ACA repeal would pain state

Sept. 21--The latest Republican effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA) would cut $2 billion of health care funding for West Virginia.

Simon Haeder, an assistant professor with WVUâ??s John D. Rockefeller IV School of Policy & Politics, said the legislation proposed by GOP senators Lindsey Graham, of South Carolina, and Bill Cassidy, of Louisiana, to repeal the ACA would roll back the Medicaid expansion and eliminate cost-sharing subsidies, insurance regulations and the individual and employer mandate.

Another change, Haeder said, would be to restructure Medicaid from an entitlement to a per capita cap.

â??This means the federal government wouldnâ??t provide an open-ended commitment to the health care of the poor,â? he explained, â??but put a strict upper limit on what it would be willing to spend.â?

To cushion the changes, the Graham-Cassidy bill wouldnâ??t go into effect until 2026, but when it does, the states would be cut $80 billion that year as Medicaid is rolled back. This would be followed by a $300 billion cut the next year, amounting to $2 billion of lost funds for West Virginia.

The bill is the fourth attempt by Republicans to repeal the ACA, commonly known as Obamacare.

Haeder said there seems to be a sense of urgency in this attempt, since Congress has until Sept. 30 to repeal Obamacare under the current budget resolution.

Haeder said the Graham-Cassidy bill does propose a few hundred million dollars of funding for community health centers across the country, but that must be measured against billions of dollars in cuts along with 32 million Americans who would lose their coverage.

While the GOP legislation would give states the wiggle room to experiment with what health care options work best, Haeder said history has shown the states to be less adept than the federal government in this area. Whatâ??s more, the money it costs to experiment wouldnâ??t be there.

Responding to the proposed changes, a group from Mountaineers for Progress met outside of the Erickson Alumni Center on Wednesday to protest as Rep. David McKinley visited a forum on autonomous and self-driving vehicles.

The group gathered on a grassy area next to University Avenue. It was not authorized to protest on the centerâ??s property.

â??Originally, we were going to come and ask McKinley for a town hall because heâ??s been resistant to that,â? said Sara Anderson, president of Mountaineers for Progress.

Instead, the group protested the Graham-Cassidy health care bill. Anderson said the goal was to pressure McKinley on the bill, which she said would be bad for West Virginians.

Anderson said the group was tired of opposing health care changes, but was still ready to fight.

â??Weâ??re not willing to back down when lives are on the line,â? Anderson said.

Rod Rogers, district director for Congressman McKinley, said they were focused on the car presentation.

Mountaineers for Progress will protest outside of Sen. Shelley Moore Capitoâ??s office at Waterfront Place at noon today.

Follow The Dominion Post on Twitter @DominionPostWV.

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