Rep. Neguse Passes Constituent-Inspired Legislation to Ensure Fair Access to Affordable Health Care for All Coloradans

WASHINGTON, June 30 -- Rep. Joseph Neguse, D-Colorado, issued the following news release:

Congressman Joe Neguse, who represents Colorado's 2nd Congressional District, today passed legislation out of the U.S. House of Representatives to ensure social security income recipients continue to receive the Affordable Care Act tax credits for which they are eligible. Representative Neguse's bill, the Fairness in Social Security Act--co-led by Congressman Jared Golden--ensures some of the nation's most vulnerable citizens do not unexpectedly owe large sums back to the IRS by excluding social security disability income ("SSDI") lump sum payments from the calculation of eligibility for tax credits to purchase healthcare through the Affordable Care Act insurance exchanges. These excluded one-time lump sum payments are dispersed to a beneficiary as back payments for the time it took to certify their eligibility for SSDI. Congressman Neguse's legislation was incorporated into the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Enhancement Act which builds on the ACA to lower health costs and prescription drug prices, and which passed the House earlier.

"Last year, I heard from a constituent in Silverthorne who, as a result of this faulty IRS rule, owed over $27,000 to the IRS," said Congressman Joe Neguse. "The aftermath of this rule is that people with disabilities, widows, and others qualifying for social security disability income may end up with large and unexpected tax bills, putting some of our nation's most vulnerable tax-payers at-risk. Since hearing this story, we have worked swiftly on a legislative solution to address the issue and ensure Coloradans are not placed in a similarly precarious financial situation in the future. I'm honored that our bill passed out of the House, alongside countless other provisions and improvements to the Affordable Care Act which continue House Democrats' work of lowering the cost of healthcare and prescription drug prices for all Americans."

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Enhancement Act increases ACA subsidies to be more generous and cover more middle-class families. For the first time, no person will pay more than 8.5 percent of their income for a benchmark silver plan in the ACA marketplaces, and many Americans will see their premiums cut in half or more:

* A family of four earning $40,000 would save nearly $1,600 in premiums each year.

* A 64-year-old earning $57,420 would save more than $8,700 in premiums each year.

* A single adult with income of $31,900 would see premiums cut in half.

* An adult earning $19,140 would see premiums cut to zero, saving $800 dollars a year.

The bill also includes provisions to:

* Allow HHS to negotiate for lower prescription drug prices, ensuring that Americans no longer have to pay more for medicines than Big Pharma charges for the same drugs overseas;

* Expand coverage, enticing Medicaid expansion hold-out states with new carrots and sticks to adopt coverage for the 4.8 million Americans still excluded from coverage, while restoring the outreach and advertising funding that the Trump Administration has slashed to prevent Americans from learning about the affordable health coverage available to them under the ACA;

* Combat inequity in health coverage faced by communities of color, expanding more affordable coverage to vulnerable populations and fighting the maternal mortality epidemic disproportionately affecting women of color by requiring states to extend Medicaid or CHIP coverage to new mothers for a full year postpartum; and

* Crack down on junk plans and strengthen protections for people with pre-existing conditions, reversing the Trump Administration's expansion of junk health insurance plans - plans which do not provide coverage for essential medical treatments and drugs, and that are allowed to discriminate against people with pre-existing medical conditions.