GOP Healthcare Bill = Millionaire Giveaway

WASHINGTON, June 22 -- Rep. Raul M. Grijalva, D-Ariz., issued the following news release:

Congressman Raul M. Grijalva (D-AZ) released the following statement after a draft discussion bill of the Senate version to repeal Obamacare was finally made public. Since early May, the 13 Senator, all-male working group has been meeting to draft the replacement of the Affordable Care Act. The discussion draft, which is expected to be voted on within the next week, is as consequential as the House version, which would result in more than 23 million Americans losing coverage.

"For seven years we have heard Republicans gloat about their vision of a healthcare bill," Rep. Grijalva said. "Now that the Senate and House version are public, we come to see that the healthcare plan is merely a scheme to give the wealthy a huge tax break and never really about the health or well-being of our constituents.

"The Senate bill makes no improvements to the House Republican version that the public overwhelmingly disapproved of. Instead, it rips apart the protections and improvements the Affordable Care Act has made for individuals and their families during the past seven years. The so-called "Better Care Act" takes us back to the days of mass uninsurance, unaffordable coverage and denial of care. It charges elderly patients five times as much as younger patients. It cuts essential health coverage for women. It forces states and emergency rooms to absorb the disastrous impact of dismantling Medicaid, which provides coverage for nearly 69 million low-income individuals, seniors and those with disabilities across all congressional districts. For a party that sells itself as proponents of personal responsibility, it is ironic for Republicans to take away the preventative health care services that allows millions of families to make important decisions about their health.

"Healthcare is an inalienable right, not a commodity that few can afford. Instead of dismantling the progress we have made, Republicans should work with Democrats to improve the Affordable Care Act. We should pass a public insurance option to ensure plan prices are competitive, allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices to reduce the costs of prescriptions, reduce deductibles and make sure coverage is more generous."

Residents of Arizona's 3rd Congressional District, which Rep. Grijalva serves in Congress, stand to lose significantly if the Republican repeal effort is successful:

* The district's uninsured rate has gone from 23.5% to 14.1% since the ACA was implemented. This 9.3 percentage point drop in the uninsured rate could be reversed if the ACA is entirely or partially repealed.

* 324,700 individuals in the district with employer-sponsored health insurance are at risk of losing important consumer protections like the prohibition on annual and lifetime limits, protection against unfair policy rescissions, and coverage of preexisting health conditions, if the ACA is entirely or partially repealed.

* 62,800 individuals in the district who are covered by the ACA's Medicaid expansion now stand to lose coverage once Medicaid is capped off and left to become obsolete.

Sourcing for this information and more is available here (http://democrats-energycommerce.house.gov/sites/democrats.energycommerce.house.gov/files/documents/ACA%20District-by-District%20Report%2003022017.pdf).

Congressman Grijalva has been a consistent proponent of the Affordable Care Act, and fought hard against efforts to undermine the law. In recent months, he has penned two op-eds (available here and here) and issued a statement highlighting the negative impacts of the GOP's repeal plan in his district. Congressman Grijalva is also a co-sponsor of the Medicare for All bill.