Congressional Budget Office: 23 Million to Lose Health Care, Increased Premiums from Republican Health Care Repeal

“The health and financial security of hundreds of thousands of Tennesseans is on the line.” 

NASHVILLE, Tennessee, May 24, 2017 –Protect Our Care Campaign Director Leslie Dach released the following statement on the Congressional Budget Office’s (CBO) report today on the health care repeal bill and its impacts on Tennesseans:

“The Congressional Budget Office confirmed yet again any health care repeal cuts coverage for millions, increases health costs for everyday people, and eliminates protections millions rely on – all to give massive tax breaks to the wealthiest Americans and insurance and drug companies.

“People across the country have rejected Republican repeal and pleaded with the Republican party to stop their partisan rush. Yet, the Senate is heading down the same repeal path the House did, working secretly behind closed doors, refusing to hold hearings  and using the House repeal as a starting point. The real test for the Senate is not whether a bill is better than the disastrous House bill, but whether it increases coverage, lowers costs and keeps the protections in the current law. It’s time for the Senate to abandon partisan repeal of the ACA and instead work across the aisle to keep what works and fix what doesn’t — not tear our health care apart. The lives and financial security of millions of Americans are on the line.”

The bill would have severe impacts for Tennesseans:

• The bill would strip health care from 578,900  Tennesseans. 
• The Republican bill puts more than 2,718,800 Tennesseans with pre-existing conditions at risk of losing coverage, including 355,200 children. 
• The American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Heart Association, American Lung Association, and others say it means “people with pre-existing conditions could be denied coverage or forced to choose between purchasing basic necessities and affording their health care coverage.”  A new report shows how much more people with pre-existing conditions would be charged: $4,270 for asthma, $17,060 for pregnancy, $26,180 for rheumatoid arthritis and $140,510 for metastatic cancer. 
• AARP opposes it because it raises premiums five times more on people over 50 – what they call an ‘age tax,’ increasing the average cost per enrollee by $13,083 by 2020 for Americans over 55. These estimates would jump to $19,109 by 2026. 
• The Republican bill disproportionately hurts Americans living in rural areas, in some cases causing a person’s plan to exceed their annual income. 
• It includes a giveaway to insurance companies: if your insurance lapses for more than 63 days, insurance companies will charge you 30 percent more when you sign up for insurance again.

Tell Senator Alexander and Senator Corker to reject the Republican Health Care Repeal effort and instead work with Democrats to strengthen and improve the healthcare system we have now – don’t rip it apart.

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