A coalition of sixteen medical groups—including the influential American Cancer Society, American Diabetes Association and American Heart Association—wrote an open letter Monday opposing a new Senate effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act and convert Medicaid funding into a block grant controlled by states, warning the bill would “negatively impact patients’ access to adequate and affordable health coverage and care.”
“This bill would limit funding for the Medicaid program, roll back important essential
health benefit protections, and potentially open the door to annual and lifetime caps on coverage, endangering access to critical care for millions of Americans,” the groups wrote.
In the letter, the medical patient and provider groups urged Congress to abandon their efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act, which Republicans are rushing to do before the end of September in order to use the process known as reconciliation to pass a bill with only 50 votes.
Instead, the organizations called for Congress to complete their work on an Obamacare stabilization bill that aims to bring insurance premiums down by taking away President Donald Trump’s ability to suddenly cut off the subsidies that cover the care of low-income people with serious health care needs.
Read the full letter here:
Silly medical groups! The bill isn’t about health care or about keeping Americans healthy! GOPosaurs don’t give a shit about that, nor will you letter do anything to change their minds. It’s about financing tax cuts for millionaires, billionaires and transnational corporations!
Ice floe subsidies are being increased considerably, so there’s that.
What would medical groups know about medical stuff anyhow?
Something I haven’t seen much discussed: McConnell is backing this latest push in part because it gives Luther Strange something to use in his runoff with Roy Moore.
I don’t see the American Medical Association on the list, although I think they’ve opposed other recent Republican attempts for repeal and so-call replace. Have they taken a position on this bill? Or are the doctors still consulting with their accountants to decide which is more beneficial…tax cuts or providing health care to more patients and living up to what some may consider that silly oath they took? I hope they, too, get on board with the resistance.