On May 4th, 2017, the House Republicans voted to repeal Obamacare and pass the American Health Care Act as the replacement bill. This will bring huge changes to the health care system, and many of the changes are heartbreaking. What's most interesting is that not only are many American citizens displeased with the new bill, but many of the Republican senators who voted to pass it believe that there are many crucial issues in it. Why would they pass a bill that would negatively harm them too? There is an item that exempts Congress members and their staff from losing the popular benefits of Obamacare. Representative Tom MacArthur of New Jersey said that a separate bill would actually close that loophole shortly. Here are some of the other benefits that the AHCA will not provide.
Say Goodbye to the 10 Essential Health Benefits.
Obamacare had a list of 10 "essential health benefits" that all health plans must offer. Things like maternity care and mental health care are on this list. The AHCA will allow states to define their own essential health benefits. This might sound like something that will increase competition, but unfortunately, the insurance industry doesn't really work for the people. If there is something that is expensive, then the company is not likely to offer those benefits if they don't have to. And if they do, it will be at a very high price that makes them unaffordable.
Say Goodbye to the coverage of pre-existing conditions.
Even though the Trump administration promised to protect people with pre-existing conditions from high premiums and deductibles, they changed their minds. Now insurance companies will be able to charge people more for certain things. If someone doesn't maintain continuous coverage, their premiums can become significantly higher. Some things considered as pre-existing conditions: sexual assault, domestic violence, pregnancy, c-sections, postpartum depression, eating disorders, and the list goes on.
Say Goodbye to Expanded Medicaid.
After 2020, people will not be allowed to enroll in Obamacare's expanded Medicaid program. Medicaid helped provide health coverage to more than 10 million lower-income individuals. Now there will be benefit cuts for all of the people enrolled in the program, including those with a lower income as well as the disabled and elderly. What's more is that these benefit cuts will actually provide tax cuts to wealthier Americans. Nice.
Say Goodbye to Anything Related to Women's Health.
Planned Parenthood will no longer be funded. This will allow 650,000 women to lose access to preventative care. Pregnancy and newborn care will see significant price rises. Birth control will be less likely to be covered, as well as breast pumps, domestic violence screening and counseling, mammograms, screenings for cervical cancer, STI counseling, and well-woman visits. Out-of-pocket prescription costs would increase.
It's painful to see that some of these things are not considered important enough to many Americans. If it doesn't directly affect them, then they just don't seem to care. Could this be the new America?
