Democratic Report Examines Impact of ACA Repeal, Particularly in Republican Congressional Districts

WASHINGTON, March 2 -- Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., ranking Democratic member of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, issued the following news release:

Today, Energy and Commerce Ranking Member Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) and Oversight and Government Reform Ranking Member Elijah E. Cummings (D-MD) issued a detailed district-by-district staff report summarizing the progress made under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and the potential negative impacts of repealing the law in all 435 congressional districts and the District of Columbia.

The report emphasizes the potential impact in Republican congressional districts, whose representatives have been advocating strongly for ACA repeal. The report finds:

99 Republican congressional districts have seen greater than average Marketplace enrollment. The top three Republican districts with the highest number of Marketplace enrollees are Reps. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (FL-27) - 96,300, Carlos Curbelo (FL-26) - 92,500, and Mario Diaz-Balart (FL-25) 83,100.

More than 80 Republican congressional districts have seen greater than average Medicaid expansion enrollment. The top three Republican districts with the highest number of Medicaid enrollees are Reps. Greg Walden (OR-2) - 129,200, David Valadao (CA-21) 115,600 enrollees, and Harold Rogers (KY-5) 104,600.

Nearly 80 Republican congressional districts have seen greater than average reductions in their uninsured rates between 2012 and 2015. The top three Republican districts that have seen significant reductions in their uninsured rates are Reps. David Valadao (CA-21) - 13.1 percentage points, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (FL-27) - 12.7 percentage points, and Harold Rogers (KY-5) - 11.8 percentage points. The uninsured rate has fallen by 9.8 percentage points in House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy's (CA-23) district.

"This report demonstrates that every single congressional district in the country has benefited thanks to the Affordable Care Act," Pallone and Cummings said. "Republican efforts to repeal the ACA jeopardize those significant gains and put the health and wellbeing of their own constituents at risk. It is time for Congressional Republicans to put an end to their reckless ideological games and start focusing on working together to strengthen the Affordable Care Act."

Overall, the analysis also found: (1) all congressional districts and the District of Columbia have seen reductions in their uninsured rates since the ACA was implemented, with an average reduction of 5.4 percentage points; (2) on average, 396,200 individuals with employer-sponsored insurance in each congressional district are at risk of losing important consumer protections if the ACA is repealed; and (3) on average, 360,200 individuals in each congressional district stand to lose access to free preventive care if the ACA is repealed.

A copy of the report, with each of the detailed district-by-district fact sheets, is available here: http://democrats-energycommerce.house.gov/sites/democrats.energycommerce.house.gov/files/documents/ACA%20District-by-District%20Report%2003022017.pdf

07J-Furigay-5794100 07J-Furigay