose if Trump and his Republican allies successfully use their power and the courts to take away people’s health care.”   

Included in the report:

  • What life was like for people with pre-existing conditions before the ACA
  • How Texas v. United States could take us back
  • How Texas v. United States fits in with the broader Republican repeal-and-sabotage agenda
  • Who stands to be harmed by the lawsuit, on a state by state basis
  • How the latest Republican promise to protect people is a scam

Read the report, “The Relentless Republican War on People with Pre-Existing Conditions: The Lone Star Edition,” here.

Final Rates Confirm Floridians’ Insurance Is Getting Even More Expensive

Washington, D.C. – Today, Florida announced final rates for 2019 individual-market health insurance plans, which indicate a 5.2 percent premium increase, in contrast to the average nationwide 4.3 percent decrease that Brookings Institution analysts predicted would occur absent GOP sabotage, on top of last year’s 45 percent rate hike due to Washington Republicans’ repeal-and-sabotage agenda. Brad Woodhouse, executive director of Protect Our Care, released the following statement in response:

“For the past year and a half, President Trump and his Republican allies in Congress have engaged in a deliberate, aggressive campaign to undermine health care and families in Florida are once again forced to pay the price. Until we stop Republicans’ war on health care, insurance companies will continue to make huge profits and enjoy record tax breaks from Republicans while they charge working families more and more. Washington Republicans should start working on bipartisan solutions to make coverage more affordable, instead of helping their friends in the insurance industry make another buck on the backs of hardworking Floridians.”

From the Insurance Companies:

Cigna: “The Most Significant Factors Requiring The [30 Percent] Increase” Include “Elimination Of The Individual Mandate Penalties” And “Anticipated Changes To Regulations Regarding Short Term Medical And Association Health Plans That Will Impact The Affordable Care Act Risk Pool.” [Cigna, 6/20/18]

Molina Healthcare: Repeal Of Mandate Driving Up Rates. “The individual mandate penalty will not be enforced for the 2019 plan year, resulting in younger and healthier members dropping coverage. In addition, the other Non-ACA compliant alternative plan availability will further reduce the overall enrollment of marketplace.” [7/20/18]

From the Experts:

Brookings Analysis Estimates That Individual Market Premiums Would Decrease If Not For GOP Sabotage. Among its key findings:

  • Estimates That Average Premium Would Fall By 4.3 Percent In 2019 In Stable Policy Environment. “I estimate that the nationwide average per member per month premium in the individual market would fall by 4.3 percent in 2019 in a stable policy environment.” [Brookings Institution, 8/1/18]
  • Insurance Companies’ Revenues Will Far Exceed Their Costs In 2018. “I project that insurers’ revenues in the ACA-compliant individual market will far exceed their costs in 2018, generating a positive underwriting margin of 10.5 percent of premium revenue. This is up from a modest positive margin of 1.2 percent of premium revenue in 2017 and contrasts sharply with the substantial losses insurers incurred in the ACA-compliant market in 2014, 2015, and 2016. The estimated 2018 margin also far exceeds insurers’ margins in the pre-ACA individual market. ” [Brookings Institution, 8/1/18]
  • Absent Republican Sabotage, Average Premiums For ACA-Compliant Plans Would Likely Fall In 2019. “In this analysis, I define a stable policy environment as one in which the federal policies toward the individual market in effect for 2018 remain in effect for 3 2019. Notably, this scenario assumes that the individual mandate remains in effect for 2019, but also assumes that policies implemented prior to 2018, like the end of CSR payments, remain in effect as well. Under those circumstances, insurers’ costs would rise only moderately in 2019, primarily reflecting normal growth in medical costs.” [Brookings Institution, 8/1/18]

Protect Our Care Calls on Senate to Protect People with Pre-Existing Conditions and Pass Sen. Baldwin’s Resolution

Legislation Would Stop Administration’s Expansion of Junk Plans in its Tracks, Retain Protections for Americans with Pre-Existing Conditions and More

Washington, D.C. – Today, Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and a coalition of 29 other Senators  introduced a resolution to block insurers from selling the Trump Administration’s short-term, junk insurance plans that remove protections for Americans with pre-existing conditions and fail to cover essential health benefits like maternity care, mental health treatment and prescription drugs. Brad Woodhouse, executive director of Protect Our Care, released the following statement in response:

“As Senate Republicans continue to push new legislation that takes health care away from people with pre existing conditions in a cynical, election season legislative scam, Senator Baldwin and her colleagues are showing true leadership by working to stop President Trump’s expansion of junk insurance plans in its tracks. If the GOP truly cared about protecting Americans with pre-existing conditions, they would join their colleagues on this resolution in taking concrete action to preserve the protections and essential health benefits that tens of millions of Americans depend on — and they would do so immediately.”

BACKGROUND:

Short-Term Plans May Exclude Coverage For Pre-Existing Conditions. “Policyholders who get sick may be investigated by the insurer to determine whether the newly-diagnosed condition could be considered pre-existing and so excluded from coverage.” [Kaiser Family Foundation, 2/9/18]

  • As Many As 130 Million Nonelderly Americans Have A Pre-Existing Condition. [Center for American Progress, 4/5/17]
  • One in 4 Children Would Be Impacted If Insurance Companies Could Deny Coverage Or Charge More Because Of A Pre-existing Condition. [Center for American Progress, 4/5/17]

Junk Plans Mean Higher Premiums For People With Pre-Existing Conditions. By promoting short-term policies, the administration is making a trade-off: lower premiums and less coverage for healthy people, and higher premiums for people with preexisting conditions who need more comprehensive coverage.” [Washington Post, 5/1/18]

Short-Term Junk Plans Can Refuse To Cover Essential Health Benefits. “Typical short-term policies do not cover maternity care, prescription drugs, mental health care, preventive care, and other essential benefits, and may limit coverage in other ways.” [Kaiser Family Foundation, 2/9/18]

Under Many Short-Term Junk Plans, Benefits Are Capped At $1 Million Or Less. Short-term plans can impose lifetime and annual limits –  “for example, many policies cap covered benefits at $1 million or less.” [Kaiser Family Foundation, 2/9/18]

For more information, see Protect Our Care’s fact sheet on short-term junk plans.