Like Last Year’s ACA Repeal Efforts, the New Proposal is Aimed at Limiting Access to Health Care and Ending Medicaid Expansion
Washington – Along with the Trump administration’s ongoing efforts to sabotage the landmark health care law, the Affordable Care Act, a group of conservative think tanks is pushing another repeal bill similar to the measure last fall proposed by Republican Senators Lindsey Graham and Bill Cassidy.
The seven-page proposal from the think tanks claims that it will save states money and provide them more “flexibility” to operate ACA marketplaces and Medicaid expansion.
National Health Law Program Executive Director Elizabeth G. Taylor disagreed.
“This new bill is not about ‘flexibility’ and it will save states money only if they drastically limit health care services for people mired in poverty or struggling to make it on low-wage jobs that do not provide access to health care,” Taylor said. “The administration, which refuses to defend the ACA in federal court, now has another legislative effort to support — one that, if fully implemented, will harm tens of millions of people nationwide.”
National Health Law Program Managing Attorney of the D.C. office Mara Youdelman described the new proposal as having little do with providing health care.
“This proposal is covered with flowery language about helping states efficiently provide access to health care, but that is camouflage,” Youdelman said. “The real intent of this proposal is to drain federal funding from the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid expansion. The bill pushes massive cuts in federal funding, which will force states to limit access to health care and provide far fewer health care services. This is no way to sustain a sound health care system. The proposal is regressive in nature – all about rolling back progress on providing health care to underserved individuals and communities.”
Please contact National Health Law Program Director of Communications Jeremy Leaming for further comment from Elizabeth or Mara regarding the new ACA repeal effort.
National Health Law Program, founded in 1969, advocates for the rights of low income and underserved people to access quality health care.
