Will the new GOP health-care bill be devastating to San Joaquin Valley residents?
Nearly 872,600 people in the
"We see a regression back to the days when we had 25 to 35 percent of our patients uninsured," said
The legislation by
It would affect our ability to reinvest in technology and new types of procedures and drugs, and supplies.
Covered
The bill would end federally funded subsidies for lower-income people who buy insurance on exchanges. The UC Berkeley study, released Friday, shows 106,500 Valley residents would lose subsidies. Statewide, more than 1.2 million people would lose the help to pay for plans purchased through Covered California, the state's insurance exchange established for the Affordable Care Act.
The Graham-Cassidy bill also would end the requirement that everyone must have health insurance or pay a penalty. And it would allow states to give insurers more flexibility in the insurance market, which some people fear would allow insurance companies to charge more to people with pre-existing conditions.
Hurtado, who is going to community college and works part-time as an after-school tutor, said her health is stable. All that could change if she were unable to afford insurance, she said. "Everything can collapse."
Graham-Cassidy's insurance impact
UC Berkeley's Labor Center estimates 6.7 million Californians could lose their health insurance by 2027 under the Graham-Cassidy bill, the latest attempt to undo the Affordable Care Act. Here's how the Valley would be affected.
County
Subsidized Covered California enrollees
Medi-Cal Expansion Adults
Medi-Cal Children
Medi-Cal Seniors
Medi-Cal Disabled
Total
22,600
125,900
62,300
2,300
2,400
215,500
Kern
16,700
105,400
51,100
1,900
2,000
177,100
Kings
2,300
14,600
6,900
300
300
24,400
4,100
16,400
8,600
300
300
29,700
9,100
35,100
16,800
700
700
62,400
22,900
77,900
33,700
1,700
1,700
137,900
Stanislaus
17,500
69,800
28,400
1,200
1,300
118,200
10,600
59,200
32,400
1,200
1,200
104,600
Valley total
105,800
504,300
240,200
9,600
9,900
869,800
1,252,800
3,961,500
1,341,100
76,200
77,000
6,708,600
Source:
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