Industry waits to ‘see what happens’ with ACA
A Q&A with
When the ACA was signed into law in 2010, it expanded
Previously,
The question now is what happens if the law is rolled back.
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Counties to pick up cost?
"We're having that conversation now with county leadership and the state Legislature," said
Gomez said that after the
"There are definitely problems with the ACA," she said. "It's not affordable for everyone, some rates have skyrocketed. There will be problems without the ACA also. But the county will still respond and do the best we can to help our residents. We'll just have to see what happens."
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NM disproportionately affected
"I truly don't know what will happen," he said. "I don't see the ACA being pulled altogether, but I can see maybe a state block grant being implemented."
Crotty said a repeal of portions of the
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"
Crotty believes the ACA was a good first step but said the law needs to be adjusted because costs are too high and are not sustainable. But coming up with a replacement is essential, he said.
"In the health care world, we had just figured out what the ACA was, and now we're just kind of scratching our heads wondering what comes next," he said. "If it's not replaced, it will cause a lot of problems."
'We will continue to care'
"It's really up in the air," she said, of the health care situation. "Literally, the bottom line is that no one knows what's going to happen."
She echoed sentiments that
"If that part went away, we'd be moving backward," she said. "However, PMS takes care of people regardless of whether or not they can pay, so if
Crawford said her agency would find a way to continue providing care for patients who could suddenly find themselves uninsured.
"We would get funding to help take care of those people. It may have to go back to the way it once was (before the ACA), when the county received indigent funding," she said.
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The interim CEO for
"That's the caveat, we really don't know what's going to happen," said
Potential increase in joblessness
Before the ACA, 22 percent of New Mexicans were uninsured, compared to the current 10 percent, she said.
"We attribute that to the ACA," she said. "If it goes away, the uninsured numbers will go back up, and that's a hardship on the state in general. If people can't afford insurance, it's a hardship for hospitals. And if people don't get medical care because of lack of insurance, you could also see a loss in overall jobs. It all has a spiral-down effect."
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Despite discussions of changes to the health care system, the
"They don't know what's happening," she said. "So our role is to help them get through the confusion, and let them know we can still help them get through the process. We want them to know they can come to us and can visit our website for help."
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