House Approves Bill Slashing Health Coverage

The U.S. House of Representatives voted by a narrow margin today to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA) with a bill that would permit discrimination against people with preexisting health conditions, substantially increase insurance premiums for older adults, result in millions of people losing coverage, and worsen the fiscal health of Medicare.

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The bill, approved in a mostly party-line vote of 217 to 213, would also cut Medicaid funding, which millions of low-income seniors as well as children and adults with disabilities rely on, by more than $800 billion over 10 years.

The American Health Care Act (AHCA) drew the support of 217 Republicans. Twenty Republicans and all 193 Democrats voted against it. The legislation will now go to the Senate, where it is expected to face strong opposition and its outlook is uncertain.

The AHCA has been condemned by leading consumer and health groups, including AARP and physician and hospital organizations.

“AARP is deeply disappointed in today’s vote by the House to pass this deeply flawed health bill,” said AARP Executive Vice President Nancy LeaMond. “The bill will put an age tax on us, harming millions of American families with health insurance, forcing many to lose coverage or pay thousands of dollars more for health care. In addition, the bill now puts at risk the 25 million older adults with preexisting conditions, such as cancer and diabetes, who would likely find health care unaffordable or unavailable to them.”

Pulled from House consideration in March when it lacked sufficient votes for passage, the legislation found new life through an amendment permitting states to request waivers that would allow insurers to charge higher premiums to people with preexisting conditions. That would be a dramatic departure from the protections of current law. Twenty-five million people ages 50-64 have a preexisting condition and would face much higher premiums — thousands of dollars a year — that in many cases would be unaffordable.

While supporters of the bill maintained that people with preexisting conditions could be cared for through high-risk pools, an analysis by AARP’s Public Policy Institute found that premiums in such pools could reach unaffordable levels — as much as $25,700 a year in 2019. In the past, high-risk pools have put such an onerous financial burden on states that insurance benefits were scaled back and enrollment in them was capped.