Health care activists and elected officials from across the country are praising Protect Our Care’s agenda for the 116th Congress that will lower costs and improve care for all Americans. Leaders in Arizona, Colorado, Iowa, North Carolina and Ohio are among those who have weighed in on the opportunity Congress has to build on the current health care law by making access to health care more affordable and accessible to all Americans.
Arizona Republic: Gallego, Kirkpatrick Call For ‘Health Care Congress’ To Fight For ACA. “The partisan battle over health care continued Tuesday as the liberal group ‘Protect Our Care Arizona’ demanded that Congress keep fighting for the Affordable Care Act amid ongoing attacks by President Donald Trump’s administration. Joined by Reps. Ruben Gallego and Ann Kirkpatrick, the Democratic coalition known for defending former President Barack Obama’s signature health-care-reform law — which critics on the right dubbed ‘Obamacare’ — called for the new 116th Congress to right the wrongs they say Republicans have done in the health-care realm. [AZCentral,1/30/19]”
Tucson Weekly: Reps. Gallego And Kirkpatrick Talk Health Care. “Ruben Gallego (CD-7) and Ann Kirkpatrick (CD-2), two Democratic representatives in U.S. Congress joined Alicia Held, an Arizona healthcare advocate, to talk about the state of health coverage in Arizona. They discussed what citizens can expect in the future during a press call hosted by Protect Our Care Arizona. Rep. Gallego said more than 20 million Americans have healthcare because of the Affordable Care Act, while Republicans have ‘waged a war’ against it. He said Democrats need to fight back in order to keep coverage for those who need it most. ‘Americans shouldn’t have to choose between paying for healthcare and buying groceries,’ he said.” [Tucson Weekly, 1/29/19]
Denver Westword: Attacking Outrageous Health-Care Costs In Colorado And Beyond. “A new report released today suggests ways for the U.S. Congress to fight rising health-care costs. Meanwhile, Colorado Governor Jared Polis just signed an executive order creating what’s been dubbed the Office of Saving People Money on Health Care. Anne Shoup, communications director for Protect Our Care, a coalition in Washington, D.C. (with staff assigned to Colorado), that put out the report, ‘The Health Care Congress: Cost, Coverage, Consumer Protections,’ sees these efforts as both timely and complementary. As Shoup notes, ‘We’re calling on Congress to enact cost-saving measures for people, but it’s hard to say what we can actually get done…it’s encouraging to see a state like Colorado step forward to find ways to lower costs for its constituents.’” [Westword, 1/24/19]
Daily Iowan, Iowa Starting Line, Iowa State Daily: This Must Be The Health Care Congress. “Iowans and Americans have demanded access to quality, affordable coverage at the ballot box and millions in our state and across the country deserve to have this year’s Congress be the ‘Health Care Congress. What would that mean, for this to be the Health Care Congress? First,Congress should do everything possible to overturn last year’s federal court decision that struck down the ACA, which President Trump has repeatedly celebrated and which has faced virtually no opposition from Senator Ernst and other Republican members of Congress…the Health Care Congress also has to end the Republican war on people with pre-existing conditions…the Health Care Congress can and should strengthen Medicaid and Medicare. Aside from extending and increasing federal funding for Medicaid expansion, they can improve Medicare’s affordability by adding an out-of-pocket maximum for older Americans.” [The Daily Iowan, 1/24/19]
BlueNC: Protect Our Care Announces Health Care Agenda for New Congress. “This week, Protect Our Care unveiled their health care agenda for the new Congress. The agenda is detailed in a new report, which calls for bold Congressional action to defend the Affordable Care Act against Republican attacks, strengthen Medicaid and Medicare, lower costs, and enact further protections for individuals with pre-existing conditions. Congressman David Price and State Sen. Jay Chaudhuri joined Protect Our Care North Carolina on a press call yesterday discussing the report – The Health Care Congress: Cost, Coverage, Consumer Protections – and what it means for North Carolina. ‘The voters want us to protect their health care,’ Representative David Price said. ‘They want us to protect the Affordable Care Act…and they want us to do whatever it takes to bring affordable, good health care to all of our people.’ ‘In November…affordable health care was the top issue for North Carolinians,’ State Sen. Jay Chaudhuri said. ‘Republicans…have two options for how they will govern – they can work with Democrats to find common ground, or they can continue to carry out a highly partisan agenda.’” [BlueNC, 1/25/19]
Gongwer News Service: Advocates Urge Congress To Expand Health Care Access. “During a Columbus press conference, representatives from Protect Our Care Ohio and several allied groups touted the organization’s January report laying out the group’s health care priorities for Congress. Titled ‘The Health Care Congress: Cost, Coverage, Consumer Protections,’ the paper outlines several steps advocates argue would shore up health care options and lower treatment costs for residents of the Buckeye State. The group’s report comes a day after Gallup found that the percentage of U.S. adults without health insurance increased 1.3 percentage points in the fourth quarter of 2017 compared to a year before, representing the largest single-year increase measured by the polling firm and Sharecare since they began tracking the rate in 2008. ‘There are many things this Congress could be doing to improve care and lower costs,’ Protect Our Care spokeswoman Amanda Wurst said. ‘Republicans in the Congress need to end their continued attack on the Affordable Care Act and join their Democratic colleagues in protecting our care.’” [Gongwer, 1/28/19]
Hannah Report: Groups Urge Congress to Protect the Affordable Care Act, Health Care. “Advocates who favor the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare, urged Congress Friday to take steps to protect health care for Americans, including for those with pre-existing conditions and people who enrolled in Medicaid thanks to the ACA’s expanded requirements. The groups, which include For Our Future, Protect Our Care Ohio, ProgressOhio, and the Universal Health Care Action Network (UHCAN) Ohio, said the biggest threat to health care is a federal lawsuit originating in Texas that saw a federal judge rule the ACA was unable to stand on its own after Congress eliminated the tax penalty for not having health insurance. But they said there are other threats to the law as well, including efforts by the Trump administration to weaken it. Amanda Wurst, the Ohio director of Protect Our Care, said at a press conference held Friday in Columbus that Congress can take other steps to help lower the cost of health care in addition to preserving protections for those with preexisting conditions.” [Hannah Report, 1/25/19]
