Republicans in the Senate will not be content to leave well enough alone. They are bound and determined to wipe away any progress made during the Obama administration, even if that means throwing millions off their insurance. And this time, don’t count on John McCain to swoop in at the last minute with a thumbs down. He has already stated that his problem with the last bill was only that it didn’t go through regular order. If this one does, he will probably vote for it.
Graham, Cassidy unveil last-ditch Obamacare repeal bill
The $1.2 trillion bill, H.R. 1628 (115), which has been at the CBO for about one week, according to the senators, would provide states with block grants instead of Obamacare’s tax credits, Medicaid expansion and cost-sharing payments. It would also repeal Obamacare’s individual and employer mandates and the medical device tax.
In general, Republicans favor giving the states a “block grant” of funding to create their own health care systems. The repeal bill attempts to equalize health care spending by the federal government to states.
Ending subsidies and giving block grants for states to create our own health care systems. Tell me, good reader, do you trust our General Assembly to create a health system for NC that has everyone’s best interests at heart? Do we really believe that Tim Moore and Phil Berger won’t find a way to funnel that money straight into Art Pope’s pocketbook? This is a recipe for nothing more than caps on coverage, denial of services and rationed care for all but the wealthiest people who can afford to pay out-of-pocket for their health care. In other words: Death Panels™
Let’s look over a few things this Graham-Cassidy Heller plan has in store for us:
The Graham-Cassidy-Heller bill will also allow insurers to charge you more if your child is born with a birth defect. So much for the “Jimmy Kimmel test” as Senator Cassidy called it. Back in May, Cassidy stated on CNN the following:
CNN’s John Berman on whether he could “support a bill that allows insurance companies to cap their payouts to customers.”
“I ask does it pass the Jimmy Kimmel test,” said Cassidy, who is also a physician. “Would the child born with a congenital heart disease be able to get everything she or he would need in that first year of life … even if they go over a certain amount?”
Cassidy said, “So simple answer: I want to make sure folks get the care they need.”
He seems to be going back on his word with this new plan for repeal of the Affordable Care Act. A Republican Senator not only goes back on his word but works to enact a plan that will throw even more sick people under the bus.
I’m shocked! Are you shocked? 🙄🙄🙄
The good news is Republicans have only a short window of opportunity to pass this abomination. On October 1 the rules of the Senate revert back to needing 60 votes (instead of the current 51) to pass this thing. We need to hold them off for 13 days and I believe we can do that.
BOMBSHELL: Graham-Cassidy bill text is clear: under state waivers insurers can charge higher premiums for pre-existing conditions. pic.twitter.com/aGsXIcR3LJ
— Topher Spiro (@TopherSpiro) September 15, 2017
There is a bill out there proposing Medicare for all. It is sponsored by Senator Bernie Sanders and is co-sponsored by sixteen other senators.
The Politics of Bernie Sanders’s “Medicare for All” Bill
With Republicans in control of Congress, there is obviously no immediate chance of Sanders’s bill becoming law. But, in the days leading up to its unveiling, the trickle of senators who had agreed to co-sponsor the measure turned into a torrent. In the end, there were sixteen co-sponsors. They included Tammy Baldwin, of Wisconsin; Cory Booker, of New Jersey; Al Franken, of Minnesota; Kirsten Gillibrand, of New York; Kamala Harris, of California; Jeff Merkley, of Oregon; Brian Schatz, of Hawaii; and Elizabeth Warren, of Massachusetts.
We must make sure the Graham-Cassidy-Heller plan never sees the light of day.
Call you Senators.
SCRIPT: My name is _________ from __________ in NC. I am calling to let Sen. _______ know that I believe this new attempt at repealing the Affordable Care Act is unacceptable. It is a bad plan anyway, but in North Carolina we simply cannot trust our General Assembly to be good stewards of block grants which this new plan proposes. Our current GA has let us down too many times in many other ways to trust them with this important process. I encourage the Senator do what’s best for North Carolinians and the rest of the country, and sign on to the Medicare for All bill put forward by Sen. Bernie Sanders. It is time for the United States to catch up with the rest of the world in regards to health care. Thank you for your time.
UPCOMING EVENTS:
9th Annual Defending Democracy Blue Jean Gala – Saturday September 23, 2017, 6:00PM – The Exchange – 204 S Fayetteville St, Asheboro, NC Special guest speakers will be Rep. Graig Meyer, NC House District 50 and NCDP Second Vice Chair Matt Hughes.
Where, Berger wondered, are the North Carolina Democrats of old who were pro guns, pro-life and pro business?
