GOP Health Care Agenda: Older Americans Pay More, Medicare, Social Security at Risk – All to Benefit Special Interests

WASHINGTON, March 20 -- The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee issued the following news release:

A lesson from last year: Republicans will not stop their attacks on health care, even if that means Americans pay more. From an age tax and ending pre-existing condition coverage to a tax law that gives insurance companies a huge tax break while premiums rise, it's no wonder groups like AARP, the American Medical Association, the American Cancer Society Action Network, and the American Heart Association have all denounced the GOP health care agenda. Here are some highlights:

AARP: This bill "was crafted in secrecy behind closed doors without a single hearing or open debate -- and it shows... [It] would hit millions of Americans with higher costs and result in less coverage for them. AARP is adamantly opposed to the Age Tax, which would allow insurance companies to charge older Americans five times more for coverage than everyone else while reducing tax credits that help make insurance more affordable."

American Cancer Society Action Network, American Heart Association, 14 other health organizations: "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."

From Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Spokesman David Bergstein: "Republicans made their priorities clear when they put Medicare cuts on the table to pay for their tax scam and pushed a health care agenda that would impose an age tax on older Americans and jeopardize coverage for pre-existing conditions. The GOP agenda is all about making health care more expensive and less available for hardworking Americans while special interests benefit, and voters will reject these harmful, wrong priorities in November."

Yesterday, the DSCC released a six-second, non-skippable YouTube bumper ad that asks, "What Has The Republican Health Care Plan Cost You?" The ad will reach targeted voters in Indiana, Missouri, Minnesota, Nevada, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin as part of an ongoing six-figure buy.

When Republicans began to push their harmful health care agenda, the DSCC immediately joined voters in holding them accountable. Last March, the DSCC first launched its 30 second health care spot, "The Price," -- described as a "gut punch of an ad" by MSNBC's Rachel Maddow -- alongside a health care website. Since then, the DSCC has released Google search advertisements; 6-second non-skippable Youtube bumper ads in 9 states; full-screen Google takeover ads against Sens. Heller (NV), Flake (AZ), Cruz (TX) and Gov. Scott (FL); geo-targeted Google search and display ads around 4th of July parades and events; Pandora radio ads against Sens. Heller (NV) and Flake (AZ); a set of six-second, non-skippable bumper flock ads against Sens. Heller and Flake and potential Senate candidates in 8 states; and Google search and Facebook advertisements highlighting how the GOP plan fails the "Jimmy Kimmel test." The DSCC is the first campaign committee to utilize Google's innovative bumper and full-screen takeover ad formats this cycle.