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Health Care

Sean England
In News

Fact Sheet on Health Repeal in Senate Tax Bill — Rep. Michael Turner

Spotlight: Rep. Michael Turner (R-OH)

Senate Republicans passed a tax bill on Friday night that repeals health care to pay for another massive tax break for the wealthiest and corporations. What the repeal of the individual mandate in the Senate bill means is simple: while the wealthy and corporations get a tax break, middle-class families will get double digit premium increases, 13 million people will lose their coverage, older Americans will get an age tax and $25 billion in Medicare funding will be cut.

The bill passed by the House did not include the repeal of the individual mandate. The House should insist that it stays out. Rep. Michael Turner (R-OH) has one opportunity left to take a stand against any inclusion of the individual mandate in the final bill which, if passed with the repeal of the individual mandate, would cause 433,000 people to lose coverage in Ohio including 26,300 in Rep. Turner’s district, raise premiums on middle-class families by $1,480 and impose an age tax of up to $1,100 on older Ohioans, and cut $1 billion in Medicare funds to Ohio all to pay for tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations.

SENATE REPUBLICANS JUST VOTED TO REPEAL HEALTH CARE — RAISING PREMIUMS BY DOUBLE DIGITS FOR MIDDLE CLASS FAMILIES, RIPPING AWAY COVERAGE FOR 13 MILLION AMERICANS, IMPOSING AN AGE TAX ON OLDER AMERICANS AND GUTTING MEDICARE BY $25 BILLION — ALL TO PAY FOR SPECIAL TAX BREAKS FOR MILLIONAIRES AND BIG CORPORATIONS

Congressional Budget Office: Republican Tax Bill Will Result In 13 Million More Uninsured People. “The number of people with health insurance would decrease by 4 million in 2019 and 13 million in 2027.” [CBO, 11/8/17]

Center For American Progress: Senate Tax Bill Will Result In 433,000 More Uninsured In Ohio, 26,300 More In Rep. Turner’s District. [Center for American Progress, 11/16/17, 12/5/17]

CBO: Average Premiums Will Increase By 10 Percent In Most Years Of The Next Decade Due To The Republican Tax Bill. “Average premiums in the nongroup market would increase by about 10 percent in most years of the decade (with no changes in the ages of people purchasing insurance accounted for) relative to CBO’s baseline projections.” [CBO, 11/8/17]

Center For American Progress: Marketplace Premiums For A Typical Middle-Class Family In Ohio Will Rise By $1,480 In 2019. [Center for American Progress, 11/16/17]

CBO: Healthier People Less Likely To Purchase Health Coverage, Raising Costs For Everyone Else. “Those effects would occur mainly because healthier people would be less likely to obtain insurance and because, especially in the nongroup market, the resulting increases in premiums would cause more people to not purchase insurance.” [CBO, 11/8/17]

AARP: Premiums For People Over 50 Would Increase Up To $1,500 Nationally, And Up To $1,100 In Ohio, Because Of Health Care Repeal In The Republican Tax Bill. “The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act as reported by the Senate Finance Committee on Nov. 16, 2017 includes a new provision that would both reduce health care coverage and increase costs for millions of Americans. Older adults ages 50–64 would be at particularly high risk under the proposal, facing average premium increases of up to $1,500 in 2019 as a result of the bill.” [AARP, 11/21/17]

CBO: Republican Tax Bill Would Trigger A $25 Billion Cut To Medicare.“Without enacting subsequent legislation to either offset that deficit increase, waive the recordation of the bill’s impact on the scorecard, or otherwise mitigate or eliminate the requirements of the PAYGO law, OMB would be required to issue a sequestration order within 15 days of the end of the session of Congress to reduce spending in fiscal year 2018 by the resultant total of $136 billion. However, the PAYGO law limits reductions to Medicare to four percentage points (or roughly $25 billion for that year), leaving about $111 billion to be sequestered from the remaining mandatory accounts.” [CBO, 11/14/17]

Center For American Progress: Ohio Would See A $1 Billion Cut In Medicare Funds. [Center for American Progress, 11/16/17]

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL): Republicans Need To Cut Medicare Next To Pay For Tax Cuts. “‘I analyze this very differently than most,’ Rubio told the crowd. ‘Many argue that you can’t cut taxes because it will drive up the deficit. But we have to do two things. We have to generate economic growth which generates revenue, while reducing spending. That will mean instituting structural changes to Social Security and Medicare for the future,’ the senator said.” [Financial Advisor Magazine, 11/30/17]

Center On Budget And Policy Priorities: “Senate Tax Bill Would Add 13 Million To Uninsured To Pay For Tax Cuts Of Nearly $100,000 Per Year For The Top 0.1 Percent.” “The savings from eliminating the mandate would come entirely from reducing health coverage. For example, the federal government would spend less on premium tax credits because fewer people would sign up for marketplace coverage, less on Medicaid because fewer people would enroll, and less on the tax exclusion for employer-sponsored health insurance because fewer employees would enroll in job-based coverage. These savings are what let Senate leaders make their full corporate rate cut permanent…The benefits of corporate rate cuts go overwhelmingly to high-income households.” [CBPP, 11/15/17]

PASSING ALEXANDER-MURRAY AFTER VOTING FOR REPEAL IS LIKE INSTALLING GUARDRAILS ON THE HIGHWAY AFTER YOUR CAR HAS GONE OVER THE CLIFF

CBO: Passing Alexander-Murray After The Repeal Of The Individual Responsibility Provision Would Not Undo The Damage. “In your letter of November 21, 2017, you asked about the combined effects of simultaneously passing the BHCSA and legislation that would repeal the requirement that most U.S. citizens and noncitizens who lawfully reside in the country have health insurance meeting specified standards. Specifically, you asked if legislation that combined the provisions would change the agencies’ previous estimates of the number of people with insurance coverage or premiums in the nongroup insurance market. In the estimate for the BHCSA, the agencies wrote that, relative to the Summer 2017 baseline, the legislation would not substantially change the number of people with health insurance coverage, on net.” [CBO, 11/29/17]

There Is No Guarantee Alexander-Murray Would Pass The House, Let Alone Become Law. There is no guarantee Alexander-Murray would pass the House, let alone become law. Speaker Ryan dodged questions about its fate in the House. House conservatives called it a “nonstarter.” And President Trump has been all over the map on this issue his word cannot be trusted.

THE LEADING EXPERTS — PATIENT GROUPS, INSURERS, DOCTORS AND HOSPITALS — AND MORE THAN 2,400 FAITH LEADERS AND THE AMERICAN PEOPLE OPPOSE HEALTH REPEAL

American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Diabetes Association, American Heart Association, And 16 More Leading Patient Groups: People With “Serious Health Care Needs” And With Pre-Existing Conditions “May Not Be Able To Afford Coverage.” “Many individuals with serious health care needs, including patients with chronic or major health conditions, who by definition, have a pre-existing condition, may not be able to afford coverage.” [The Hill, 11/28/17]

America’s Health Insurance Plans, American Academy Of Family Physicians, American Hospital Association, American Medical Association, Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, Federation Of American Hospitals: Leading Industry Groups Warn Of “Serious Consequences” Should The Mandate Be Repealed. “As providers of healthcare and coverage to hundreds of millions of Americans, we are committed to assuring everyone has access to a range of high quality, affordable coverage options so they can access the care they need, regardless of pre-existing conditions. To achieve this critical goal, we are urging you to maintain the individual mandate unless and until Congress can enact a package of reforms to adequately assure a balanced risk pool and prevent extraordinary premium increases.” [Letter, 11/14/17]

More Than 2,400 Faith Leaders: “That The Number Of Uninsured Individuals Would Increase By 13 Million By 2025…Violates Our Faith Teaching.” “The individual mandate is critical to keeping individual market coverage affordable and keeping the individual market stable. By repealing the individual mandate, legislation will cause catastrophic losses in health coverage. The CBO estimates that the number of uninsured individuals would increase by 13 million by 2025, which violates our faith teaching.” [Letter, 11/29/17]

Sean England
In Capitol Hill, News

Fact Sheet on Health Repeal in Senate Tax Bill — Rep. Mike Coffman

Spotlight: Rep. Mike Coffman (R-CO)

Senate Republicans passed a tax bill on Friday night that repeals health care to pay for another massive tax break for the wealthiest and corporations. What the repeal of the individual mandate in the Senate bill means is simple: while the wealthy and corporations get a tax break, middle-class families will get double digit premium increases, 13 million people will lose their coverage, older Americans will get an age tax and $25 billion in Medicare funding will be cut.

The bill passed by the House did not include the repeal of the individual mandate. The House should insist that it stays out. Rep. Mike Coffman (R-CO) has one opportunity left to take a stand against any inclusion of the individual mandate in the final bill which, if passed with the repeal of the individual mandate, would cause 235,000 people to lose coverage in Colorado including 30,700 in Rep. Coffman’s district, impose an age tax of up to $1,500 on older adults nationwide, and cut $302 million in Medicare funds to Colorado all to pay for tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations.

SENATE REPUBLICANS JUST VOTED TO REPEAL HEALTH CARE — RAISING PREMIUMS BY DOUBLE DIGITS FOR MIDDLE CLASS FAMILIES, RIPPING AWAY COVERAGE FOR 13 MILLION AMERICANS, IMPOSING AN AGE TAX ON OLDER AMERICANS AND GUTTING MEDICARE BY $25 BILLION — ALL TO PAY FOR SPECIAL TAX BREAKS FOR MILLIONAIRES AND BIG CORPORATIONS

Congressional Budget Office: Republican Tax Bill Will Result In 13 Million More Uninsured People. “The number of people with health insurance would decrease by 4 million in 2019 and 13 million in 2027.” [CBO, 11/8/17]

Center For American Progress: Senate Tax Bill Will Result In 235,000 More Uninsured In Colorado, 30,700 More In Rep. Coffman’s District.[Center for American Progress, 11/16/17]

CBO: Average Premiums Will Increase By 10 Percent In Most Years Of The Next Decade Due To The Republican Tax Bill. “Average premiums in the nongroup market would increase by about 10 percent in most years of the decade (with no changes in the ages of people purchasing insurance accounted for) relative to CBO’s baseline projections.” [CBO, 11/8/17]

CBO: Healthier People Less Likely To Purchase Health Coverage, Raising Costs For Everyone Else. “Those effects would occur mainly because healthier people would be less likely to obtain insurance and because, especially in the nongroup market, the resulting increases in premiums would cause more people to not purchase insurance.” [CBO, 11/8/17]

AARP: Premiums For People Over 50 Would Increase Up To $1,500 Because Of Health Care Repeal In The Republican Tax Bill. “The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act as reported by the Senate Finance Committee on Nov. 16, 2017 includes a new provision that would both reduce health care coverage and increase costs for millions of Americans. Older adults ages 50–64 would be at particularly high risk under the proposal, facing average premium increases of up to $1,500 in 2019 as a result of the bill.” [AARP, 11/21/17]

CBO: Republican Tax Bill Would Trigger A $25 Billion Cut To Medicare.“Without enacting subsequent legislation to either offset that deficit increase, waive the recordation of the bill’s impact on the scorecard, or otherwise mitigate or eliminate the requirements of the PAYGO law, OMB would be required to issue a sequestration order within 15 days of the end of the session of Congress to reduce spending in fiscal year 2018 by the resultant total of $136 billion. However, the PAYGO law limits reductions to Medicare to four percentage points (or roughly $25 billion for that year), leaving about $111 billion to be sequestered from the remaining mandatory accounts.” [CBO, 11/14/17]

Center For American Progress: Colorado Would See A $302 Million Cut In Medicare Funds. [Center for American Progress, 11/16/17]

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL): Republicans Need To Cut Medicare Next To Pay For Tax Cuts. “‘I analyze this very differently than most,’ Rubio told the crowd. ‘Many argue that you can’t cut taxes because it will drive up the deficit. But we have to do two things. We have to generate economic growth which generates revenue, while reducing spending. That will mean instituting structural changes to Social Security and Medicare for the future,’ the senator said.” [Financial Advisor Magazine, 11/30/17]

Center On Budget And Policy Priorities: “Senate Tax Bill Would Add 13 Million To Uninsured To Pay For Tax Cuts Of Nearly $100,000 Per Year For The Top 0.1 Percent.” “The savings from eliminating the mandate would come entirely from reducing health coverage. For example, the federal government would spend less on premium tax credits because fewer people would sign up for marketplace coverage, less on Medicaid because fewer people would enroll, and less on the tax exclusion for employer-sponsored health insurance because fewer employees would enroll in job-based coverage. These savings are what let Senate leaders make their full corporate rate cut permanent…The benefits of corporate rate cuts go overwhelmingly to high-income households.” [CBPP, 11/15/17]

PASSING ALEXANDER-MURRAY AFTER VOTING FOR REPEAL IS LIKE INSTALLING GUARDRAILS ON THE HIGHWAY AFTER YOUR CAR HAS GONE OVER THE CLIFF

CBO: Passing Alexander-Murray After The Repeal Of The Individual Responsibility Provision Would Not Undo The Damage. “In your letter of November 21, 2017, you asked about the combined effects of simultaneously passing the BHCSA and legislation that would repeal the requirement that most U.S. citizens and noncitizens who lawfully reside in the country have health insurance meeting specified standards. Specifically, you asked if legislation that combined the provisions would change the agencies’ previous estimates of the number of people with insurance coverage or premiums in the nongroup insurance market. In the estimate for the BHCSA, the agencies wrote that, relative to the Summer 2017 baseline, the legislation would not substantially change the number of people with health insurance coverage, on net.” [CBO, 11/29/17]

There Is No Guarantee Alexander-Murray Would Pass The House, Let Alone Become Law. There is no guarantee Alexander-Murray would pass the House, let alone become law. Speaker Ryan dodged questions about its fate in the House. House conservatives called it a “nonstarter.” And President Trump has been all over the map on this issue his word cannot be trusted.

THE LEADING EXPERTS — PATIENT GROUPS, INSURERS, DOCTORS AND HOSPITALS — AND MORE THAN 2,400 FAITH LEADERS AND THE AMERICAN PEOPLE OPPOSE HEALTH REPEAL

American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Diabetes Association, American Heart Association, And 16 More Leading Patient Groups: People With “Serious Health Care Needs” And With Pre-Existing Conditions “May Not Be Able To Afford Coverage.” “Many individuals with serious health care needs, including patients with chronic or major health conditions, who by definition, have a pre-existing condition, may not be able to afford coverage.” [The Hill, 11/28/17]

America’s Health Insurance Plans, American Academy Of Family Physicians, American Hospital Association, American Medical Association, Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, Federation Of American Hospitals: Leading Industry Groups Warn Of “Serious Consequences” Should The Mandate Be Repealed. “As providers of healthcare and coverage to hundreds of millions of Americans, we are committed to assuring everyone has access to a range of high quality, affordable coverage options so they can access the care they need, regardless of pre-existing conditions. To achieve this critical goal, we are urging you to maintain the individual mandate unless and until Congress can enact a package of reforms to adequately assure a balanced risk pool and prevent extraordinary premium increases.” [Letter, 11/14/17]

More Than 2,400 Faith Leaders: “That The Number Of Uninsured Individuals Would Increase By 13 Million By 2025…Violates Our Faith Teaching.” “The individual mandate is critical to keeping individual market coverage affordable and keeping the individual market stable. By repealing the individual mandate, legislation will cause catastrophic losses in health coverage. The CBO estimates that the number of uninsured individuals would increase by 13 million by 2025, which violates our faith teaching.” [Letter, 11/29/17]

Sean England
In Capitol Hill, News

Protect Our Care Fact Sheet on Health Repeal in Senate Passed Tax Bill

Spotlight: Rep. Patrick Meehan (R-PA)

Senate Republicans passed a tax bill on Friday night that repeals health care to pay for another massive tax break for the wealthiest and corporations. What the repeal of the individual mandate in the Senate bill means is simple: while the wealthy and corporations get a tax break, middle-class families will get double digit premium increases, 13 million people will lose their coverage, older Americans will get an age tax and $25 billion in Medicare funding will be cut.

The bill passed by the House did not include the repeal of the individual mandate. The House should insist that it stays out. Rep. Patrick Meehan (R-PA) has one opportunity left to take a stand against any inclusion of the individual mandate in the final bill which, if passed with the repeal of the individual mandate, would cause 505,000 people to lose coverage in Pennsylvania including 25,900 in Rep. Meehan’s district, raise premiums on middle-class families by $2,300 and impose an age tax of up to $1,700 on older Pennsylvanians, and cut $1.2 billion in Medicare funds to Pennsylvania all to pay for tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations.

SENATE REPUBLICANS JUST VOTED TO REPEAL HEALTH CARE — RAISING PREMIUMS BY DOUBLE DIGITS FOR MIDDLE CLASS FAMILIES, RIPPING AWAY COVERAGE FOR 13 MILLION AMERICANS, IMPOSING AN AGE TAX ON OLDER AMERICANS AND GUTTING MEDICARE BY $25 BILLION — ALL TO PAY FOR SPECIAL TAX BREAKS FOR MILLIONAIRES AND BIG CORPORATIONS

Congressional Budget Office: Republican Tax Bill Will Result In 13 Million More Uninsured People. “The number of people with health insurance would decrease by 4 million in 2019 and 13 million in 2027.” [CBO, 11/8/17]

Center For American Progress: Senate Tax Bill Will Result In 505,000 More Uninsured In Pennsylvania, 25,900 More In Rep. Meehan’s District.[Center for American Progress, 11/16/17, 12/5/17]

CBO: Average Premiums Will Increase By 10 Percent In Most Years Of The Next Decade Due To The Republican Tax Bill. “Average premiums in the nongroup market would increase by about 10 percent in most years of the decade (with no changes in the ages of people purchasing insurance accounted for) relative to CBO’s baseline projections.” [CBO, 11/8/17]

Center For American Progress: Marketplace Premiums For A Typical Middle-Class Family In Pennsylvania Will Rise By $2,300 In 2019. [Center for American Progress, 11/16/17]

CBO: Healthier People Less Likely To Purchase Health Coverage, Raising Costs For Everyone Else. “Those effects would occur mainly because healthier people would be less likely to obtain insurance and because, especially in the nongroup market, the resulting increases in premiums would cause more people to not purchase insurance.” [CBO, 11/8/17]

AARP: Premiums For People Over 50 Would Increase Up To $1,500 Nationally, And Up To $1,700 In Pennsylvania, Because Of Health Care Repeal In The Republican Tax Bill. “The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act as reported by the Senate Finance Committee on Nov. 16, 2017 includes a new provision that would both reduce health care coverage and increase costs for millions of Americans. Older adults ages 50–64 would be at particularly high risk under the proposal, facing average premium increases of up to $1,500 in 2019 as a result of the bill.” [AARP, 11/21/17]

CBO: Republican Tax Bill Would Trigger A $25 Billion Cut To Medicare.“Without enacting subsequent legislation to either offset that deficit increase, waive the recordation of the bill’s impact on the scorecard, or otherwise mitigate or eliminate the requirements of the PAYGO law, OMB would be required to issue a sequestration order within 15 days of the end of the session of Congress to reduce spending in fiscal year 2018 by the resultant total of $136 billion. However, the PAYGO law limits reductions to Medicare to four percentage points (or roughly $25 billion for that year), leaving about $111 billion to be sequestered from the remaining mandatory accounts.” [CBO, 11/14/17]

Center For American Progress: Pennsylvania Would See A $1.2 Billion Cut In Medicare Funds. [Center for American Progress, 11/16/17]

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL): Republicans Need To Cut Medicare Next To Pay For Tax Cuts. “‘I analyze this very differently than most,’ Rubio told the crowd. ‘Many argue that you can’t cut taxes because it will drive up the deficit. But we have to do two things. We have to generate economic growth which generates revenue, while reducing spending. That will mean instituting structural changes to Social Security and Medicare for the future,’ the senator said.” [Financial Advisor Magazine, 11/30/17]

Center On Budget And Policy Priorities: “Senate Tax Bill Would Add 13 Million To Uninsured To Pay For Tax Cuts Of Nearly $100,000 Per Year For The Top 0.1 Percent.” “The savings from eliminating the mandate would come entirely from reducing health coverage. For example, the federal government would spend less on premium tax credits because fewer people would sign up for marketplace coverage, less on Medicaid because fewer people would enroll, and less on the tax exclusion for employer-sponsored health insurance because fewer employees would enroll in job-based coverage. These savings are what let Senate leaders make their full corporate rate cut permanent…The benefits of corporate rate cuts go overwhelmingly to high-income households.” [CBPP, 11/15/17]

PASSING ALEXANDER-MURRAY AFTER VOTING FOR REPEAL IS LIKE INSTALLING GUARDRAILS ON THE HIGHWAY AFTER YOUR CAR HAS GONE OVER THE CLIFF

CBO: Passing Alexander-Murray After The Repeal Of The Individual Responsibility Provision Would Not Undo The Damage. “In your letter of November 21, 2017, you asked about the combined effects of simultaneously passing the BHCSA and legislation that would repeal the requirement that most U.S. citizens and noncitizens who lawfully reside in the country have health insurance meeting specified standards. Specifically, you asked if legislation that combined the provisions would change the agencies’ previous estimates of the number of people with insurance coverage or premiums in the nongroup insurance market. In the estimate for the BHCSA, the agencies wrote that, relative to the Summer 2017 baseline, the legislation would not substantially change the number of people with health insurance coverage, on net.” [CBO, 11/29/17]

There Is No Guarantee Alexander-Murray Would Pass The House, Let Alone Become Law. There is no guarantee Alexander-Murray would pass the House, let alone become law. Speaker Ryan dodged questions about its fate in the House. House conservatives called it a “nonstarter.” And President Trump has been all over the map on this issue his word cannot be trusted.

THE LEADING EXPERTS — PATIENT GROUPS, INSURERS, DOCTORS AND HOSPITALS — AND MORE THAN 2,400 FAITH LEADERS AND THE AMERICAN PEOPLE OPPOSE HEALTH REPEAL

American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Diabetes Association, American Heart Association, And 16 More Leading Patient Groups: People With “Serious Health Care Needs” And With Pre-Existing Conditions “May Not Be Able To Afford Coverage.” “Many individuals with serious health care needs, including patients with chronic or major health conditions, who by definition, have a pre-existing condition, may not be able to afford coverage.” [The Hill, 11/28/17]

America’s Health Insurance Plans, American Academy Of Family Physicians, American Hospital Association, American Medical Association, Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, Federation Of American Hospitals: Leading Industry Groups Warn Of “Serious Consequences” Should The Mandate Be Repealed. “As providers of healthcare and coverage to hundreds of millions of Americans, we are committed to assuring everyone has access to a range of high quality, affordable coverage options so they can access the care they need, regardless of pre-existing conditions. To achieve this critical goal, we are urging you to maintain the individual mandate unless and until Congress can enact a package of reforms to adequately assure a balanced risk pool and prevent extraordinary premium increases.” [Letter, 11/14/17]

More Than 2,400 Faith Leaders: “That The Number Of Uninsured Individuals Would Increase By 13 Million By 2025…Violates Our Faith Teaching.” “The individual mandate is critical to keeping individual market coverage affordable and keeping the individual market stable. By repealing the individual mandate, legislation will cause catastrophic losses in health coverage. The CBO estimates that the number of uninsured individuals would increase by 13 million by 2025, which violates our faith teaching.” [Letter, 11/29/17]

Sean England
In News

Protect Our Care Fact Sheet on Health Repeal in Senate Passed Tax Bill

Spotlight: Rep. Ryan Costello (R-PA)

Senate Republicans passed a tax bill on Friday night that repeals health care to pay for another massive tax break for the wealthiest and corporations. What the repeal of the individual mandate in the Senate bill means is simple: while the wealthy and corporations get a tax break, middle-class families will get double digit premium increases, 13 million people will lose their coverage, older Americans will get an age tax and $25 billion in Medicare funding will be cut.

The bill passed by the House did not include the repeal of the individual mandate. The House should insist that it stays out. Rep. Ryan Costello (R-PA) has one opportunity left to take a stand against any inclusion of the individual mandate in the final bill which, if passed with the repeal of the individual mandate, would cause 505,000 people to lose coverage in Pennsylvania including 28,000 in Rep. Costello’s district, raise premiums on middle-class families by $2,300 and impose an age tax of up to $1,700 on older Pennsylvanians, and cut $1.2 billion in Medicare funds to Pennsylvania all to pay for tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations.

SENATE REPUBLICANS JUST VOTED TO REPEAL HEALTH CARE — RAISING PREMIUMS BY DOUBLE DIGITS FOR MIDDLE CLASS FAMILIES, RIPPING AWAY COVERAGE FOR 13 MILLION AMERICANS, IMPOSING AN AGE TAX ON OLDER AMERICANS AND GUTTING MEDICARE BY $25 BILLION — ALL TO PAY FOR SPECIAL TAX BREAKS FOR MILLIONAIRES AND BIG CORPORATIONS

Congressional Budget Office: Republican Tax Bill Will Result In 13 Million More Uninsured People. “The number of people with health insurance would decrease by 4 million in 2019 and 13 million in 2027.” [CBO, 11/8/17]

Center For American Progress: Senate Tax Bill Will Result In 505,000 More Uninsured In Pennsylvania, 28,000 More In Rep. Costello’s District.[Center for American Progress, 11/16/17, 12/5/17]

CBO: Average Premiums Will Increase By 10 Percent In Most Years Of The Next Decade Due To The Republican Tax Bill. “Average premiums in the nongroup market would increase by about 10 percent in most years of the decade (with no changes in the ages of people purchasing insurance accounted for) relative to CBO’s baseline projections.” [CBO, 11/8/17]

Center For American Progress: Marketplace Premiums For A Typical Middle-Class Family In Pennsylvania Will Rise By $2,300 In 2019. [Center for American Progress, 11/16/17]

CBO: Healthier People Less Likely To Purchase Health Coverage, Raising Costs For Everyone Else. “Those effects would occur mainly because healthier people would be less likely to obtain insurance and because, especially in the nongroup market, the resulting increases in premiums would cause more people to not purchase insurance.” [CBO, 11/8/17]

AARP: Premiums For People Over 50 Would Increase Up To $1,500 Nationally, And Up To $1,700 In Pennsylvania, Because Of Health Care Repeal In The Republican Tax Bill. “The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act as reported by the Senate Finance Committee on Nov. 16, 2017 includes a new provision that would both reduce health care coverage and increase costs for millions of Americans. Older adults ages 50–64 would be at particularly high risk under the proposal, facing average premium increases of up to $1,500 in 2019 as a result of the bill.” [AARP, 11/21/17]

CBO: Republican Tax Bill Would Trigger A $25 Billion Cut To Medicare.“Without enacting subsequent legislation to either offset that deficit increase, waive the recordation of the bill’s impact on the scorecard, or otherwise mitigate or eliminate the requirements of the PAYGO law, OMB would be required to issue a sequestration order within 15 days of the end of the session of Congress to reduce spending in fiscal year 2018 by the resultant total of $136 billion. However, the PAYGO law limits reductions to Medicare to four percentage points (or roughly $25 billion for that year), leaving about $111 billion to be sequestered from the remaining mandatory accounts.” [CBO, 11/14/17]

Center For American Progress: Pennsylvania Would See A $1.2 Billion Cut In Medicare Funds. [Center for American Progress, 11/16/17]

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL): Republicans Need To Cut Medicare Next To Pay For Tax Cuts. “‘I analyze this very differently than most,’ Rubio told the crowd. ‘Many argue that you can’t cut taxes because it will drive up the deficit. But we have to do two things. We have to generate economic growth which generates revenue, while reducing spending. That will mean instituting structural changes to Social Security and Medicare for the future,’ the senator said.” [Financial Advisor Magazine, 11/30/17]

Center On Budget And Policy Priorities: “Senate Tax Bill Would Add 13 Million To Uninsured To Pay For Tax Cuts Of Nearly $100,000 Per Year For The Top 0.1 Percent.” “The savings from eliminating the mandate would come entirely from reducing health coverage. For example, the federal government would spend less on premium tax credits because fewer people would sign up for marketplace coverage, less on Medicaid because fewer people would enroll, and less on the tax exclusion for employer-sponsored health insurance because fewer employees would enroll in job-based coverage. These savings are what let Senate leaders make their full corporate rate cut permanent…The benefits of corporate rate cuts go overwhelmingly to high-income households.” [CBPP, 11/15/17]

PASSING ALEXANDER-MURRAY AFTER VOTING FOR REPEAL IS LIKE INSTALLING GUARDRAILS ON THE HIGHWAY AFTER YOUR CAR HAS GONE OVER THE CLIFF

CBO: Passing Alexander-Murray After The Repeal Of The Individual Responsibility Provision Would Not Undo The Damage. “In your letter of November 21, 2017, you asked about the combined effects of simultaneously passing the BHCSA and legislation that would repeal the requirement that most U.S. citizens and noncitizens who lawfully reside in the country have health insurance meeting specified standards. Specifically, you asked if legislation that combined the provisions would change the agencies’ previous estimates of the number of people with insurance coverage or premiums in the nongroup insurance market. In the estimate for the BHCSA, the agencies wrote that, relative to the Summer 2017 baseline, the legislation would not substantially change the number of people with health insurance coverage, on net.” [CBO, 11/29/17]

There Is No Guarantee Alexander-Murray Would Pass The House, Let Alone Become Law. There is no guarantee Alexander-Murray would pass the House, let alone become law. Speaker Ryan dodged questions about its fate in the House. House conservatives called it a “nonstarter.” And President Trump has been all over the map on this issue his word cannot be trusted.

THE LEADING EXPERTS — PATIENT GROUPS, INSURERS, DOCTORS AND HOSPITALS — AND MORE THAN 2,400 FAITH LEADERS AND THE AMERICAN PEOPLE OPPOSE HEALTH REPEAL

American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Diabetes Association, American Heart Association, And 16 More Leading Patient Groups: People With “Serious Health Care Needs” And With Pre-Existing Conditions “May Not Be Able To Afford Coverage.” “Many individuals with serious health care needs, including patients with chronic or major health conditions, who by definition, have a pre-existing condition, may not be able to afford coverage.” [The Hill, 11/28/17]

America’s Health Insurance Plans, American Academy Of Family Physicians, American Hospital Association, American Medical Association, Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, Federation Of American Hospitals: Leading Industry Groups Warn Of “Serious Consequences” Should The Mandate Be Repealed. “As providers of healthcare and coverage to hundreds of millions of Americans, we are committed to assuring everyone has access to a range of high quality, affordable coverage options so they can access the care they need, regardless of pre-existing conditions. To achieve this critical goal, we are urging you to maintain the individual mandate unless and until Congress can enact a package of reforms to adequately assure a balanced risk pool and prevent extraordinary premium increases.” [Letter, 11/14/17]

More Than 2,400 Faith Leaders: “That The Number Of Uninsured Individuals Would Increase By 13 Million By 2025…Violates Our Faith Teaching.” “The individual mandate is critical to keeping individual market coverage affordable and keeping the individual market stable. By repealing the individual mandate, legislation will cause catastrophic losses in health coverage. The CBO estimates that the number of uninsured individuals would increase by 13 million by 2025, which violates our faith teaching.” [Letter, 11/29/17]

Sean England
In News

Fact Sheet on Health Repeal in Senate Tax Bill — Rep. Will Hurd

Spotlight: Rep. Will Hurd (R-TX)

Senate Republicans passed a tax bill on Friday night that repeals health care to pay for another massive tax break for the wealthiest and corporations. What the repeal of the individual mandate in the Senate bill means is simple: while the wealthy and corporations get a tax break, middle-class families will get double digit premium increases, 13 million people will lose their coverage, older Americans will get an age tax and $25 billion in Medicare funding will be cut.

The bill passed by the House did not include the repeal of the individual mandate. The House should insist that it stays out. Rep. Will Hurd (R-TX) has one opportunity left to take a stand against any inclusion of the individual mandate in the final bill which, if passed with the repeal of the individual mandate, would cause more than 1 million people to lose coverage in Texas including 27,500 in Rep. Hurd’s district, raise premiums on middle-class families by $1,730 and impose an age tax of up to $1,300 on older Texans, and cut $1.8 billion in Medicare funds to Texas all to pay for tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations.

SENATE REPUBLICANS JUST VOTED TO REPEAL HEALTH CARE — RAISING PREMIUMS BY DOUBLE DIGITS FOR MIDDLE CLASS FAMILIES, RIPPING AWAY COVERAGE FOR 13 MILLION AMERICANS, IMPOSING AN AGE TAX ON OLDER AMERICANS AND GUTTING MEDICARE BY $25 BILLION — ALL TO PAY FOR SPECIAL TAX BREAKS FOR MILLIONAIRES AND BIG CORPORATIONS

Congressional Budget Office: Republican Tax Bill Will Result In 13 Million More Uninsured People. “The number of people with health insurance would decrease by 4 million in 2019 and 13 million in 2027.” [CBO, 11/8/17]

Center For American Progress: Senate Tax Bill Will Result In 1,036,000 More Uninsured In Texas, 27,500 More In Rep. Hurd’s District. [Center for American Progress, 11/16/17, 12/5/17]

CBO: Average Premiums Will Increase By 10 Percent In Most Years Of The Next Decade Due To The Republican Tax Bill. “Average premiums in the nongroup market would increase by about 10 percent in most years of the decade (with no changes in the ages of people purchasing insurance accounted for) relative to CBO’s baseline projections.” [CBO, 11/8/17]

Center For American Progress: Marketplace Premiums For A Typical Middle-Class Family In Texas Will Rise By $1,730 In 2019. [Center for American Progress, 11/16/17]

CBO: Healthier People Less Likely To Purchase Health Coverage, Raising Costs For Everyone Else. “Those effects would occur mainly because healthier people would be less likely to obtain insurance and because, especially in the nongroup market, the resulting increases in premiums would cause more people to not purchase insurance.” [CBO, 11/8/17]

AARP: Premiums For People Over 50 Would Increase Up To $1,500 Nationally, And Up To $1,300 In Texas, Because Of Health Care Repeal In The Republican Tax Bill. “The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act as reported by the Senate Finance Committee on Nov. 16, 2017 includes a new provision that would both reduce health care coverage and increase costs for millions of Americans. Older adults ages 50–64 would be at particularly high risk under the proposal, facing average premium increases of up to $1,500 in 2019 as a result of the bill.” [AARP, 11/21/17]

CBO: Republican Tax Bill Would Trigger A $25 Billion Cut To Medicare.“Without enacting subsequent legislation to either offset that deficit increase, waive the recordation of the bill’s impact on the scorecard, or otherwise mitigate or eliminate the requirements of the PAYGO law, OMB would be required to issue a sequestration order within 15 days of the end of the session of Congress to reduce spending in fiscal year 2018 by the resultant total of $136 billion. However, the PAYGO law limits reductions to Medicare to four percentage points (or roughly $25 billion for that year), leaving about $111 billion to be sequestered from the remaining mandatory accounts.” [CBO, 11/14/17]

Center For American Progress: Texas Would See A $1.8 Billion Cut In Medicare Funds. [Center for American Progress, 11/16/17]

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL): Republicans Need To Cut Medicare Next To Pay For Tax Cuts. “‘I analyze this very differently than most,’ Rubio told the crowd. ‘Many argue that you can’t cut taxes because it will drive up the deficit. But we have to do two things. We have to generate economic growth which generates revenue, while reducing spending. That will mean instituting structural changes to Social Security and Medicare for the future,’ the senator said.” [Financial Advisor Magazine, 11/30/17]

Center On Budget And Policy Priorities: “Senate Tax Bill Would Add 13 Million To Uninsured To Pay For Tax Cuts Of Nearly $100,000 Per Year For The Top 0.1 Percent.” “The savings from eliminating the mandate would come entirely from reducing health coverage. For example, the federal government would spend less on premium tax credits because fewer people would sign up for marketplace coverage, less on Medicaid because fewer people would enroll, and less on the tax exclusion for employer-sponsored health insurance because fewer employees would enroll in job-based coverage. These savings are what let Senate leaders make their full corporate rate cut permanent…The benefits of corporate rate cuts go overwhelmingly to high-income households.” [CBPP, 11/15/17]

PASSING ALEXANDER-MURRAY AFTER VOTING FOR REPEAL IS LIKE INSTALLING GUARDRAILS ON THE HIGHWAY AFTER YOUR CAR HAS GONE OVER THE CLIFF

CBO: Passing Alexander-Murray After The Repeal Of The Individual Responsibility Provision Would Not Undo The Damage. “In your letter of November 21, 2017, you asked about the combined effects of simultaneously passing the BHCSA and legislation that would repeal the requirement that most U.S. citizens and noncitizens who lawfully reside in the country have health insurance meeting specified standards. Specifically, you asked if legislation that combined the provisions would change the agencies’ previous estimates of the number of people with insurance coverage or premiums in the nongroup insurance market. In the estimate for the BHCSA, the agencies wrote that, relative to the Summer 2017 baseline, the legislation would not substantially change the number of people with health insurance coverage, on net.” [CBO, 11/29/17]

There Is No Guarantee Alexander-Murray Would Pass The House, Let Alone Become Law. There is no guarantee Alexander-Murray would pass the House, let alone become law. Speaker Ryan dodged questions about its fate in the House. House conservatives called it a “nonstarter.” And President Trump has been all over the map on this issue his word cannot be trusted.

THE LEADING EXPERTS — PATIENT GROUPS, INSURERS, DOCTORS AND HOSPITALS — AND MORE THAN 2,400 FAITH LEADERS AND THE AMERICAN PEOPLE OPPOSE HEALTH REPEAL

American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Diabetes Association, American Heart Association, And 16 More Leading Patient Groups: People With “Serious Health Care Needs” And With Pre-Existing Conditions “May Not Be Able To Afford Coverage.” “Many individuals with serious health care needs, including patients with chronic or major health conditions, who by definition, have a pre-existing condition, may not be able to afford coverage.” [The Hill, 11/28/17]

America’s Health Insurance Plans, American Academy Of Family Physicians, American Hospital Association, American Medical Association, Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, Federation Of American Hospitals: Leading Industry Groups Warn Of “Serious Consequences” Should The Mandate Be Repealed. “As providers of healthcare and coverage to hundreds of millions of Americans, we are committed to assuring everyone has access to a range of high quality, affordable coverage options so they can access the care they need, regardless of pre-existing conditions. To achieve this critical goal, we are urging you to maintain the individual mandate unless and until Congress can enact a package of reforms to adequately assure a balanced risk pool and prevent extraordinary premium increases.” [Letter, 11/14/17]

More Than 2,400 Faith Leaders: “That The Number Of Uninsured Individuals Would Increase By 13 Million By 2025…Violates Our Faith Teaching.” “The individual mandate is critical to keeping individual market coverage affordable and keeping the individual market stable. By repealing the individual mandate, legislation will cause catastrophic losses in health coverage. The CBO estimates that the number of uninsured individuals would increase by 13 million by 2025, which violates our faith teaching.” [Letter, 11/29/17]

Sean England
In News

EXPOSED: Three GOPers Admit Real Anti-Health Care Agenda in Tax Plan

No matter how hard Republicans try to pretend like this tax bill isn’t an assault on health care for middle class families, the truth is becoming clearer by the day.

While a top plan author confirmed his plan to include a sneaky health care repeal in the tax plan, a top Trump adviser confirmed that the intention of this sneaky health care repeal is to dismantle the Affordable Care Act altogether. And report after report has shown Republicans intend to use the ballooning deficit this tax bill creates to go after Medicare.

Trump Advisor Stephen Moore: “And getting rid of the mandate is to eventually dismantle Obamacare”

CNBC: “Top House tax writer Brady expects final tax bill to repeal Obamacare individual mandate”

House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy: “Then, you’ve got to look at the entitlements.”

“Any Republican who backs this tax plan is backing a health care repeal that rips apart health care for 13 million Americans, forces premiums to go up 10% and lays the foundation for Medicare cuts,” said Protect Our Care Campaign Director Brad Woodhouse “What is it with Republicans and this political suicide they insist on committing on health care? Their repeal bills are among the most unpopular legalization ever, they lost across the country on the issue of health care in November and all signs point to more political pain for them down the road. If they insist on repealing health care to pay for tax breaks for the well-to-do and then using it as a precursor to ravage American health care even further, they can expect to be held accountable.”

Sean England
In Capitol Hill, Administration, News

Fact Sheet on Health Repeal in Senate Tax Bill — Rep. Peter Roskam

Spotlight: Rep. Peter Roskam (R-IL)

Senate Republicans passed a tax bill on Friday night that repeals health care to pay for another massive tax break for the wealthiest and corporations. What the repeal of the individual mandate in the Senate bill means is simple: while the wealthy and corporations get a tax break, middle-class families will get double digit premium increases, 13 million people will lose their coverage, older Americans will get an age tax and $25 billion in Medicare funding will be cut.

The bill passed by the House did not include the repeal of the individual mandate. The House should insist that it stays out. Rep. Peter Roskam (R-IL) has one opportunity left to take a stand against any inclusion of the individual mandate in the final bill which, if passed with the repeal of the individual mandate, would cause 525,000 people to lose coverage in Illinois including 27,600 in Rep. Roskam’s district, raise premiums on middle-class families by $1,940 and impose an age tax of up to $1,400 on older Illinoisans, and cut $970 million in Medicare funds to Illinois all to pay for tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations.

SENATE REPUBLICANS JUST VOTED TO REPEAL HEALTH CARE — RAISING PREMIUMS BY DOUBLE DIGITS FOR MIDDLE CLASS FAMILIES, RIPPING AWAY COVERAGE FOR 13 MILLION AMERICANS, IMPOSING AN AGE TAX ON OLDER AMERICANS AND GUTTING MEDICARE BY $25 BILLION — ALL TO PAY FOR SPECIAL TAX BREAKS FOR MILLIONAIRES AND BIG CORPORATIONS

Congressional Budget Office: Republican Tax Bill Will Result In 13 Million More Uninsured People. “The number of people with health insurance would decrease by 4 million in 2019 and 13 million in 2027.” [CBO, 11/8/17]

Center For American Progress: Senate Tax Bill Will Result In 525,000 More Uninsured In Illinois, 27,600 More In Rep. Roskam’s District.[Center for American Progress, 11/16/17, 12/5/17]

CBO: Average Premiums Will Increase By 10 Percent In Most Years Of The Next Decade Due To The Republican Tax Bill. “Average premiums in the nongroup market would increase by about 10 percent in most years of the decade (with no changes in the ages of people purchasing insurance accounted for) relative to CBO’s baseline projections.” [CBO, 11/8/17]

Center For American Progress: Marketplace Premiums For A Typical Middle-Class Family In Illinois Will Rise By $1,940 In 2019. [Center for American Progress, 11/16/17]

CBO: Healthier People Less Likely To Purchase Health Coverage, Raising Costs For Everyone Else. “Those effects would occur mainly because healthier people would be less likely to obtain insurance and because, especially in the nongroup market, the resulting increases in premiums would cause more people to not purchase insurance.” [CBO, 11/8/17]

AARP: Premiums For People Over 50 Would Increase Up To $1,500 Nationally, And Up To $1,400 In Illinois, Because Of Health Care Repeal In The Republican Tax Bill. “The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act as reported by the Senate Finance Committee on Nov. 16, 2017 includes a new provision that would both reduce health care coverage and increase costs for millions of Americans. Older adults ages 50–64 would be at particularly high risk under the proposal, facing average premium increases of up to $1,500 in 2019 as a result of the bill.” [AARP, 11/21/17]

CBO: Republican Tax Bill Would Trigger A $25 Billion Cut To Medicare.“Without enacting subsequent legislation to either offset that deficit increase, waive the recordation of the bill’s impact on the scorecard, or otherwise mitigate or eliminate the requirements of the PAYGO law, OMB would be required to issue a sequestration order within 15 days of the end of the session of Congress to reduce spending in fiscal year 2018 by the resultant total of $136 billion. However, the PAYGO law limits reductions to Medicare to four percentage points (or roughly $25 billion for that year), leaving about $111 billion to be sequestered from the remaining mandatory accounts.” [CBO, 11/14/17]

Center For American Progress: Illinois Would See A $970 Million Cut In Medicare Funds. [Center for American Progress, 11/16/17]

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL): Republicans Need To Cut Medicare Next To Pay For Tax Cuts. “‘I analyze this very differently than most,’ Rubio told the crowd. ‘Many argue that you can’t cut taxes because it will drive up the deficit. But we have to do two things. We have to generate economic growth which generates revenue, while reducing spending. That will mean instituting structural changes to Social Security and Medicare for the future,’ the senator said.” [Financial Advisor Magazine, 11/30/17]

Center On Budget And Policy Priorities: “Senate Tax Bill Would Add 13 Million To Uninsured To Pay For Tax Cuts Of Nearly $100,000 Per Year For The Top 0.1 Percent.” “The savings from eliminating the mandate would come entirely from reducing health coverage. For example, the federal government would spend less on premium tax credits because fewer people would sign up for marketplace coverage, less on Medicaid because fewer people would enroll, and less on the tax exclusion for employer-sponsored health insurance because fewer employees would enroll in job-based coverage. These savings are what let Senate leaders make their full corporate rate cut permanent…The benefits of corporate rate cuts go overwhelmingly to high-income households.” [CBPP, 11/15/17]

PASSING ALEXANDER-MURRAY AFTER VOTING FOR REPEAL IS LIKE INSTALLING GUARDRAILS ON THE HIGHWAY AFTER YOUR CAR HAS GONE OVER THE CLIFF

CBO: Passing Alexander-Murray After The Repeal Of The Individual Responsibility Provision Would Not Undo The Damage. “In your letter of November 21, 2017, you asked about the combined effects of simultaneously passing the BHCSA and legislation that would repeal the requirement that most U.S. citizens and noncitizens who lawfully reside in the country have health insurance meeting specified standards. Specifically, you asked if legislation that combined the provisions would change the agencies’ previous estimates of the number of people with insurance coverage or premiums in the nongroup insurance market. In the estimate for the BHCSA, the agencies wrote that, relative to the Summer 2017 baseline, the legislation would not substantially change the number of people with health insurance coverage, on net.” [CBO, 11/29/17]

There Is No Guarantee Alexander-Murray Would Pass The House, Let Alone Become Law. There is no guarantee Alexander-Murray would pass the House, let alone become law. Speaker Ryan dodged questions about its fate in the House. House conservatives called it a “nonstarter.” And President Trump has been all over the map on this issue his word cannot be trusted.

THE LEADING EXPERTS — PATIENT GROUPS, INSURERS, DOCTORS AND HOSPITALS — AND MORE THAN 2,400 FAITH LEADERS AND THE AMERICAN PEOPLE OPPOSE HEALTH REPEAL

American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Diabetes Association, American Heart Association, And 16 More Leading Patient Groups: People With “Serious Health Care Needs” And With Pre-Existing Conditions “May Not Be Able To Afford Coverage.” “Many individuals with serious health care needs, including patients with chronic or major health conditions, who by definition, have a pre-existing condition, may not be able to afford coverage.” [The Hill, 11/28/17]

America’s Health Insurance Plans, American Academy Of Family Physicians, American Hospital Association, American Medical Association, Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, Federation Of American Hospitals: Leading Industry Groups Warn Of “Serious Consequences” Should The Mandate Be Repealed. “As providers of healthcare and coverage to hundreds of millions of Americans, we are committed to assuring everyone has access to a range of high quality, affordable coverage options so they can access the care they need, regardless of pre-existing conditions. To achieve this critical goal, we are urging you to maintain the individual mandate unless and until Congress can enact a package of reforms to adequately assure a balanced risk pool and prevent extraordinary premium increases.” [Letter, 11/14/17]

More Than 2,400 Faith Leaders: “That The Number Of Uninsured Individuals Would Increase By 13 Million By 2025…Violates Our Faith Teaching.” “The individual mandate is critical to keeping individual market coverage affordable and keeping the individual market stable. By repealing the individual mandate, legislation will cause catastrophic losses in health coverage. The CBO estimates that the number of uninsured individuals would increase by 13 million by 2025, which violates our faith teaching.” [Letter, 11/29/17]

Sean England
In News

Memo From Andy Slavitt: 3 Reasons Sen. Susan Collins Should Demand Health Repeal be Removed from the GOP Tax Bill

To: Interested Parties

From: Andy Slavitt, Former Acting Administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services

Date: December 5, 2017

Subject: 3 Reasons Sen. Susan Collins Should Demand Health Repeal be Removed from the GOP Tax Bill

Last week, Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) joined 50 of her Republican colleagues to pass a sneaky health care repeal bill under the guise of tax cuts to the wealthy and corporations. This legislation, if enacted into law, will result in13 million people losing their health coverage, raising premiums by ten percent, forcing higher costs on older Americans to pay more for their care, and jeopardizing Medicare. Here are three reasons why Sen. Collins should reconsider her vote as Congress considers a final bill.

First, This Tax Bill Hurts Mainers’ Health Care, Especially Older Mainers.The Senate tax bill repeals the provision in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that requires most individuals to have health coverage, the consequences of which would increase the number of uninsured, raise costs and devastate insurance markets. This is why 19 leading patient groups — including the American Heart Association, the American Diabetes Association, and the American Cancer Society; six leading industry groups — including the America’s Health Insurance Plans, the American Academy of Family Physicians, the American Hospital Association, the American Medical Association, the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association and the Federation of American Hospitals; and more than 2,400 faith leaders opposed repealing this provision arguing it would have serious consequences for care, particularly for people with chronic or major health conditions.

One estimate shows in Maine alone, family premiums in the marketplace will increase on average by $2,350 in 2019, and 50,000 Mainers will lose coverage by 2025.

Older Mainers would not be spared. The AARP estimates a 64-year-old will have to pay $1,748 more in premiums because of health repeal, essentially an age tax for people over 50.

In her own words, Sen. Collins expressed concern about including health repeal in the tax bill, calling it the bill’s “biggest mistake.” Last month she said, “The fact is that, if you do pull this piece of the Affordable Care Act out, for some middle-income families, the increased premium is going to cancel out the tax cut that they would get.”

Second, This Bill Jeopardizes Medicare. This tax bill jeopardizes Medicare funding and therefore the guarantee for senior health care. The Congressional Budget Office said budgetary rules would trigger $25 billion in Medicare cutsas a result of the tax bill the Senate passed, which would result in a $120 million cut for Maine next year alone. Sen. Collins said she received a “personal commitment” from Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) that these Medicare cuts would not happen. McConnell and House Speaker Ryan said Congress previously waived these rules in the past, so there is no reason why they would not in the future.

But here is a reason: Republicans are already talking about the need to cut Medicare and Social Security to deal with the $1.5 trillion this tax bill adds to the national debt. On the chopping block: Medicare and Social Security. Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) recently said, “we’ve got a lot of work to do in cutting spending.” Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) was more explicit, saying, “We have to generate economic growth which generates revenue, while reducing spending. That will mean instituting structural changes to Social Security and Medicare for the future.”

Third, Sen. Collins’ Proposed Fixes To Health Repeal Won’t Undo The Harm Of Health Repeal, Even If They Do Pass. Sen. Susan Collins agreed to vote for the tax bill after getting assurances from Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to consider two pieces of legislation she believes would mitigate some of the damage caused by repealing the ACA’s requirement most people have health insurance: the so-called Alexander-Murray and Collins-Nelson bills. However, they won’t work to undo the damage of increasing the number of uninsured, raising costs and destabilizing the markets. Here is why.

The Alexander-Murray bill temporarily funds cost-sharing reduction (CSR) payments that help lower people’s deductibles and other out-of-pocket costs. But that assumed that the marketplaces would not be upended by repealing the individual mandate. Passing Alexander-Murray after repealing health care is akin to installing guardrails on the highway after your car has gone over the cliff. The Congressional Budget Office concluded Alexander-Murray in light of health repeal would essentially be a fig leaf, writing, “the effects on premiums and the number of people with health insurance coverage would be similar.” Plus, the funding for Alexander-Murray would only help lower premiums for silver plan holders in 2019, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. What about people who chose other types of plans? Their premiums still go up 10 percent. What about after 2019? Premiums go up.

Next, the Collins-Nelson bill would temporarily fund a reinsurance program to mitigate the devastating impacts of health repeal. As the Center on Budgetfound, “Pairing mandate repeal with the Collins-Nelson bill, or a similar approach, thus would not change the fact that repealing the mandate would drive up uninsured rates. That would weaken access to care, health, and financial security for millions of people. It would also substantially raiseuncompensated care costs, which would ultimately be borne by providers, other health care consumers, and taxpayers.”

There Is No Guarantee These Bills Sen. Collins Is Proposing Will Become Law. A close reading of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s assurances to Sen. Collins, coupled with past statements from Republican Leaders, raises serious doubts about whether the proposed legislation she wants would become law.

House Republicans have been very reluctant to consider the Alexander-Murray bill. Speaker Paul Ryan has not committed to passing it as part of the tax bill, and he previously opposed it. House conservatives called it a “nonstarter.” President Trump has been all over the map on this issue, from supporting to opposing to again supporting — so who knows what he would do.

Rep. Mark Meadows (R-NC), the chair of the influential House Freedom Caucus objected to passing the Collins-Nelson bill as part of the tax deal.

On ABC’s This Week, Sen. McConnell explained the assurances he gave Sen. Collins:

I’ve committed to Senator Collins to offer Alexander Murray and another bill that she and Senator Nelson from Florida are offering to one of these year-end bills that we’ll be doing in the next couple of weeks. The president is committed to signing it. And we intend to keep our commitment.

So, McConnell is only committing to offering the bills, not guaranteeing they will be included in must-pass legislation. He only mentions President Trump is committed to signing it, but fails to mention anything about the House.

The negative consequences this tax bill has to people’s health care is just one of long list of reasons why Sen. Collins should reconsider her vote as Congress considers a final proposal. There is still time for her to change her mind. We hope she does.

Sean England
In Administration, Capitol Hill, News

Support for ACA Continues to Rise – Over 2/3 of Voters Want ACA Kept and Fixed, Not Repealed; Voters Oppose Tax Bill Killing ACA Mandate

From: Jim Williams, Public Policy Polling

To: Interested Parties

Subject: Support for ACA Continues to Rise – Over 2/3 of Voters Want ACA Kept and Fixed, Not Repealed; Voters Oppose Tax Bill Killing ACA Mandate    

Date: December 14, 2017

A new Public Policy Polling survey finds that approval of the Affordable Care Act continues to rise among voters, and nearly 7 in 10 want Congress to keep what works about the ACA and fix what doesn’t rather than repeal it and start over with a new healthcare law. Further, only 29% of voters say they support the Republican tax bill currently being debated in Congress after learning it includes a health care repeal that removes the individual mandate in the Affordable Care Act.

Key findings from the survey include:

  • Voter approval of the Affordable Care Act continues to rise. 57% say they approval of the law compared 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.
  • Voters continue to strongly think that Congress should keep what works about the ACA and fix what doesn’t rather than repeal it and start over with a new healthcare law – voters say so by a 68/30 margin in this poll expanding to 71/26 among independents. That 38 point advantage is up from a 27 point advantage of 60/33 from an October poll done for Save My Care.
  • Just 29% of voters say they support the Republican tax bill currently being debated in Congress after learning it removes the individual mandate in the Affordable Care Act.

PPP surveyed 585 registered voters nationally from December 12-13, 2017.  The margin of error is +/- 4.1%. This poll was conducted using automated telephone interviews for Protect Our Care.

Sean England
In Uncategorized, Administration

TRUTH CHECK: 5 Lies from Trump’s New Health Care Campaign Ad

The Trump re-election campaign just launched a national cable advertising campaign meant to distract from his troubles, distort the truth on health care and potentially damage the open enrollment period that starts tomorrow. The Trump administration’s health care repeal agenda has been rejected by voters and by Congress because it would rip coverage away from tens of millions Americans, increase premiums 20% and gut protections like those for people with pre-existing conditions.

Sadly, that doesn’t stop them from using lies and distortions to push it once again.

“The Trump campaign is using the worst of distortion and lies about health care to distract from the president’s problems,” said Protect Our Care Campaign Director Brad Woodhouse. “Sadly, it has led him back to his favorite target — hurting health care for middle class families.”

Learn the truth…

LIE #1: “OBAMACARE IS FAILING”

FACT: The Affordable Care Act Is Not Failing

  • CBO: ACA Market Is Stable. The non-partisan CBO found that under current law, the ACA’s mix of carrots and sticks “are anticipated to cause sufficient demand for insurance by people with low health care expenditures for the market to be stable.”
  • ACA Market Will Remain Stable So Long As The Trump Administration Is Not “Disruptive.” S&P Global repeatedly reports that “2016 results and the market enrollment so far in 2017 show that the ACA individual market is not in a ‘death spiral.’” And, S&P expects the individual health insurance market is set for stability and profitability as long as the Administration is not “disruptive.”
  • The Affordable Care Act Has Brought Financial Security To Millions Of People. The National Bureau of Economic Research looked at the impacts of expanding Medicaid and found that the number of unpaid bills and debt has been reduced for those who gained coverage from the expanded Medicaid program.
  • No Bare Counties. Again, as in years past, residents in each county will have plans to choose from on the individual market.

FACT: Despite The Law’s Success, The Trump Administration Is Attempting to Sabotage The ACA

While President Trump and Republicans in Congress have been unable to repeal the health care law, they have been doing everything they can to sabotage the marketplace, including:

  • President Trump defunding the law’s mandatory cost-sharing-reduction payments, which the nonpartisan Congressional Budget office said would increase rates by 20% in 2018 and 25% in 2020.
  • Cutting 90% of the funding for advertising to support open enrollment.
  • President Trump signing an Executive Order on his first day in office demanding that agencies dismantle as much of the law as they can.
  • Signing an Executive Order to create garbage insurance plans which will raise premiums, slash coverage and end protections for those with pre-existing conditions.
  • Pursuing partisan repeal of the Affordable Care Act, which has created uncertainty in the market and led to higher premiums.

And these actions have had a significant impact on premiums across the country:

  • Alaska — Alaska Public Media: Premera to bump up premium to cover Trump cut
  • Arizona — Cronkite News: Cancer survivor says Trump plan sabotages health insurance coverage
  • Colorado — The Denver Channel: Colorado premiums will rise by 6% on top of existing hikes after Trump ends CSR subsidy payments
  • North Carolina — WRAL: Trump’s move prompts 14 percent rate increase on Blue Cross ACA plans
  • Pennsylvania — Philly Voice: Trump cuts to drive up Obamacare premiums in Pennsylvania by 30 percent

LIE #2: “INSURANCE PREMIUMS SKYROCKETING”

FACT: Tax Credits Help People Get Affordable Coverage

HHS: 80 Percent Of Marketplace Enrollees Can Obtain 2018 Coverage For $75 Or Less Per Month After Tax Credits. [HHS Marketplace Landscape Report, 10/30/17]

FACT: With Stable Policy By The Trump Administration, Premium Increases Would Have Been Lower

Kaiser Family Foundation: Lack Of CSR Payments Resulted In Surcharge In Premiums Of 7.1 To 38 Percent. “As shown in Table 1, among those insurers that specify the surcharge on silver plans for the discontinuation of CSR payments, the amount of the surcharge ranges from 7.1% to 38%.” [KFF, 10/27/17]

LIE #3: WORKING FAMILIES SUFFER WHILE DEMOCRATS…BLOCK A BETTER PLAN TO REPEAL AND REPLACE OBAMACARE ONCE AND FOR ALL

FACT: Every Iteration Of A GOP Health Care Repeal Bill Results In Less Coverage, Higher Costs, And Fewer Protections All To Give Tax Breaks For The Wealthy And Big Corporations

LIE #4: “HE WANTS WHAT’S BEST FOR THE AMERICAN PEOPLE: TOP QUALITY HEALTH CARE YOU CAN AFFORD”

FACT: President Trump’s favored Health Care Repeal Bill, The Graham-Cassidy Bill, Goes Even Further Than Previous Efforts To Gut Protections For People With Pre-Existing Conditions

  • “The New Version Appears To Go Further In Weakening Protections For Sick People, Apparently To Win Over Conservatives Who Continue To Express Reservations.” [Washington Post Plum Line, 9/25/17]
  • “The Bill Continues, However, To Give States Broad New Authority To Allow Insurance Companies To Provide Skimpier Plans With Far Fewer Benefits While Charging Higher Premiums To The Sick And The Old.” [Bloomberg, 9/25/17]
  • “The New Draft Attempts To Win Over Skeptical Conservatives By Further Weakening Consumer Protections For Americans In Bad Health.” [Slate, 9/25/17]
  • “States Would Have Even More Flexibility To Roll Back Some Of The Affordable Care Act’s Insurance Regulations — Including The Guarantees It Provides For People With Pre-Existing Conditions.” [Axios, 9/25/17]
  • Independent Analyses “Have Concluded That Major Funding Cuts And Loosened Insurance Regulations In The Bill Will Likely Erode Coverage For Many Vulnerable Americans.” [LA Times, 9/25/17]
  • “States Could Loosen Coverage Requirements Under The Law’s Mandates, Including Prohibiting Insurers From Charging Seriously Ill People Higher Premiums And Letting Them Sell Policies Covering Fewer Services.” [Associated Press, 9/25/17]

LIE #5: DEMOCRATS “[OBSTRUCT] OUR PRESIDENT JUST TO SCORE POLITICAL POINTS”

FACT: President Trump’s White House Pulled The Plug On Good Faith Bipartisan Negotiations

“House Speaker Paul Ryan And The White House Have Informed Senate Republican Leaders That They Oppose A Bipartisan Plan To Stabilize Obamacare Being Written In The Senate.” “House Speaker Paul Ryan and the White House have informed Senate Republican leaders that they oppose a bipartisan plan to stabilize Obamacare being written in the Senate, according to Trump administration and congressional sources, in a clear bid to boost the Senate’s prospects of repealing the health law.” [Politico, 9/19/17] “President Donald Trump Will Oppose Any Congressional Attempts To Reinstate Funding For Obamacare Subsidies.” [Politico, 10/13/17]

FACT: Time And Time Again, The American People Have Rejected Health Care Repeal

Poll: GOP Effort To Repeal Health Care Is The Most Unpopular Piece Of Legislation In Three Decades. [Axios, 7/7/17]

Kaiser Health Tracking Poll: Majority Want President Trump And Congress To Work On Legislation To Stabilize The Marketplaces Over Repeal Efforts. “The majority of the public think it is more important for President Trump and Congress to work on legislation to stabilize the marketplaces in order to minimize premiums increases and encourage more insurers to participate in the marketplaces than continue efforts to repeal and replace the 2010 health care law (66 percent vs. 29 percent).” [KFF, 10/13/17]

Kaiser Health Tracking Poll: 7 In 10 Say It Is ‘Extremely’ Or ‘Very’ Important For Congress To Pass Legislation To Stabilize ACA Marketplaces. “This is followed by seven in ten (69 percent) who say [it is ‘extremely’ or ‘very’ important for Congress to pass] legislation to stabilize the ACA marketplaces in order to minimize premium increases and encourage more insurers to offer health plans.” [KFF, 9/22/17]

Kaiser Health Tracking Poll: Most Americans, Including The Majority Of Trump Supporters, Think Trump Should Do What He Can To Make The ACA Work. “A large share of Americans (78 percent) think President Trump and his administration should do what they can to make the current health care law work while few (17 percent) say they should do what they can to make the law fail so they can replace it later. About half of Republicans and supporters of President Trump say the Trump administration should do what they can to make the law work (52 percent and 51 percent, respectively) while about four in ten say they should do what they can to make the law fail (40 percent and 39 percent, respectively).” [KFF, 8/11/17]

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