Gottheimer Speaks Out Against “Age Tax,” Skyrocketing Rx Drug Costs, and Plan’s Broad Attack on Seniors
Today in
Prescription Drug Prices: If the Affordable Care Act is repealed entirely, the Medicare Prescription Drug Donut Hole would open back up, costing seniors an average of
Medicare Solvency: The plan puts
Long Term Care: 200,000 New Jersey Medicare beneficiaries rely on
"The health care bill before
Gottheimer's remarks as prepared for delivery are below.
It's good to be here at Jewish Home Assisted Living. The Jewish Home Family has been serving our region for more than 100 years, providing quality services and health care to so many people in the community. This facility opened ten years ago and it's the only Kosher assisted living facility in the area. It's centers like this one that not only act as a place for family and friendship, but also medical care.
There's a lot of talk in
And, as I've repeatedly said, I will work with anyone, regardless of political party, who has ideas to improve health care.
But one aspect of reforming the Affordable Care Act that alarms me greatly is the impact it would have on seniors and on the retirement security of families of all ages.
Through the Affordable Care Act, the Medicare Part D Donut Hole is closing--and will be fully closed by 2020. That means lower drug costs for seniors. That's a good thing.
And the ACA also extended the solvency of the
As you all know, more than half a century ago, our nation made an intergenerational promise to our seniors--a promise that we will have access to the health care we need in our golden years.
I take that promise and that obligation very seriously. Our seniors pay into
We can't go back to a time when an illness or injury meant bankruptcy or death for retirees.
But some people--led by the
By handing out coupons for coverage, the
I won't allow that bond to be broken. I will stand up to the
Because here's what this would mean for seniors here in
1.3 million
By privatizing
A 2012 study found that nearly 60% of all
And the bill currently being considered by the
One in five
So if the ACA law goes away, 211,881
But should the ACA be repealed without a plan to replace it, those costs will jump right back up. According to one study by the
Last week, I sent a letter to Congressional leadership, telling them not to reopen this donut hole work on health care reform. Seniors would be crushed by additional drug costs and experience extreme economic hardship.
But it's not just prescription drug costs that are at risk of increasing dramatically during this reform process.
The health care bill currently being considered in the
The
I don't know about you, but I don't know many 64 year olds on fixed incomes who can afford
And this bill would also radically change
200,000
60% of
3 out of 5 nursing home residents in
And if the Affordable Care Act gets repealed and
It was even reported that under this plan, the "biggest losers" would be older Americans who live in high-cost areas, like here in northern
So, that's why I'm here today. We need to sound the alarm on those in the
My approach to governing is about solving problems--not creating unnecessary chaos and hardship for older Americans.
As I've long said, I will work with anyone, regardless of political party, to improve health care affordability and accessibility for seniors and everyone else.
But, that takes actually working together. And, so far, the
So, in closing, I'd want to reiterate to the folks here today that my job is solving problems for you. Whether that's solving problems like helping make sure we keep prescription drug costs down, protect
For the rest of the program time here, I'd like to come around and talk to you about your concerns and see what problems my team and I may be able to solve for you.
Thank you.
Read this original document at: http://gottheimer.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=104
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