Repealing & Replacing the ACA
"In 1994, as a member of the
"HB94-1210, was aimed at the small employer health insurance market and the individual market. Larger employers were not included because were regulated at the federal level and exempt from state insurance regulations under the "Early Retirement Income Security Act of 1974." Larger groups were not seen as having the same problems that smaller health insurance groups and individual markets had. Small employers and those who purchase health insurance on their own were experiencing severe difficulties with pre-existing conditions and discrimination based on gender.
"Unfortunately, I was not able to fend off an amendment that exempted the individual health insurance market from the landmark consumer protections provided for in my legislation, but I was at least able to advance these protections for the small employers and the legislation was the first major attempt to reform the health care insurance system in
"Now, 'fast forward' to 2010, the year when the Affordable Care Act (ACA), was passed by
"The ACA has expanded coverage through the
"For those purchasing insurance through
"What I will plan to do to address the inevitable failure of the ACA in
* Reform the
o Key here is giving states more flexibility to design their own systems. This will not only improve outcomes but contain cost.
o Limit the
* Eliminate the employer mandate.
o This mandate only applies to businesses of 50 or more employees while most of the problems associated with access to employer-based health insurance are found in smaller businesses which have avoided the mandate by not adding jobs.
o Allow small business to band together to purchase their health insurance so that they can get the same discounts large businesses.
* Eliminate the individual mandate
o In too many cases, it's cheaper to pay the penalty and buy insurance only when it's needed, thereby 'gaming' the system and pushing up rates for everyone else.
o Replace this with a tighter requirement to maintain continuous coverage in order to retain eligibility for all the consumer protections (i.e. preexisting conditions) contained in the ACA.
* Provide incentives for the purchase of health insurance.
o Give individuals the same tax deductibility that businesses have when they buy health insurance.
o Use the tax code, to assist low income individuals, through the use refundable tax credits paid directly for the insurance plan of their choice.
o Increasing the contribution limits for health saving accounts.
* Maintain the consumer protections contained in the ACA.
o Requiring insurance carriers to cover preexisting conditions;
o Prohibiting lifetime caps;
o No price discrimination on the basis of gender; and
o Allow dependents to stay on their parents' policies until age 26.
"Finally and perhaps most importantly, I will not vote for to repeal any part of the ACA without a concurrent replacement."
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