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ashoup
In Capitol Hill, News

She Did What?! Susan Collins’ Position on the Tax Bill Hurts the Middle Class, the Environment and Health Care, Undermining Her Claims to Leadership on All of These Issues

For years, Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine) has claimed to support the middle-class, favored the expansion of health care coverage and pledged to protect the environment. The GOP tax scam hammers the middle class, guts health care coverage and will irreparably hurt the environment. Who is harmed under this bill, and why does Sen. Collins continue to support it?

Mainers’ Health Because Premiums Will Rise and Medicare Cuts Are on the Horizon. Analysis from the Center for American Progress found that Mainers will see their premiums increase $2,350 under this tax bill. 50,000 Mainers will lose their insurance, and Medicare funding will see a $120 million cut in 2018. The immediate cuts are not the only cuts facing health care, either. In a letter to Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR), CBO Director Keith Hall made clear what Republicans have long said won’t be the case: Medicaid cuts are coming, to the tune of $18 billion. And Republicans, from Paul Ryan to Marco Rubio, are now admitting these cuts will be the next step. Sen. Collins previously highlighted Medicaid cuts as one of her primary concerns with GOP health care legislation and told CBS, “I don’t want seniors to have the anxiety of wondering whether the tax bill somehow is going to trigger a cut in Medicare.”

Middle Class Mainers’ Pocketbooks. The tax scam benefits the wealthiest earners at the expense of the middle class Per JCT analysis, “high-income households would get the largest tax cuts as a share of after-tax income, on average, while households with incomes below $30,000 would on average face a tax increase.” Sen. Collins previously criticized tax cuts for the highest earners.

Saddling Future Generations with More Debt. The tax bill would raise the budget deficit by nearly $1.5 trillion according to every independent analysis which has been conducted. The Joint Committee on Taxation found that the bill would cost $1.63 trillion, the Penn Wharton Budget Model found that it would cost $1.64 trillion and the Tax Foundation found that it would cost $1.78 trillion. Sen. Collins previously said she didn’t want the tax bill to “blow a hole in the deficit.”

Allowing More Drilling in Alaska. Buried in the bill is a provision allowing drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR). ANWR drilling is a clear giveaway to the country’s largest oil companies at the expense of the planet, and is unpopular on both sides of the aisle. Twelve GOP Members of Congress recently urged its removal from the bill, and poll found wide opposition across eight key GOP Congressional districts. Sen. Collins previously was the only Republican to vote against ANWR drilling in a budget proposal.

Sen. Collins, it’s clear that the vast majority of this country will be harmed under this bill. It’s massively unpopular, with the opposition nearly doubling those who favor it. And Mainers are already furious about it. It’s not too late to change your vote – come out against this appalling piece of legislation, and instead return to the principles you’ve claimed to want to advance.

ashoup
In Capitol Hill, News

Protect Our Care Statement In Response to GOP Finally Releasing Tax Scam Text

In response to the text of the GOP tax scam – which kicks 13 million people off of their insurance, raises premiums double digits for millions more and cuts Medicare by $25 billion – finally being released, Protect Our Care Campaign Director Brad Woodhouse released the following statement:

“This GOP tax plan was negotiated behind closed doors, and now they’re releasing it as a Friday night news dump on the weekend before the vote because they want this hidden from the American people and only shared with their donors,” said Woodhouse. “They know the American people reject giving tax breaks to billionaires and big corporations at the expense of health care for middle class families. The more people learn about this plan, the worse things will get for its supporters. Thirteen million Americans will lose their insurance, tens of millions more will see their premiums increase by double digits and Medicare will be slashed by $25 billion, all to give a tax break to the wealthiest and corporations..

“After being written in a back room, without hearings, expert input or a bipartisan debate, and passing the Senate in the middle of the night, this bill went through conference in complete secrecy, with Democratic amendments refused and Democratic Members being given just two hours to examine it. And of course, this comes just days after a special election in Alabama where the Trump/GOP agenda was soundly rejected and just a month after GOP electoral losses across the country where healthcare played the dominant role.

“This bill is a mockery of the democratic process  This bill gives the top 0.1% a $200,000 tax break while raising health care premiums for people by 10%. That is indefensible. Any GOP Member of Congress who cares about their constituents’ health care should vote against it.”

ashoup
In News, Administration, Capitol Hill

The Facts Are In: Despite ACA Popularity, The Trump Administration’s Sabotage Will Deny Affordable Health Coverage to Large Numbers of Americans

This is what health care sabotage looks like.

As open enrollment ends tomorrow, people are starting to notice that the Trump Administration’s extensive sabotage – shortening the enrollment period, eliminating outreach and TV  advertising, cutting funding for navigators – means less people will get health care coverage than would have otherwise.

See for yourself …

Washington Post: ACA Enrollment “Almost Sure To Fall Short In The End Because Of A Compressed Enrollment Season.”  

Kaiser Family Foundation: ‘If not for the pronouncements of its death, and steps taken to hobble it, the ACA marketplace would actually seem, well, alive,’ Larry Levitt, senior vice president of the Kaiser Family Foundation said.

NBC News: “The Total Number Is Likely To Fall Short Of Last Year, Which Featured Both A Longer Enrollment Period And A Far More Robust Outreach Campaign.”

Huffington Post: “Another Reason Experts Expect An Enrollment Decline Is The Trump Administration’s Management Of The Program, Which Has Included Neglect And Outright Sabotage.”

Reuters: “The Trump Administration Has Worked Hard To Undercut” Enrollment.

The Hill: “The Trump administration’s abbreviated enrollment period has left advocates acknowledging the numbers are almost surely going to be lower than the 9.2 million who signed up on HealthCare.gov at the end of the last open enrollment season.”

Bloomberg BNA: “Major Changes Made By The Trump Administration – Such As Cutting Funding For Outreach – Are Making It Challenging To Get As Many People Signed Up This Year.”

Sean England
In News

NEW CBS POLL: GOP Ignoring Public by Putting Health Care Repeal in Tax Plan

Yet again, Republicans in Congress are ignoring the will of the people by forcing a sneaky health care repeal in their tax plan — despite the fact that it will rip health insurance from 13 million people and raise premiums double digits.

SHOT:

CBS NEWS POLL TODAY: 68% say tax plan should NOT include health care repeal

CHASER:

NYT TODAY: “Tax Bill Is Likely to Undo Health Insurance Mandate, Republicans Say”

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 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 Capitol Hill, Administration, 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

Protect Our Care Talking Points on Senate Republicans’ Sneaky Health Care Repeal to Give Tax Breaks to Billionaires and Big Corporations

Senate Republicans just passed a tax bill that repeals your health care to pay for another massive tax break for the wealthiest and corporations. What this 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.

There is still time to stop this sneaky health care repeal, but the time to act is NOW. If every House Republican who voted against health repeal last time or voted against the tax bill combine with House Democrats, there are enough votes to stop sneaky repeal.

After failing multiple times and despite major public opposition, Senate Republicans just voted for a sneaky repeal of health care that raises premiums by double digits, rips away coverage for 13 million Americans, and forces $25 million in Medicare cuts — all to pay for special tax breaks for millionaires and big corporations.

  • The Congressional Budget Office estimated that 13 million people will lose their health insurance and premiums will rise 10% as a result of the health repeal included in the Senate tax plan they just passed.
  • Older people would be hit with an age tax. AARP estimated premiums for people over 50 would increase up to $1,500 because of health repeal.
  • The CBO said the GOP tax bill would trigger $25 billion in Medicare cuts.

Republicans who support health care repeal can’t pretend like they can fix the harm — it doesn’t work. Passing Alexander-Murray after voting for repeal is like installing guardrails on the highway after your car has gone over the cliff.

The leading experts — patient groups, insurers, doctors and hospitals — and more than 2,400 faith leaders and the American people oppose health repeal, including:

  • Nineteen leading patient groups, including the American Heart Association, the American Diabetes Association, and the American Cancer Society opposed the health repeal in the tax bill, writing, “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.”
  • Six leading industry groups — 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 — who warned of “serious consequences” should the mandate be repealed.
  • More than 2,400 faith leaders warned “that the number of uninsured individuals would increase by 13 million by 2025…violates our faith teaching.”
  • A mere 25 percent of American voters approve the Republican tax plan, according to a poll by Quinnipiac University.

The Senate just jammed through a partisan secret tax bill that snuck in health repeal without any hearings

  • The Senate did not hold any hearings with outside experts on the repeal of the individual mandate and the full economic impacts were not understood at the time the Senate voted to pass it.
  • Health repeal was not in the House tax bill and was not in the Senate bill Republicans submitted to the Finance Committee.
  • It was snuck in at the last minute without debate.
Sean England
In Administration, Capitol Hill, Uncategorized

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

Senate Republicans just passed a tax bill that repeals your health care to pay for another massive tax break for the wealthiest and corporations. What this 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.

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]

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]

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 Uncategorized

Protect Our Care Statement on Senate Passage of Motion to Proceed

In response to the Senate voting to proceed on the GOP tax bill, Protect Our Care Campaign Director Brad Woodhouse released the following statement:

“Senate Republicans, with the enthusiastic support of President Trump, just voted to advance a bill that would rip away health coverage from 13 million people, raise premiums on millions more, impose an age tax on older Americans and slash Medicare by $25 billion,” said Woodhouse. “They are doing so to give tax breaks to golf resorts, private jet owners, the idle rich and multi-national corporations, all while raising taxes on the middle class. This bill is beyond terrible policy — it will devastate the lives of millions. This sneaky health care repeal scam is opposed by a coalition of nineteen leading patient groups and more than 2,400 faith leaders, as well as the vast majority of Americans. As this bill moves forward in the Senate, we will hold Members accountable for repealing the health care of the American people to give tax breaks to billionaires and big corporations.”

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