Providers, Patient and Consumer Advocates, Hospitals, Insurers Urge GOP to Reject Latest TrumpCare Proposal
As Senate Republicans pursue their latest version of TrumpCare, a wide-range of organizations, including providers, patient and consumer advocates, hospitals, and insurers are voicing their opposition:
A group of ten bipartisan governors, including Governors Kasich, Walker, and Sandoval: “We ask you not to consider the Graham-Cassidy-Heller-Johnson amendment and renew support for bipartisan efforts to make health care more available and affordable for all Americans. Only open, bipartisan approaches can achieve true, lasting reforms.” [9/19/17]
A group of sixteen patient and provider groups, including ALS Association, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Diabetes Association, American Heart Association, American Lung Association, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, March of Dimes, and National Health Council: “This bill would limit funding for the Medicaid program, roll back important essential health benefit protections, and potentially open the door to annual and lifetime caps on coverage, endangering access to critical care for millions of Americans. Our organizations urge senators to oppose this legislation. Affordable, adequate care is vital to the patients we represent. This legislation fails to provide Americans with what they need to maintain their health.” [9/18/17]
A group of six provider groups, including the American Academy of Family Physicians, American Academy of Pediatrics, American College of Physicians, American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, American Osteopathic Association, and American Psychiatric Association: “Our organizations, which represent over 560,000 physicians, oppose the new Graham-Cassidy bill and its approach to reforming our health care system. The proposal fails to protect the health care coverage and consumer protections available under current law. Additionally, it would create a health care system built on state-by-state variability that would exacerbate inequities in coverage and most likely place millions of vulnerable individuals at risk of losing their health care coverage.” [9/13/17]
AARP: “Older Americans care deeply about access to and affordability of health care. They need and deserve affordable premiums, lower out-of-pocket costs, and coverage they can count on as they age. On behalf of our nearly 38 million members in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, AARP is urging the Senate to reject the Graham/Cassidy/Heller/Johnson bill because it would do precisely the opposite. Overall, the Graham/Cassidy/Heller/Johnson bill would increase health care costs for older Americans with an age tax, decrease coverage, and undermine preexisting condition protections. In addition, this bill would jeopardize the ability of older Americans and people with disabilities to stay in their own homes as they age and threaten coverage for individuals in nursing homes.” [9/19/17]
American Medical Association: “On behalf of the physician and medical student members of the American Medical Association (AMA), I am writing to express our opposition to the Cassidy-Graham-Heller-Johnson Amendment… We also urge the Senate to reject any other legislative efforts that would jeopardize health insurance coverage for tens of millions of Americans.” [9/19/17]
American Hospital Association: “We believe that coverage could be at risk for tens of millions of Americans under the Graham-Cassidy proposal. We continue to urge senators to work in a bipartisan manner to address the challenges facing our health care system. This proposal would erode key protections for patients and consumers and does nothing to stabilize the insurance market now or in the long term. In addition, the block grant to provide support for the expansion population expires in 2026, thereby eliminating coverage for millions of Americans.” [9/19/17]
American Nurses Association: “The Graham-Cassidy bill – also supported by Sens. Dean Heller (R-NV) and Ron Johnson (R-WI) – is not substantially different from any of the other repeal and replace bills we have seen from House and Senate Republicans…As with all other repeal and replace proposals to date, the current proposal fulfills none ANA’s 4 principles for health system transformation.” [9/19/17]
America’s Essential Hospitals: “Throughout this year’s health care debate, America’s Essential Hospitals stood by its position that policy changes must maintain coverage for those who have it, preserve access, and protect hospitals that care for low-income and other vulnerable people. While we do not yet have a Congressional Budget Office (CBO) score for the Graham-Cassidy proposal, the plan appears to violate those core principles.” [9/15/17]
The Arc: “While this piece of legislation has a new title and makes new promises, it is more of the same threats to Medicaid and those who rely on it for a life in the community. The Graham-Cassidy-Heller-Johnson proposal cuts and caps the Medicaid program. The loss of federal funding is a serious threat to people with disabilities and their families who rely on Medicaid for community based supports.” [9/14/17]
Association Of Community Affiliated Plans: “We are disappointed to see that the Senate is repeating – and in some ways, doubling down on – many of the same mistakes as it made with the Better Care Reconciliation Act.. We urge the Senate in the strongest possible terms to turn away from partisan politics and instead build on the promising work around CHIP and the HELP committee.” [9/18/17]
Catholic Health Association: “I urge you to contact your Senators today and tell them to: Vote ‘NO’ on the Graham-Cassidy legislation to repeal and replace ACA—which eliminates Medicaid expansion coverage, premium tax credits, and cost-sharing reduction subsidies and replaces them with state block grants.” [9/19/17]
Children’s Hospital Association: “The nation’s children’s hospitals stand in strong opposition to the most recent legislative proposal introduced by Sens. Lindsay Graham, R-S.C., Bill Cassidy, R-La., Dean Heller, R-Nev., and Ron Johnson, R-Wis. Their legislation would slash funding for Medicaid, the nation’s largest health care program for children, by one-third, reducing access and coverage for more than 30 million children in the program. Furthermore, the legislation weakens important consumer safeguards, and as a result, millions of children in working families would no longer be assured that their private insurance covers the most basic of services without annual and lifetime limits and regardless of any underlying medical condition. This bill would have devastating consequences for children and families.” [CHA, 9/18/17]
Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities: “The undersigned members of the Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities (CCD) write to express strong opposition to the Graham-Cassidy-Heller-Johnson (GCHJ) proposal. As we have commented on multiple proposals considered by the Senate, we cannot overstate the danger facing the millions of adults and children with disabilities if the proposal’s Medicaid provisions are adopted.” [9/19/17]
Consumers Union: “The Graham-Cassidy bill is the third strike in this losing game of repealing the Affordable Care Act. Just like its predecessors, this plan would leave tens of millions uninsured, threaten key consumer protections and coverage requirements, and fundamentally alter Medicaid by drastically cutting funding and shifting billions of dollars of healthcare costs onto states and consumers. This is just another version of the previous failed proposals that were not only rejected by the majority of Americans, they were rejected by the Senate itself.” [9/13/17]