American Medical Association: New ACA Repeal Bill Would Still Do ‘Serious Harm’

ADVANCE FOR USE MONDAY, MARCH 13, 2017 AND THEREAFTER-Dr. Garen Wintemute, an emergency room physician at the University of California, Davis, Medical Center, shows the website of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and F... ADVANCE FOR USE MONDAY, MARCH 13, 2017 AND THEREAFTER-Dr. Garen Wintemute, an emergency room physician at the University of California, Davis, Medical Center, shows the website of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, on a computer in the hospital in Sacramento, Calif., on Thursday, March 9, 2017. On the day President Donald Trump was inaugurated, Wintemute got a call from a colleague, who reported that the White House had removed a climate change page from its website. Fearing that federal data on gun violence might soon similarly vanish under a president with close ties to the National Rifle Association, Wintemute called together his partners at the UC Davis Violence Prevention Research Program. He then ticked off the records he wanted to archive. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli) MORE LESS
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The United States’ largest advocacy group for doctors on Wednesday said the latest iteration of Republicans’ bill to repeal and replace Obamacare would eliminate protections for people with pre-existing conditions and result in millions of people losing their coverage.

Andrew W. Gurman, the president of the American Medical Association, said in a statement that the bill would cause “serious harm to patients and the health care delivery system.”

“Not only would the AHCA eliminate health insurance coverage for millions of Americans, the legislation would, in many cases, eliminate the ban against charging those with underlying medical conditions vastly more for their coverage,” Gurman said.

He said proposed amendments to the legislation “tinker at the edges without remedying the fundamental failing of the bill – that millions of Americans will lose their health insurance as a direct result of this proposal.”

“America should not go backward to the time when our fellow citizens with pre-existing health conditions faced high costs for limited coverage, if they were able to obtain coverage at all,” Gurman said.

The American Medical Association came out against the repeal bill in its original iteration in March. Republican leaders pulled that version of the bill after they failed to corral enough votes to ensure its passage through the House, and have since been trying to whip enough votes to pass the legislation in a revised form.

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Notable Replies

  1. Dear AMA, that’s what the Freedumb Caucus wants - serious harm.

  2. Trump: It will only harm the poor and those needing medical assistance. As they eventually die, rest of us will get to enjoy a wealthier and healthier life. I guarantee that we will be happy, especially my wealthy friends.

  3. Trump just needs to take every AMA doctor out for a round of golf at Mar-a-Lago. And no worries about the cost of hosting them all – bill it right back to the American people.

    Thanks again Uneducated Vote!

  4. Sooner or later Republicans will get tired of this whole healthcare debate and come up with a solution. A Final Solution, if you will.

  5. Of course it will do great harm.

    For Republicans, that’s a feature, not a bug.

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