Kreidler, 14 Washington Health Insurers Advise Congress on Risks of ACA Repeal

OLYMPIA, Wash., Jan. 18 -- The Washington state Office of the Insurance Commissioner issued the following news release:

Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler and 14 health insurers sent a joint letter today to Washington's Congressional delegation advising them of the consequences of repealing the Affordable Care Act without a concrete, comprehensive replacement plan.

The 14 insurers are members of the Association of Washington Healthcare Plans. Together, they provide coverage to over 5 million consumers.

"We've taken this unified and unprecedented action today because of our state's experience with health reform," said Kreidler. "We know-- firsthand --the harm these decisions can have on the health insurance market and our consumers."

Kreidler and the health insurers cite Washington's experience in the 1990s. The state passed the Health Services Act of 1993, which included guaranteed coverage and a mandate. Two years later the Legislature repealed the mandate. Premiums soared and by the late 1990s, the individual market collapsed.

They urge Congress to consider Washington's experience. To repeal the Affordable Care Act without first laying out a viable, comprehensive plan for its replacement will quickly destabilize an already fragile market and harm millions of people with health coverage.

Read the full letter (https://www.insurance.wa.gov/about-oic/newsroom/news/2017/documents/Kreidler-AWHP-letter-on-ACA-repeal.pdf).

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