Washington, DC — Tonight, President Trump addressed the nation at the State of the Union and told a series of blatant lies about his record on health care. In response, Brad Woodhouse, executive director of Protect Our Care, release the following statement:
“Another year of President Trump’s administration is in the books and it’s just more lies and broken promises. The president knows his abysmal health care record is an anvil weighing down his chances for reelection and that’s why he attempted to paint a rosy picture tonight, but voters know that Donald Trump’s war on health care is alive and well. President Trump has tried everything to destroy our health care from joining a lawsuit that would rip coverage from 20 million Americans to pushing junk insurance plans that don’t have to cover people with pre-existing conditions to giving his friends in the pharmaceutical industry big tax breaks while they continue to hike drug prices. President Trump’s actions speak louder than his empty rhetoric.”
BACKGROUND:
Pre-Existing Conditions
President Trump claimed he will “always” protect people with pre-existing conditions.
Facts:
- Trump supported multiple House and Senate repeal bills that would have ended such protections.
- He is pushing junk insurance plans that allow for insurance companies to discriminate against people with pre-existing conditions.
- He is arguing that pre-existing condition protections for 135 million Americans should be eliminated in a lawsuit Trump himself claimed would “terminate” the Affordable Care Act and its consumer protections.
Prescription Drugs
President Trump claimed that he lowered drug prices.
Facts:
- President Trump gave drug companies billions of dollars in tax breaks while they rake in massive profits and raise prices on Americans.
- Drug prices have soared under President Trump.
- He has repeatedly talked about lowering prices based on costs in other countries, but independent experts have said his proposals would be ineffective.
- He opposes the single most important thing you can do to lower drug prices — giving Medicare the power to negotiate for lower prices.
Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security
President Trump claimed to protect Medicare and Social Security.
Facts:
- As recently as January, President Trump signaled that he is open to slashing benefits for vital programs like Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security.
- President Trump’s most recent budget proposed slashing Medicaid by $1.5 trillion and Medicare by $845 million.
Health Care Costs
President Trump claimed he made health care more affordable.
Facts:
- Under the Trump presidency, the number of uninsured Americans has gone up by at least 7 million, in large part due to his policies to undermine the Affordable Care Act.
- Trump’s war on health care is deeply unpopular, and polls have shown that Americans trust Democrats more to protect their health care and lower costs.
- Democrats have put forward popular provisions to strengthen protections for pre-existing conditions, and lower the costs of prescription drugs by giving Medicare the power to negotiate for lower prices. Trump opposes them all.
- President Trump has continuously undermined health care by pushing harmful policies like junk insurance plans that don’t cover pre-existing conditions, and harmful work requirements on Medicaid that have resulted in thousands losing coverage and puts millions more Americans at risk of being kicked off the rolls.