Washington, DC — Congressional Republicans took an axe to Americans’ health care and now millions are worried about their ability to afford it.
According to new reporting by The New York Times, when Americans talk about affordability being their biggest concern, health care tops the list for many. Polling shows that health care costs are the number one expense Americans worry about. And Americans have congressional Republicans to thank. Republicans in Congress voted for the largest cuts to health care in history and got rid of health care tax credits, all so they could fund more tax breaks for billionaires. Republicans’ cuts have put a projected 15 million Americans at risk of losing health insurance – including 1 million Latinos – and Americans who relied on health care tax credits may be seeing their premiums more than double.
The Times reports that congressional Republicans, like Congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks (IA-01), have also refused to take accountability for the health care crisis they created. After the National Republican Congressional Committee advised members last year not to hold public town halls. Jill Kordick, a constituent of Miller-Meeks’ who was highlighted in the Times’ reporting, had to travel to Washington to reach the Congresswoman who raised her premiums from $900 a year ago to $9,600. Health care cuts have hurt rural areas and farmers in particular, with about 15,000 Iowans dropping their health insurance after Republicans let the ACA tax credits expire.
“If Republicans spent half as much time focusing on lowering costs as they did giving handouts to billionaires, working Americans wouldn’t be so concerned about affording care,” said Unrig Our Economy Campaign Director Leor Tal. “Congressional Republicans clearly aren’t prioritizing making life more affordable for their constituents. If they did, they wouldn’t have repeatedly voted to send their health care costs soaring and put millions at risk of losing insurance altogether.”
To learn more about the campaign, visit UnrigOurEconomy.com or contact press@unrigoureconomy.com
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About Unrig Our Economy
Unrig Our Economy is a national campaign to fix the rules of our economy to make it work for working people. We know that when the middle class does well, all of us do well — which is why we’re fighting on behalf of working Americans and holding corporations, their wealthy executives, and the politicians who enable them accountable.