AS TRUMP MAKES HEALTH CARE LESS AFFORDABLE AND ACCESSIBLE, REED WORKS TO BRING DOWN HEALTH COSTS AND PUT PEOPLE FIRST

The following information was released by Rhode Island Senator Jack Reed:

As the negative impacts of President Trump's damaging economic policies ripple across the U.S. health care system, more Americans are losing their health insurance, health prices are going up, and more health systems are weakening -- leading to longer wait times and higher costs for patients. U.S. Senator Jack Reed says it is time to break that cycle and offered a prescription for reinvesting in America's health care system and lowering costs.

As Congress battles over the future of Medicaid and affordable health insurance, Senator Reed today joined officials from Comprehensive Community Action Program (CCAP), HealthSource RI, Protect Our Care, and community partners for a tour of CCAP's Everett C. Wilcox Health Center located on Buttonwoods Avenue.

The 24,695-square foot facility offers health and wellness services to thousands of patients and includes medical and dental providers on site. In 2024, Senator Reed delivered a $1 million federal earmark to help expand the facility to its current size and provide integrated health services to more Rhode Islanders, including primary care, dental care, social work, mental and behavioral health and substance treatment, all within the same location.

During the visit, Senator Reed met with health professionals, patients, and staff and held a media availability to discuss his efforts to make health care more affordable and the challenges caused by President Trump's unwelcome health care spending cuts, which have led to surging insurance costs and coverage losses due to Trump's Medicaid rollbacks.

Research from Protect Our Care shows over 25,000 Rhode Islanders have lost Medicaid or CHIP coverage since the so-called One Big Beautiful Bill Act was passed by Republicans on a party-line vote and signed into law by President Trump last summer. Another 2,000 dropped marketplace coverage after President Trump and Congressional Republicans killed ACA tax credits and caused premiums to surge.

Nationwide, deductibles for health insurance plans on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplace increased by $1,027, on average.

"President Trump's policies are driving up the cost of health care and shifting heavier financial burdens on to working families and state budgets. We've got to make health care affordable again so people can get the care they need, when they need it. If people can't afford to see a doctor to fill a prescription they end up delaying or skipping care, which has significant impacts down the line on both health outcomes and cost," said Senator Reed. "I strongly support undoing Trump's Medicaid cuts, reviving ACA credits, and taking the next steps on commonsense reforms that can help negotiate lower prescription drug prices, cut out the special interest middlemen, and reduce barriers to care, needless paperwork and red tape. President Trump needs to finally learn that affordability is not a hoax it is the number one issue facing the majority of American families and Congress needs to listen and act."

Reed notes that instead of prioritizing effective, data-driven care, the Trump Administration routinely sides with insurers and pharmaceutical companies over patients and their doctors.

Last year, the Trump Administration and Congressional Republicans ripped away health care tax credits from millions of Americans and cut Medicaid by nearly $1 trillion in order to give the ultra-wealthy a bigger tax windfall. As a result, Affordable Care Act (ACA) disenrollments surged 33.6 percent after federal subsidies lapsed. In Rhode Island, enrollment in HealthSource RI has declined by approximately 8.2 percent over the last year and average monthly premiums have risen 15 percent to $647, according to the latest data from the State Marketplace Network.

The Trump Administration's reckless health care policies continue to drive up health care premiums for all -- employer health costs are expected to see some of the sharpest increase in 20 years. They are pushing thousands of Rhode Islanders off of their ACA-backed plans, contributing to declining enrollment, increasing concerns about access, and accelerating higher cost growth as fewer healthy people remain in the insurance pool.

"HealthSource RI customers are facing enormous pressure as our state navigates the changes in federal regulation and law that have restricted access and financial assistance for marketplace coverage," said Lindsay Lang, director of HealthSource RI. "While local solutions like the newly created Rhode Island Marketplace Affordability Program will help many in 2027, we need a comprehensive federal solution to ensure affordability and access across the board."

Senator Reed says the Trump Administration's moves to take away people's health insurance is leading to a surge in plan costs, resulting in even more people being unable to pay their premiums.

"It is time for the Trump Administration and Congressional Republicans to help make health care more affordable and accessible by reinstating the ACA tax credits for working Americans and giving patients and families greater control over their own health care decisions. It is time to reverse the Trump Administration's health cuts that put profits over patients and restore healthy competition in the health care marketplace; address inefficiencies in the health care system and supply chain; and lower the cost of health services and prescription drugs," said Senator Reed, noting there are many steps the Trump Administration can quickly take to help lower health prices and improve patient care, including:

- Ending price gouging by health insurers,

- Breaking up anti-competitive industry consolidation that breeds monopolies,

- Using bulk purchasing power of Medicaid to lower prescription drug costs,

- Trimming administrative costs and improving price transparency, and

- Promoting health care innovation.

Senator Reed has already cosponsored several legislative proposals to achieve these goals, including the Protecting Health Care and Lowering Costs Act (S. 2556); the Healthy Families Act (S.3869); the Medicare Cost Cap Act (S.4886); and the Restoring Essential Healthcare Act(S.2524) and others that aim to lower healthcare costs and protect coverage.

Reed also said the federal government needs to invest wisely in facilities like the Wilcox Health Center that offers accessible, high-quality, affordable primary care, dental care, and mental health support.

National health care spending now surpasses $5.3 trillion, and nearly a quarter of every U.S. health care dollar goes to administrative costs -- far higher than any other country or industry -- and much of this spending does nothing to improve patient health. Reducing the administrative burden by leveraging new smart technology; improving data management; and more effectively collaborating across stakeholders can save payers, providers, and the federal government alike.