Rep. Shalala Issues Statement on Oral Arguments in Lawsuit to Strike Down Affordable Care Act

WASHINGTON, July 9 -- Rep. Donna Shalala, D-Florida, issued the following statement on the day of oral arguments to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in Texas vs. U.S. to strike down the Affordable Care Act:

"Today the Fifth Circuit Court is hearing oral arguments to strike down the Affordable Care Act. Stripping away the ACA's protections would have a devasting effect on millions of American families. In Miami-Dade County, hundreds of thousands of people -100,000 in my district alone - would lose their health insurance if the ACA were repealed," said Rep. Shalala.

"Whether you're insured through your employer or the marketplace, you have something to lose if the ACA is struck down--prohibitions on lifetime or annual limits, covering your kids until they are 26, and coverage for pre-existing conditions.

"For almost a decade now, the GOP has continuously attacked this critically important law that so many rely on without ever proposing a viable alternative or solution to keep people affected from losing their insurance.

"I and my Democratic colleagues will not yield an inch of ground in the fight to protect the ACA. We will preserve this essential law and continue to work to expand--and guarantee--health coverage for all Americans."