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protectourcare
In News

Court Affirms Speaker Pelosi and Democratic Health Care Champions in Congress’s Fight to Protect Health Care From the Trump Texas Lawsuit

Washington, DC–Yesterday evening, the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued a ruling that allows the United States House of Representatives to intervene in the Texas, et. al. vs. United States, et. al. case which would overturn the Affordable Care Act and its protections for people with pre-existing conditions. Leslie Dach, chair of Protect Our Care, issued a statement in response:

“The Fifth Circuit correctly ruled that House Democrats can defend the American people against the Trump administration’s all out attack on America’s health care. Despite the GOP lies about protecting people with pre-existing conditions, President Trump himself bragged that the Trump Texas lawsuit would ‘terminate’ the ACA. This ruling is just another reminder that Speaker Pelosi and Democratic health care champions in Congress are not going to rest until every attack on our health care is stopped dead in its tracks. The Republican assault on health care needs to end.”

BACKGROUND:

Due to Judge O’Connor’s ruling on December 14th, Republicans are one step closer to repealing the Affordable Care Act and eliminating key protections, unleashing — as the Trump Administration itself admitted in his court — “chaos” in our entire health care system. If this ruling is allowed to stand:

  • Marketplace tax credits and coverage for 10 million people: GONE.
  • Medicaid expansion currently covering 15 million people: GONE.
  • Protections for more than 130 million people with pre-existing conditions when they buy coverage on their own: GONE.
  • Allowing children to stay on their parents’ insurance until age 26: GONE.
  • Free annual wellness exams: GONE.
  • Ban on annual and lifetime limits: GONE.
  • Ban on insurance discrimination against women: GONE.
  • Contraception with no out-of-pocket costs: GONE.
  • Limit on out-of-pocket costs: GONE.
  • Requirement that insurance companies cover essential benefits like prescription drugs, maternity care, and hospitalization: GONE.
  • Improvements to Medicare, including reduced costs for prescription drugs: GONE.
  • Closed Medicare prescription drug donut hole: GONE.
  • Rules to hold insurance companies accountable: GONE.
  • Small business tax credits: GONE.
protectourcare
In News

Protect Our Care Praises the MORE Health Education Act

Washington, DC— Today, Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Gary Peters (D-MI), and Tim Kaine (D-VA) introduced the MORE Health Education Act, which would counter the Trump administration’s sabotage efforts that have diverted funds and slashed health care enrollment advertising and marketing for the Health Insurance Marketplace by 90 percent since the president took office. Brad Woodhouse, executive director of Protect Our Care, issued a statement in support:

“The Trump administration has slashed the outreach and advertising budget for open enrollment in a deliberate act of sabotage – showing they will stop at nothing to undermine the health care law and deny Americans coverage. In November, voters said ‘enough’ with the GOP’s repeal and sabotage agenda and thanks to the leadership of Senator Shaheen and her Democratic colleagues, legislation is being introduced in the House and Senate to put a stop to President Trump’s ongoing efforts to undermine the law – an effort we wholeheartedly support.”  

BACKGROUND

The Trump Administration has repeatedly sabotaged the open enrollment process by cutting outreach resources and shortening the enrollment time period.

  • Protect Our Care’s Statement On The Trump Administration’s Sabotage Efforts Harm Open Enrollment
protectourcare
In News

Back At It Again: Trump Administration Hostile to Medicaid Ignored Rules That Protect Patients


Washington DC — Today, the Los Angeles Times reports that the Trump administration is scrambling to overhaul Medicaid by requiring burdensome work requirements, but are failing to enforce federal rules directing states to analyze the devastating impact such requirements will have on millions of Americans who rely on this life-saving program. Brad Woodhouse, executive director of Protect Our Care, issued the following statement in response:   

“The actions by this administration are egregious, but unfortunately par for the course considering President Trump has put people in charge of Medicaid who are simply out to destroy it. Failing to enforce rules requiring states to access the impact of Medicaid work requirements shows that the Trump administration doesn’t care who their policies hurt. This is part and parcel to Trump-led Republican sabotage agenda: they oppose Medicaid expansion — which would provide health care coverage to millions more Americans, support so-call ‘block grants” — a euphemism for slashing coverage, and are pushing ‘work requirements’ – which are little more than gotcha paperwork meant to kick eligible people off the rolls. Medicaid is the nation’s largest health insurance program and is more popular today than ever before. These senseless work requirements are already jeopardizing health care for thousands of low-income families — nearly all of whom are already working — and the Trump administration is breaking every rule in the book in their rush to implement it as just another deliberate attack on American health care.”

Background:

IN STATES WHERE SIMILAR RULES HAVE TAKEN EFFECT, THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE HAVE LOST CARE

  • Results from Arkansas confirm that Medicaid work requirements are fundamentally bureaucratic hurdles, threatening access to health coverage for thousands across the state. “A review of monthly data related to the new requirements released by the Arkansas Department of Human Services shows that from September through December 2018, over 18,000 people were disenrolled for failure to comply with the new requirements for three months.” [Kaiser Family Foundation, 1/17/19]
  • This summer, a federal district court blocked Kentucky from imposing similar rules for the negative effects it would have on Kentuckians. Said the court in its ruling, “[Secretary Azar] never adequately considered whether Kentucky HEALTH would in fact help the state furnish medical assistance to its citizens, a central objective of Medicaid. This signal omission renders his determination arbitrary and capricious. The Court, consequently, will vacate the approval of Kentucky’s project and remand the matter to HHS for further review.”
  • In Indiana, 25,000 people with health insurance through Medicaid were dropped from coverage because they were unable to pay their premiums. The Washington Post reported, “About 25,000 adults were disenrolled from the program between its start in 2015 and October 2017 for failure to pay their premiums, according to state reports. Yet, state officials estimate that based on surveys of recipients, about half of those who were disenrolled found another source of coverage, most often through a job…In addition to those who were disenrolled, another 46,000 adults who signed up for Medicaid during 2016 and 2017 were not accepted because they did not pay their initial premium, the state reported.”

WORK REQUIREMENTS ADD ADMINISTRATIVE HURDLES, MAKING IT HARDER FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE ELIGIBLE FOR CARE TO GET IT

  • Requiring People On Medicaid To Prove They Are Working Adds An Administrative Burden That Is Hardest On Low-Income Americans. “[Administrative hurdles] may be especially daunting for the poor, who tend to have less stable work schedules and less access to resources that can simplify compliance: reliable transportation, a bank account, internet access.  There is also a lot of research about the Medicaid program, specifically, that shows that sign-ups fall when states make their program more complicated.” [New York Times, 1/18/18]
  • Documentation Requirements Increase The Chances That People Will Lose Care, Simply Because They Have Trouble Navigating The Process. “There is a real risk of eligible people losing coverage due to their inability to navigate these processes, miscommunication, or other breakdowns in the administrative process. People with disabilities may have challenges navigating the system to obtain an exemption for which they qualify and end up losing coverage.” [Kaiser Family Foundation, 1/16/18]

THE VAST MAJORITY OF  PEOPLE WITH MEDICAID COVERAGE WHO WHO CAN WORK ARE WORKING

  • 60 percent of nondisabled people with health coverage through Medicaid have a job and are working, including 42 percent working full-time.
  • 51 percent of working adult Medicaid enrollees have full-time jobs year-round, but their salaries are still low enough to qualify for Medicaid coverage, or have Medicaid because their employers do not offer insurance.  
  • Nearly 80 percent of nondisabled people with Medicaid coverage live in a family where at least one person is working, including 64 percent working full-time. The other adult family member may not be working because they have caregiving or other responsibilities at home.
  • A state by state breakdown can be found HERE

protectourcare
In News

SOTU PREVIEW: Five Ways The Trump Administration Has Continued To Sabotage Americans’ Health Care Since The Midterms

In November, voters took to the polls and sent a clear message to GOP leaders: end the Republican war on health care. National exit polls showed health care was the top issue to voters, and exit polls of competitive districts found Democrats had an eight point advantage on health care, 52 to 44 percent. Thirty-three members of Congress who voted to repeal the ACA lost their seats.

Despite voters’ clear rejection of the GOP sabotage agenda, President Trump has continued to ruthlessly target Americans’ health care. Here’s a look at five ways he has ignored the will of the American people and taken aim at health care since this fall’s midterm elections:

  1. Just Last Week, President Trump Admitted That He Supports The Goal Of The Lawsuit Led By Republican Attorneys General And Governors To Completely “Terminate” The Affordable Care Act. Trump predicted the Affordable Care Act would be “terminated” through the Texas lawsuit seeking to overturn the law. In December, cherry-picked Federal Judge Reed O’Connor ruled in favor of twenty conservative states to overturn the Affordable Care Act, jeopardizing coverage for 17 million people and ripping away the ACA’s vital consumer protections such as protections for people with pre-existing conditions.
  2. In January, Experts Blamed Trump Administration Sabotage for Driving The Uninsured Rate To Its Highest Level Since The Implementation Of The Affordable Care Act In 2014. Thanks to GOP sabotage, the uninsured rate surged to its highest level since 2014. Roughly seven million fewer people are estimated to have health care now than did two years ago.
  3. In Its Notice Of Benefit And Payment Parameters, The Centers For Medicare And Medicaid Services Actually Proposed Changes That Would Make Consumers Pay More. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ (CMS) proposed changes to the ACA’s benefit and payment parameters would reduce premium tax credits by $1 billion per year, cause 100,000 people to lose marketplace coverage starting in 2020, increase annual premiums, and increase the out-of-pocket maximum for people with employer-sponsored health care.
  4. The Trump Administration Just Gave PhRMA a Big Win After The Pharmaceutical Industry Spent $280 Million On Lobbying In 2018. In a win for big Pharma, the Trump administration proposed changes to the rebate system that would raise premiums, benefit pharmaceutical companies, and contain no mandate to lower list prices of prescription drugs.
  5. After The Midterm Elections, The Trump Administration Urged States To Allow Federal Subsidies To Be Used To Purchase Junk Plans That Discriminate Against People With Pre-existing Conditions. The Trump administration issued new guidance urging states to “tear down basic pillars of the Affordable Care Act, demolishing a basic rule” that federal subsidies can only be used to purchase ACA-compliant plans. Experts warn against this move, saying it will push affordable, comprehensive care further out of reach for individuals with pre-existing conditions.
protectourcare
In News

“Higher Costs And More People Being Uninsured” How Trump’s Latest ACA Sabotage Targets Consumers

Last week, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) proposed changes to the Affordable Care Act’s benefit and payment parameters that would raise costs and reduce coverage for millions of Americans. On top of reducing subsidies available to those who purchase health care through the exchange and increasing premiums, the Trump administration’s proposed rule changes would also raise the out-of-pocket maximum for people with employer-sponsored health care.

Here’s what news outlets have to say about the proposed changes:

Axios: Consumers Would Pay More Under New ACA Rules. “Turns out the Trump administration’s big ACA regulation packs a bit more punch than we realized at first. Some of the rule’s technical changes will end up requiring people to pay more for their coverage, while rolling back the cost of federal premium subsidies, my colleague Sam Baker reports…The federal government would end up spending about $900 million less on premium subsidies, according to the proposed regulation. The same change would also slightly loosen limits on out-of-pocket costs. The ACA capped total out-of-pocket spending at $8,000 per year for an individual and $16,000 per year for a family plan.  The Trump proposal would raise those caps by $200 and $400, respectively, according to Brookings’ Matt Fiedler. That change would apply to people who get coverage through their jobs, not just the ACA’s insurance markets.” [Axios, 1/22/19]

Wall Street Journal: Trump’s Proposed ACA Rules Could Lift Costs For Millions Of People. “The Trump administration on Thursday proposed changes that could raise health insurance costs for millions of Americans who get coverage on the job or receive subsidies under the Affordable Care Act, a move that Republicans said is necessary to cut inflated subsidies but Democrats viewed as another GOP effort to sabotage the health law. The proposal, released by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, would raise the out-of-pocket maximum that people with employer-sponsored coverage pay in 2020. The individual maximum would increase by $200 to $8,200 annually, and the maximum for family coverage would increase by $400, analysts said. The plan would also change a calculation that determines how much people pay if they buy insurance from the ACA exchange and get credits to reduce their monthly premiums. The change could raise premiums next year for many of the roughly 9 million people who get the credit.” [Wall Street Journal, 1/17/19]

Los Angeles Times: Despite The Government Shutdown, Trump’s Efforts To Gut Obamacare Go Full Speed Ahead. “A good portion of the federal government may be shut down, but you can rest assured that the devoted Obamacare saboteurs at the Department of Health and Human Services are on the job. Late Thursday, they released proposed rule changes for the 2020 health insurance year — and requests for comments on further changes — that will drive up premiums for people on Affordable Care Act health plans, cut subsidies and discourage more Americans from enrolling. The proposals also could raise prescription costs for enrollees and raise costs even for families enrolled in employer plans. Longer-term changes proposed for 2021 and beyond could affect about 2 million ACA enrollees.” [Los Angeles Times, Hiltzik, 1/18/19]

Associated Press: White House Proposes To Increase Affordable Care Act Premiums. “The Trump administration Thursday announced proposed rule changes that would lead to a modest premium increase next year under the Affordable Care Act, potentially handing Democrats a new presidential-year health care issue. The roughly 1 percent increase could feed into the Democratic argument that the Trump administration is trying to ‘sabotage’ coverage for millions. The administration said the proposal is intended to improve the accuracy of a complex formula that affects what consumers pay for their premiums. Premiums under the health law were basically stable this year after several sharp annual hikes.”  [Associated Press, 1/17/19]

Politico: CMS Wants To Reduce Obamacare Subsidies Through Formula Change. “The administration is proposing a technical change in the 2020 marketplace rules that is expected to result in less premium assistance for low-income Obamacare customers, POLITICO’s Paul Demko reports…A decrease in financial assistance of $900 million and 100,000 fewer Obamacare customers in 2020 if the proposal is adopted, according to CMS. The agency is justifying the change as a way to reduce big increases in federal subsidies that resulted from the Trump administration’s decision to cut off cost-sharing reduction payments.” [Politico, 1/18/19]

Buzzfeed News: Administration’s Proposed Rule Would “Result In Higher Premiums And More People Being Uninsured.” “The Trump administration revealed this week that it could try to take one more shot at weakening the Affordable Care Act’s individual markets before the end of Trump’s first term. A request for comment on a proposed rule change posted late Thursday contemplates a series of changes that would save the government $1 billion per year or more, but result in higher premiums and more people being uninsured…But now the administration is signaling it may try to end silver loading. Doing this on its own would lead to a major jump in premium costs and could badly destabilize the markets. The administration says it wants to kill silver loading in concert with Congress voting to bring back the old subsidies. However, Congress has so far shown a complete inability to come together to pass a bill to improve the Obamacare markets. The administration did not specifically say it will act without Congress, but it did so with premiums in the past and is asking for feedback on how it should ‘address’ the issue of silver loading.” [Buzzfeed News, 1/18/19]

protectourcare
In News

CMS Proposal is the Trump Administration’s Latest Act Of Health Care Sabotage

The Payment Notice Cuts Premium Tax Credits By $1 Billion Annually, Slashes Coverage, Increases Out-Of-Pocket Costs, And Puts People With Pre-existing Conditions At Risk

 

Last night, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued the proposed annual Notice of Benefit and Payment Parameters (NBPP) for the 2020 benefit year, which outlines regulatory and financial guidelines applicable to exchange plans. The proposal from CMS would do the following:

  • Cut premium tax credits by $1 billion per year ($900M in 2020 and 2021, $1 billion in 2022 and 2023)
  • Cause 100,000 people to lose marketplace coverage annually starting in 2020
  • Increase annual premiums by $189 for a family of four at 300 percent of poverty
  • Increase the maximum out-of-pocket costs by $400 for a family (from $16,000 without the change to $16,400 with it) and $200 for an individual (from $8,000 annually to $8,200 annually).

“Despite the lessons of the 2018 midterm elections, the Trump administration is continuing its relentless efforts to sabotage health care for millions of Americans,” said Leslie Dach, chair of Protect Our Care. “They want to increase premiums, put protections for people with pre-existing conditions further at risk, and rip affordable coverage from countless Americans. It’s time they start improving our health care and stop ripping it apart.”

Here’s a look at what the Administration’s proposal would mean for people across the country, according to health care experts and CMS itself:

The Payment Notice Means Higher Premiums, Less In Subsides, And A Drop In Enrollment. “The Trump administration estimates that their proposed change to how ACA premium subsidies are calculated would increase consumer premiums by $181 million and decrease marketplace enrollment by 100,000. As a result, the government would save $900 million.” [Larry Levitt, 1/17/19]

The Provisions Of The Payment Notice Would Reduce Americans’ Premium Tax Credits By Roughly $1 Billion Annually, Leading A Family Of Four At 300 Percent Of The Federal Poverty Line To Pay $189 More Annually. As Matt Fielder, Fellow at the USC-Brookings Schaeffer Initiative for Health Policy concludes: “In dollar terms, single person at 300% of FPL would lose $92/year in [premium tax credits]; family of four at 300% of FPL would lose $189/year in [premium tax credits]. Smaller effects at lower income levels and larger effects at higher income levels. In the aggregate, CMS Actuary estimates proposed change would result in $900m less in tax credit payments and 100,000 fewer Marketplace enrollees in 2020.” [Matt Fiedler, 1/17/19]

The Rules Would Also Increase The Maximum Out Of Pocket Costs In All Private Insurance Plans, By $200 For Individuals And $400 For A Family. “A technical change proposed by the Trump administration would result in maximum consumer out-of-pocket costs in all private insurance plans going up to $8,200 per person in 2020 instead of $8,000. To be clear, either amount is out of reach for many people.” The rule would also increase the maximum out of pocket costs for families from $16,000 to $16,400. [Larry Levitt, 1/17/19; Centers on Medicare And Medicaid Services, 1/17/19

100,000 People Would Lose Marketplace Coverage Each Year Beginning In 2020. [CMS, 1/17/19]

The Administration Has Also Invited Public Comment On Two Parameters — Eliminating Silver-Loading And Automatic Reenrollment. “One change the Trump administration is inviting comment on could eliminate automatic renewal of ACA marketplace coverage and premium subsidies. This year 1.8 million people were automatically re-enrolled in states using the federal marketplace. Another change the Trump administration is inviting comment on could eliminate “silver loading,” where insurers increased premiums for silver plans to offset the termination of cost-sharing subsidy payments to those insurers by the administration. Prohibiting “silver loading” of premiums in the ACA marketplace would lower government costs, but it would increase out-of-pocket premiums for many subsidized enrollees and also increase premiums for middle-class consumers not eligible for subsidies.” [Larry Levitt, 1/17/19]

Andy Slavitt, Former Head Of CMS: “Undermining Obamacare Is The Only Conceivable Reason To Dismantle [Auto-reenrollment].” “Auto reenrollment is simple. It means that like most employer coverage, if you forget to sign up for coverage, yours won’t get taken away. With auto-reenrollment, you can still reject coverage by not paying the bill. 1.8 million use it every year to keep continuous coverage. What happens if it’s taken away? You forget to sign up by 12/15. Get a cancer diagnosis in January. Not covered. With auto-[reenrollment], covered. It’s already automated, and how people are used to operating. Undermining Obamacare is the only conceivable reason to dismantle this.” [Andy Slavitt, 1/17/19]

The Payment Notice Allows States To Select An Essential Health Benefits (EHB) Package Used By Another State, Making EHBs More Flexible And Making It Easier For States To Not Cover All Of The Needs Of People With Pre-existing Conditions. “In the 2019 Payment Notice, we finalized options for states to select new EHB benchmark plans starting with the 2020 benefit year. Under 45 CFR 156.111, a state may modify its EHB-benchmark plan by: (1) Selecting the EHB-benchmark plan that another state used for the 2017 plan year; (2) Replacing one or more EHB categories of benefits in its EHB-benchmark plan used for the 2017 plan year with the same categories of benefits from another state’s EHB-benchmark plan used for the 2017 plan year; or (3) Otherwise selecting a set of benefits that would become the state’s EHB-benchmark plan.” [CMS, 1/17/19]

Legislators are calling the changes out for what they are: sabotage.

Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR), Ranking Member Of Senate Finance Committee: “Today’s Proposed Rule Deliberately And Needlessly Increases Premiums And Will Result In Too Many Americans Losing Coverage.” “Trump’s health care sabotage agenda is defined by higher premiums for families and bureaucratic barriers that make it harder to find health coverage. Today’s proposed rule deliberately and needlessly increases premiums and will result in too many Americans losing access to health coverage. It’s no wonder Americans are so fed up with America’s health care system when the Trump administration continues to fan the flames of uncertainty while families pick up the check.” [Wyden Statement, 1/17/19]

Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA), Ranking Member Of The Senate Health, Education, Labor, And Pensions (HELP) Committee: “Even 27 Days Into The Shutdown He Caused, President Trump Has Somehow Found Time To Further Sabotage Health Care For Patients, Families, And Women.” “Even 27 days into the shutdown he caused, President Trump has somehow found time to further sabotage health care for patients, families, and women — this time by proposing what would amount to a health care tax on patients and families across the country. President Trump is hurting families left and right and Democrats are going to keep holding him accountable.” [Murray Statement, 1/17/19

protectourcare
In News

Protect Our Care Reacts to CMS Proposed Payment Notice For 2020

Washington, D.C. – Today, the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS) announced its proposed payment notice for the 2020 coverage year which includes a reduction in tax credits for millions of Americans and is additionally seeking public comments on potential changes to the ACA marketplaces — one which could eliminate the practice of silver loading and one that could eliminate the auto-enrollment of marketplace coverage.  In response, Leslie Dach, chair of Protect Our Care, issued the following statement:

“The proposed reduction in tax credits will raise health care premiums for millions of Americans and result in a minimum of 100,000 people losing their health care and are just another form of Trump administration sabotage.  In addition, any effort to eliminate silver loading or auto-enrollment would be a direct attack on our health care and would raise premiums and threaten coverage for millions. Once again, the Trump administration is sabotaging our health care system and asking the American people to foot the bill.”

protectourcare
In News

Here We Go Again: Trump Tries To End Medicaid As We Know It

Washington, D.C. — New reporting from Politico indicates that the Trump administration is trying to roll back protections for life-saving health care by ending Medicaid as we know it. Even in the midst of a federal government shutdown, President Trump is still working overtime to sabotage health care for millions by devising a plan that would impose limits on Medicaid spending. Leslie Dach, chair of Protect Our Care issued the following statement in response:

“By now, it should be abundantly clear that Donald Trump and his Republican allies will stop at nothing to rip apart our health care. While hundreds of thousands of Americans are going without their paychecks, the Trump administration is adding insult to injury by working to end Medicaid as we know it. Make no mistake, bypassing Congress to turn Medicaid into a block grant program would put the care of millions of children, families, and seniors who rely on the program at severe risk. Enough is enough. It’s time for Trump to call-off his relentless war on Medicaid.”

protectourcare
In News

Trump’s Speech: “A Desperate Attempt to Mask Republican Efforts to Gut Protections For Preexisting Conditions And Allow Insurance Companies to Deny Coverage for Prescription Drugs.”

Another PR Stunt that Will Do Little to Bring Down Costs for Americans

Remember: Health Repeal Bills and GOP’s ACA Lawsuit would Repeal Prescription Drug Coverage for Millions of Americans; Junk Plans Pushed by Trump Don’t Require Any Prescription Drug Coverage

 

Washington, D.C. – Ahead of President Trump’s latest effort to hide the truth of the Republican war on health care, Leslie Dach, chair of Protect Our Care, released the following statement:

 

“Donald Trump’s speech fails the one in four Americans struggling to afford the prescription drugs they need. Today’s speech flouts  Trump’s campaign promise to let Medicare negotiate drug pricing for drugs sold in pharmacies, and it does nothing to change the fact that Trump and Republicans called for, voted to, and are now suing to repeal the requirements in current law that prescription drugs are covered in insurance plans.

 

“Between their efforts to repeal prescription drug coverage in Congress and the courts and their work to push junk plans that don’t cover prescription drugs, Trump’s posturing on drug prices is as outrageous as Trump’s professed care and concern for people with pre-existing conditions. Making this announcement 13 days before an election where health care is the number one issue to voters just goes to show the desperation of a president who has led a GOP war on health care and who promised prescription drug price cuts, while drug costs go up for Americans at the same time drug company profits  skyrocket.”

BACKGROUND:

 

 

  • After Trump Promised Prescription Drug Price Cuts, Costs Went Way Up. In May, President Trump promised that prescription drug price cuts would be coming in “two weeks.” Months later, the Financial Times reported that several drugmakers raised their prices significantly, including double-digit increases in many cases, and an analysis by the Associated Press found “there were 395 price increases and 24 decreases” in the wake of the announcement and “the two dozen cuts were up from the 15 decreases in those same two months last year.”

 

 

  • Drug Prices Continue To Soar Under Trump. From January 1 to July 31 of this year, the Associated Press found there were 96 price hikes for every price cut this year. A recent report by Senate Democrats finds that the prices of the 20 most-prescribed drugs under Medicare Part D have increased substantially over the past five years, rising 10 times faster than inflation. Another report from the Pharmacy Benefits Consultants finds that over the past 14 months, 20 prescription drugs saw list-price increases of more than 200 percent.

 

 

  • Trump’s Previous Announcement Was Described As A “Big Win” For Big Pharma. In May, President Trump gave a speech billed as a major policy initiative to lower prescription drug costs. The phony speech was described as everything from a “big win” for pharmaceutical companies to him “[backing] out of his own plan to make drugs cheaper.” Said one drug lobbyist: “A lot of this [stuff] is meaningless to satisfy Trump.”

 

 

 

  • Drug Companies Using Windfall From GOP Tax Scam To Pad Investors’ Pockets. In February, Axios reported that America’s largest pharmaceutical companies were using their windfall from the GOP tax scam to drive up their own stock prices to the tune of $50 billion, “a sum that towers over investments in employees or drug research and development.”

 

 

 

  • Trump Installed Big Pharma Executives In Key Administration Posts. President Trump installed a former Eli Lily executive, Alex Azar, as his secretary of Health and Human Services and his appointment of Scott Gottlieb at FDA was described as “music to pharma’s ears.” Other pharma lobbyists writing Trump’s health policy include senior adviser at FDA, Keagan Lenihan, who joined the administration after lobbying for the drug distribution giant McKesson, former Gilead lobbyist, Joe Grogan, who reviews health care regulations at the Office of Management and Budget, and Deputy Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy Lance Leggitt, who has lobbied for a variety of drug-industry clients.

 

 

protectourcare
In News

As Trump Comes to Erie: Lou Barletta and Mike Kelly Are Two Peas In A Pod Trying to End Health Care

Washington DC – As President Trump prepares to stump for Congressional Republicans tonight in Erie, Pennsylvania, Reps. Lou Barletta and Mike Kelly are hard at work sabotaging health care. But after two years with Donald Trump in the White House and the GOP controlled Congress, a new report shows Pennsylvanians are still struggling to keep up with the rising costs of health care and prescription drug prices. Brad Woodhouse, executive director of Protect Our Care, issued the following statement ahead of Trump’s campaign appearance:

 

“Let’s be clear, Lou Barletta and Mike Kelly aren’t focused on the millions of hard-working Americans with pre-existing conditions, they are only focused on lining the pockets of big insurance companies and continuing their war against our health care. Mike Kelly himself said it’s a ‘business proposition’ for insurance companies to deny coverage for pre-existing conditions and Lou Barletta refuses to stand up against Trump’s lawsuit to gut protections for pre-existing conditions. Barletta and Kelly are two peas in a pod, breaking promise after promise when it comes to lowering out-of-pocket costs and protecting our health care. Pennsylvanians are rightfully angry about their record.”

 

Additional Background:

 

Lou Barletta and Mike Kelly’s Record On Health Care are In Conflict with Their Constituents’ Wishes

 

Barletta and Kelly Voted to Repeal The ACA And Its Protections For 5.3 Million Pennsylvanians with Pre-Existing Conditions Numerous Times

 

  • Barletta Boated Of Voting More Than 30 Times To Repeal The ACA.  “Even though the United States Supreme Court said the president’s healthcare law is a constitutional law, that doesn’t mean it is a good law.  The decision was a victory for big government and a defeat for individual freedom. Since being sworn in, I have voted to protect and strengthen seniors’ benefits by repealing the president’s healthcare law over thirty times.” [Barletta.House.Gov, accessed 10/3/18]
  • Kelly Said His Goal Was “Full Repeal.”  “Representative Kelly and House Republicans have tackled ObamaCare on all fronts and share the same end goal: full repeal.” [Kelly.House.Gov, accessed 9/24/18]


Barletta and Kelly Voted For The AHCA, Which Would Eliminate Protections for Pre-Existing Conditions and Increase Premiums.

 

  • 2017: Barletta and Kelly Voted For AHCA.  Barletta voted for passage of the American Health Care Act.  [HR 1628, Roll Call Vote #256, 5/4/17]

 

Mike Kelly Said That Insurers Should Be Able To Discriminate Against Pre-Existing Conditions Under AHCA Because “It Is A Business Proposition.” “Mike Kelly: Pre-existing is very important to the people I represent back home. I understand that. I will fight for those things, but at the end of the day, at the end of the day, there is a business proposition that’s going to be put out there. Insurers are no different than any other business out there. You look at the market that you serve, you look at the people that you serve and you come up with different plans. So there’s not a one size fits all. And certainly for younger people and healthy people, they say why should I be taxed with all these increases? When you say, look, it’s in the whole. In the whole, how are we going to get there? It is a business. It is a business proposition.” [“CNN Newsroom,” CNN, 5/1/17]

 

Barletta Refused To Oppose The Trump Administration’s Lawsuit To Strip Protections For People With Pre-Existing Conditions.  “Republican U.S. Rep. Lou Barletta, who’s running against Casey in the fall Senate race, would not comment on the court fight but said he’d support bills to protect that coverage. ‘Regardless of what happens here, there has to be a plan that makes sure that there’s coverage for pre-existing conditions. We can’t leave them out without any insurance,’ Barletta told Pittsburgh’s Action News 4 during a campaign stop in Beaver County.” [WTAE, 8/8/18]

 

How Their Votes Would Harm People in Pennsylvania

 

Total Repeal of the ACA Would Eliminate:

What would full repeal of the Affordable Care Act eliminate?

  • Protections for 5.3 million Pennsylvanians with pre-existing conditions, if they buy coverage on their own
  • Improvements to Medicare, including reduced costs for prescription drugs
  • Allowing kids to stay on their parents’ insurance until age 26
  • Ban on annual and lifetime limits
  • Ban on insurance discrimination against women
  • Limits on out-of-pocket costs
  • Medicaid expansion, currently covering 15 million people
  • Rules to hold insurance companies accountable
  • Small business tax credits
  • Marketplace tax credits and coverage for up to 363,000 Pennsylvanians.

 

The American Health Care Act weakens key protections of the Affordable Care Act by allowing states to let insurers charge people with pre-existing conditions more, among other provisions. The bill would also make it more likely insurers would cherrypick young and healthier people, causing costs to skyrocket for older, sicker people.

 

The American Health Care Act allowed states to eliminate community rating, meaning insurers would be able to charge people with pre-existing conditions more. This surcharge could be in the tens of thousands of dollars and even six figures: up to $4,270 for asthma, $17,060 for pregnancy, $26,180 for rheumatoid arthritis and $140,510 for metastatic cancer.

 

In Pennsylvania, AHCA would mean that in in 2026, 777,000 Pennsylvanians would lose coverage and 51,586 Pennsylvanians to lose their jobs by 2022.

 

 

 

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