TWO NEW REPORTS: IMPACTS OF REPEAL AND REPLACE ON THE STATES, ON INDIVIDUALS AND ON COVERAGE.
As Republicans in the House begin to develop their legislation to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, aka Obamacare, independent analysts are beginning to assess the impacts on states and individuals.
The first report is by Avalere Health and McKinsey and Company. “Republican lawmakers’ plans to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act could leave millions of newly-insured Americans without healthcare coverage and stop billions of federal dollars from flowing into states, according to a new report. The analysis, compiled by the apolitical consulting healthcare firm Avalere Health and the bipartisan business management firm McKinsey & Company, was presented to state governors who met in Washington D.C. on Saturday.” http://kfor.com/2017/02/27/obamacare-rollback-could-cost-states-billions-leave-millions-uninsured-tmwsp/ The 31 states that expanded Medicaid would see coverage in their individual markets decline by close to a third. The 29 states that did not expand Medicaid would see coverage in their individual markets fall by 50%.
The second report by David Cutler, John Bertko and Topher Spiro analyzed the impacts of the GOP proposals on premiums and cost-sharing in the individual market. Their conclusions are that huge health care costs would be shifted from insurers to individuals, with middle-aged Americans suffering the greatest cost increases. “We’re presenting here the first analysis of the net financial impact on Americans of the proposed Republican modifications to health care premiums after tax credits, plus cost sharing. We estimate that the Republican approach would increase the average total cost for an individual covered by the Affordable Care Act by $1,744 per year. The impact would be particularly severe for individuals ages 55 to 64, whose total costs would increase by $6,089 annually.” http://www.vox.com/the-big-idea/2017/2/24/14722152/obamacare-aca-health-care-costs-premiums-costs-increase
Congressional representatives need to hear your reactions to the impacts of these changes being developed by House Republicans.
Prepared by: Lucien Wulsin
Dated: February 27, 2017