TRYING TO REPEAL HEALTHCARE LAW

The African American Caucus of the North Carolina Democratic Party does not support any vote on any house bill to make changes to the Affordable Care Act due to political fear and not due to sound policy. Specifically we oppose the Upton House Bill due for a vote Friday November 15, 2013. No democrat should vote for this bill, it is a repeal of the Affordable Care Act.

We do not support any changes by the House of Representatives or the Senate, to the Affordable Care Act prior to the enrollment ending period, for the following reasons:

·         The Upton Bill drafted by republican Fred Upton of Michigan and cosponsored by democrats, John Barrow of Georgia and Mike McIntyre of NC requires insurance companies to reissue cancelled policies, giving concern to the insurance lobby, about such changes and its implementation.

 

·         The insurance companies did what insurance companies do and have done since their inception, which is cancels policies due to competition, cost or if they were inadequate due to new insurance laws.

 

·         According to an architect of the Massachusetts health law and the Affordable Care Act, no changes should be made to the law until after the enrollment period because it is then when full evaluation can and should be made.

 

·         The original Medicare and the Massachusetts health law had slower enrollments than the Affordable Care Act within the same period of time.

 

·         The Affordable Care Act is not the website; the site is one vehicle of enrollment participation. Citizens across the country are being helped now with existing programs under the healthcare law: children up to age 26 can stay on parents health insurance; if you have preexisting conditions (such as heart burn, pregnancy, cancer or high blood pressure, etc.), you cannot be denied coverage; there is no lifetime cap; if you are a young adult over 26 and unemployed you can get a subsidy to get insurance; if you work part-time, you can get insurance. The program is working.

 

·         If Republicans truly cared about the health of Americans, all governors would have implementation of the expansion of Medicaid through our states. To allow maliciousness, and political fear, dictate changes to a working law due to mechanical problems on a web site, with so many getting help, is unconscionable, irresponsible, and will cause irrevocable damage to a healthcare law that is good for all Americans.

President Obama got us out the worst economic disaster since the Great Depression; he got us out of the Iraq War; he got rid of Osama Ben Laudin, and he has lowered our deficit to its lowest in 5 years. This but scratches the surface of what he has done for all Americans, and the African American Caucus NCDP think it is imperative for all democrats to wait until the end of the enrollment period to evaluate any “fix” if needed and that is sound policy.

African American Caucus North Carolina Democratic Party