WASHINGTON – In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) highlighted the devastation that Republicans’ heartless health care repeal plan would unleash on the state of Illinois—including kicking one million Illinoisans of their health insurance and causing further pain to the state economy.
In order to provide nearly one trillion in tax cuts for wealthy individuals and big businesses, the Republican repeal bill would throw 22 million people nationwide off health insurance, slash funding for the Medicaid program, undermine protections for people with pre-existing conditions, allow insurers to charge older Americans significantly more than younger people, and raise out-of-pocket costs in rural communities. Durbin urged Senate Republicans to heed their constituents’ calls to abandon their repeal efforts and instead work constructively with Democrats to improve the existing health care system.
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“I can tell you that the notion of repealing the Affordable Care Act may have had some surface political appeal until you realize you might be one of the one million people in my state who ends up with no health insurance when it's all over. [The Republican bill] would cut Medicaid dramatically and then keep cutting – a 35 percent cut over the next 20 years, with devastating impacts on hospitals and clinics and many other facilities. By 2020, average premiums in the individual market would increase by 76 percent under the Republican plan. Costs would skyrocket even higher for seniors, rural communities, and those with medical needs,” Durbin said. “In all of my town halls and discussions, the plea from Illinoisans has been clear: Improve the Affordable Care Act. Don’t repeal it.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIVkAa0Ppzo
