Raimondo: Republican health care bill really ‘a tax cut for the wealthiest’

June 29--PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Governor Gina M. Raimondo on Thursday said the U.S. Senate Republican's version of the health care bill would undo the progress made in expanding coverage for Rhode Islanders and said leaders have a "moral obligation" to oppose it.

"The Senate Trumpcare Bill is not a health care bill -- it's a tax cut for the wealthiest people in our nation that's being paid for by the poorest," Raimondo said in a statement. "If this passes, it puts all of the progress we've made in Rhode Island at risk. As leaders, we have a moral obligation to stand up for the most vulnerable people in our community -- and that's exactly who Trumpcare would hurt."

The statement followed a news conference with the governor and her health cabinet where officials outlined the bill's "potentially disastrous" impact on the roughly 100,000 Rhode Islanders covered under the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare.

Rhode Island is among 31 states, along with the District of Columbia, that adopted the Affordable Care Act's expanded eligibility criteria for Medicaid, the government insurance program for low-income people and those with disabilities.

About 70,000 adults without dependent children gained coverage in Rhode Island under Medicaid expansion. Another 30,000 Rhode Islanders are insured through the Obamacare exchange, known as HealthSource RI.

The federal law has helped expand health coverage in Rhode Island to about 96 percent of the population, among the highest in the country.

State health officials estimate that "Trumpcare" could cost Rhode Island nearly $2 billion in federal support for Medicaid over a six-year period.

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