The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has just released its score for the Better Care Reconciliation Act of 2017 (BCRA), estimating that the Senate version of the health care bill aimed at repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act (ACA) would leave 22 million more uninsured by 2026.
As the Senate tackles its version of the House-passed American Health Care Act (AHCA), we will continue to hear about back-room negotiations with Senate Republicans who have publicly expressed opposition or serious concerns with the bill. It is expected that the vote on the motion to proceed will take place on Wednesday. Once that motion passes, the Senate will have 20 hours to debate under the rules of reconciliation. Then, the final vote will occur at the end of the 20-hour debate being referred to as “vote-a-rama.” The vote will likely come on Friday but could stretch into the weekend. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell would like the vote to occur this week, even though the Senate has an internal deadline of Aug. 1. President Trump today reported that he would like to see the legislation by the August recess.
Our concerns with the Senate version of the bill are:
- The deep cuts to the Medicaid program will threaten coverage.
- Proposed subsidies will not provide adequate coverage.
- Individual premiums will rise.
- South Dakota jobs will be threatened and services will be reduced.
Attached is a robust review of the bill from AHA which also includes a side-by-side comparison of the ACA and both the House and Senate bill versions.
Members of the health system advocacy group and Debra A. Owen will be conducting Hill visits in D.C. on Tuesday. Please watch for an update in Capitol Insights on Wednesday for additional information and updates. In addition, we urge you to reach out to Sen. John Thune and Sen. Mike Rounds and relay your concerns either directly or through our online advocacy alert.
We will continue to provide updates as things change.
