Menendez, Booker, Voto Latino, Planned Parenthood, APIAHF and NLIRH Highlight Trumpcare’s Devastating Effects on Communities of Color

WASHINGTON, May 24 -- The office of Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., issued the following news release:

U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) joined Voto Latino, the Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum (APIAHF), Planned Parenthood, and the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health (NLIRH) to highlight the effects of the Republican health care bill on communities of color throughout the country, and to call on Senate Republicans to abandon their plan to sabotage and repeal our current health care system and instead work with Democrats to improve it.

"The Republican repeal of the Affordable Care Act is bad news for pretty much everyone except millionaires and health insurance industry executives, but it's especially devastating to communities of color and people living in poverty - the unfortunate reality being that there is such persistent overlap between the two," said Senator Menendez (D-NJ), the highest-ranking Latino in the U.S. Congress. "We stand united as a coalition of lawmakers, advocates, community leaders and concerned citizens urging Senate Republicans to work with Democrats to find real solutions to our health care system that don't disproportionately punish those whose lives were made drastically better by the ACA's historic protections. The House-passed legislation is nothing short of a full-out assault on low-income families and communities of color, and as a senior member of the Senate Finance Committee, I plan to fight this bill tooth and nail. We cannot go back to a time when access to health care was a privilege granted to those who could afford it rather than a right afforded to all Americans."

U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ), said "President Trump asked African Americans what we had to lose. With Trumpcare, he's shown us - it's health care. African Americans and other minority communities made significant gains in health care coverage under the Affordable Care Act. Trumpcare would reverse these gains, threatening coverage and decreasing access to essential health services for millions of people of color."

Click here to see photos of the event (https://www.flickr.com/photos/61259067@N02/albums/72157681064271704)

"There is nothing American, healthy, or caring about the Republican's American Health Care Act. This bill threatens the progress made by Latinos under the Affordable Health Act, which expanded access to health coverage for more than 4.2 million Latinos and brought Latino uninsured rates to historic lows. An estimated 676,000 Latino children gained coverage and the Latino child uninsured rate saw the largest two-year decline on record. Young Latinos, many of them part of the Voto Latino audience, were able to stay on their parent's health insurance until 26 and more than 9 million Latinas of reproductive age were given access to preventative care. Rather than trying to repeal and replace the ACA and strip millions of these gains, we demand our elected officials work together to make it better," said Maria Teresa Kumar, President and CEO, Voto Latino

"Repealing the Affordable Care Act would undue historic coverage gains amongst Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders, putting an estimated 2 million at risk for losing coverage," said Amina Ferati, Senior Director of Government Relations and Policy for the Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum.

Ann Marie Benitez, Senior Director of Government Relations, National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health said, "The American Health Care Act is a direct affront to our communities' salud, dignidad and justicia. There is no way around it: The AHCA would have a devastating, long-term impact on women of color's health, economic security and progress. It is an attack on reproductive justice, a threat to health equity and the well-being of Latinxs, our families, and our communities."

Ola Ojewumi, Planned Parenthood Metro Washington's Developing Leaders Program said, "The American Health Care Act is the worst bill for women's health in a generation and it would have disastrous consequences. Blocking Medicaid patients from going to Planned Parenthood for birth control, STI testing, and potentially life-saving cancer screenings will only compound the difficulties that marginalized communities have in accessing quality health care. I thank Senators Menendez and Booker for standing with disabled women of color, like me, as we fight to protect our lives, our care, and our right to choose our health care providers."