As the Clock Strikes Eleven, Republicans Have One Last Chance to Reverse Course Before They Sentence Working People Into Bankruptcy
In a matter of hours, Republicans in Congress are going to cast their vote to bust the budgets of millions of hard-working Americans. Because Donald Trump and the GOP are ripping away tax credits from over 24 million Americans, come January 1st, working people will witness Republicans double, triple, or even quadruple their health insurance premiums overnight — throwing small businesses, farmers, and everyday families into crippling debt. For months, a barrage of coverage has been unearthing the toll on real people: Americans, like Ragan from Tennessee, are now contemplating switching jobs or moving away from family because Republicans are about to hike her premium from $750 to a jaw-breaking $3,090 a month. Others, like Diane from Nebraska, are preparing for what life looks like without insurance or closing down their small business “to work for someone, or three,” because Republicans are set to spike her premium from $560 to a whopping $2,583 a month.
Time is running out for Trump and Republicans to end the pain and misery they are causing for millions of working people. The following accounts — along with the over 100 collected testimonies — come from hard-working Americans that the GOP are about to put on the chopping block to fund tax breaks for their billionaire friends.
Ragan Grossman, Franklin, Tennessee
- “‘We were about $750 a month. And then we received a letter in the mail that said the tax credits are going away, and your premium will be $3,090 starting January 1,’ Grossman said. The number stunned her. ‘I absolutely thought it was a typo at first,’ Grossman said. ‘I thought for sure maybe I got someone else’s that had a large family or something like that.’”
- “‘I never thought I would be in a position where I was questioning whether we could afford this $3,000 a month for two people,’ Grossman said. Now, she and her husband are considering options they never imagined. ‘We moved to Tennessee because I needed to be near my family. And I don’t want to move. We don’t want to move. I certainly don’t want to switch my job. I love what I do,’ Grossman said.” [News Channel 5]
Diane Braun, Omaha, Nebraska
- “‘It increased by 460%,’ Braun said. ‘I called my health care plan, and I said, I noticed that the premium went up. Can you tell me why? And they told me part of it was with regard to no longer having that tax care advantage and that they’re allowed to increase their insurance premiums.’”
- “Now, Braun says she’s left debating whether she can afford health insurance at all. ‘The premiums alone would be about 31% of our taxable income,’ Braun said.”
- “‘We either one, pay the extensive premium, which would be about $31,000 a year for the premium alone,’ Braun said. ‘Two, one of us goes close to our business and goes to work for someone, or three, we just don’t have health insurance, and we cross our fingers that we stay healthy even though we keep getting older.’” [KETV]
Carol Kolseth, Plummer, Minnesota
- “Every farmer watches their expenses really, really close,” Carol said. “I think this is going to be really hard for younger farmers… Who’s going to do it if it’s so discouraging?” [Daily Yonder]
Kaitlyn Kimball, Naugatuck, Connecticut
- “‘I know a lot of people who don’t grow their business to try to keep their profits down so that they can keep them and their families on [health] insurance,’ Kaitlyn said. As first-generation farmers, the Kimballs are actively trying to grow their business, which is one of the only of its kind in the Naugatuck area and employs up to 12 people during the peak season. They’re bracing for an increase in their monthly expenses next year if the premium tax credits end. The $450 monthly premium they pay now is estimated to rise to $500 per month. ‘It’s really hard to budget for that increase because it’s so substantial,’ Kaitlyn said. ‘But we also can’t go without coverage.’” [Daily Yonder]
Patrick Visconti, 59, Pennsylvania
- “One of those 20,000 people in Mackenzie’s district is Patrick Visconti, who switched to a low-premium, high-deductible plan because he couldn’t afford to keep his plan with a premium that is more than doubling from under $200 to over $500 a month. Visconti, 59, who works as a self-employed landscaper and a bus driver, said the plan he picked is ‘crappy coverage. I’d rather pay the $200 a month. But I can’t get anything for $200,’ Visconti said.” [WTAE]
Lynn Weidner, Pennsylvania
- “Lynn Weidner, a home care worker in Mackenzie’s district who works nearly 80 hours a week, said her $400 premium will increase to $680. But, she said, she’s leaning toward selecting the plan because she has various conditions — including an iron deficiency — that require regular medical care. ‘So I’m trying to find places where I can cut money so that I can afford my insurance come January, which is stressful,’ Weidner said.” [WTAE]
Chrysa Ostenso, Ladysmith, Wisconsin
- “One small business owner, Chrysa Ostenso, says before the ACA went into effect it was like the “Wild West” for Health Insurance. ‘We were just kind of at the insurance company’s whim,’ Ostenso said. ‘They could raise their rates which they did pretty much every year. They could also decide to cut one of your family members out, which happened to us after our daughter had a cancer diagnosis.’”
- “She says the ACA tax credits not being extended would force her to pay an extra $1,500 a month for premiums and that she could be forced to go into her 401K assets. Ostenso said: ‘It just really allowed us to keep our profitability at a level where we could pay our employees what we needed to. We could basically keep our business open because before then it was almost starting to feel like ‘Why are we going to work?’ everyday and do all this work.’” [WJFW]
Jennifer Graham Partyka, Pennsylvania
- “One of her sons works a full-time job at a nonprofit in northeast Pennsylvania and is enrolled in Medicaid because his job does not provide health benefits. The other son worked as a federal data contractor in the Philadelphia area but lost that job after contracts dried up under the Trump administration, Partykas said. Now she’s worried about both sons being able to keep their health coverage. ‘People on Medicaid are not the parasite classes that this horrible out-of-touch administration has described them,’ Partykas said. ‘They’re your friends and your neighbors, and they’re my patients. And, in this case, it’s my son. He receives necessary lifesaving help.’”
- “Her other son, Partykas said, now receives $400 a week in unemployment benefits after losing his job and may have to pay $400 a month — a week’s pay — for his Affordable Care Act plan should the Republican-controlled Congress allow the ACA tax credits to lapse at the end of the year.” [Pennsylvania Independent]