| [June 22, 2017] |
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Senate Health Care Bill Fails to Adequately Protect People with Cystic Fibrosis
Earlier today, the U.S. Senate released the text of its health care
reform bill, the Better Care Reconciliation Act (BCRA), and reports
indicate a Senate vote is likely next week. The Cystic Fibrosis
Foundation issued the following statement in response:
"The Better Care Reconciliation Act is unacceptable for people with
cystic fibrosis. If passed, this legislation would jeopardize our
community's ability to access life-saving treatments and care. The
proposal for Medicaid is particularly concerning, as it goes even
further than the American Health Care Act in jeopardizing access to
treatments and care by drastically cutting funding for this critical
program. We implore Senators to think about the people at the heart of
this legislation and oppose this bill.
"As written, the BCRA would:
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Drastically cut funding to Medicaid, a critical source of
coverage for one half of children and one third of adults living with
CF.
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End Medicaid expansion, causig millions of people to lose
vital health coverage.
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Effectively remove protections against annual and lifetime caps,
including for the millions of Americans with employer-sponsored
insurance.
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Allow states to waive the guarantee of essential health benefits,
which would segment the market into plans for sick people and plans
for healthy people, driving up the cost of plans for people with
serious health care needs.
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Give people less financial assistance to purchase coverage,
potentially putting adequate health care coverage financially out of
reach for them.
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Open the door for states to bring back high-risk pools, which
put people with serious health conditions into a separate insurance
market and have been shown to result in higher premiums, longer
waiting periods, and stricter enrollment caps.
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Allow health plans to cover a lower share of patients' medical
expenses, which means higher out-of-pocket costs for individuals.
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Provide insufficient financial resources to incentivize insurance
companies to participate in the individual marketplace and to keep
premiums down.
"From the very beginning of this process, we have been clear that any
legislation must protect the needs of individuals with cystic fibrosis
and their ability to get adequate, affordable health insurance. The BCRA
fails to ensure that people with the disease -- regardless of income,
employment, health status, or geographic location -- can get the
specialized care they need to live longer, healthier lives."
View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170622006295/en/
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