Americans have urged Congress to focus on job creation and boosting our economy. Unfortunately, the new House leadership — and now the Republicans in the Senate — started the year with a vote to roll back the health care law that has benefited millions of Americans.
Along with our Democratic colleagues in the Senate, we plan to review individual provisions in the law that may not work as intended. But we are not willing to allow a wholesale rollback of health care reform that could take away popular benefits from American families, jeopardize the health and well-being of millions and add more than a trillion dollars to the deficit.
We will not allow any such effort to pass the Senate. Nor do we believe that acts of judicial overreach — like Monday’s court ruling in Florida, which deviates from other courts’ judgments on the new law — will stand.
Hard-working Americans should be able to get the quality medical care they need to stay healthy, prevent illnesses and get the treatment their doctors recommend. As of Jan. 1, the Affordable Care Act makes sure that happens.
If health reform is rolled back, seniors would no longer see the price of brand-name prescription drugs cut in half when they fall into the Medicare Prescription Drug Gap or “doughnut hole.” They would no longer be eligible for new Medicare improvements, like free cancer screenings and annual checkups with their doctor.
If health reform is rolled back, many people in their early 20s, now able to stay on their parents’ insurance through age 26, would lose coverage.
If health reform is rolled back, many children with pre-existing conditions, such as children who beat leukemia, could again be barred from getting health coverage.
If health reform is rolled back, small businesses would no longer be able to pool together to get better rates on health insurance.
We are fighting for middle-class families and small businesses — not to protect the profits of big insurance companies.
We’re looking out for small companies like Halliday Technologies in Plain City, Ohio, which has concerns about double-digit increases on premiums. The new law requires health insurance companies to spend at least 80 percent to 85 percent of premiums on health care and quality improvements for patients, rather than on overhead and administrative costs. As long as the law is intact, Halliday Technologies and other small businesses nationwide can be assured that the bulk of their premium dollars are going to patient care — not insurance company CEOs.
We’re looking out for business owners like Mark Hodesh, who runs a small home and garden shop in Ann Arbor, Mich. The new law gave a tax cut to help them provide insurance for employees. So Hodesh was able to hire a new employee, expand his business and make 2010 his busiest year ever. If the health care law is repealed, small businesses’ savings and employees could be put in jeopardy.
We’re looking out for cutting-edge health care innovators, like Vaccinex in Rochester, N.Y., that are doing lifesaving research on cancer and other diseases. Under the new law, Vaccinex already has received nearly $750,000 in grants to aid its work in pioneering new approaches to multiple sclerosis and cancerous tumors.
We’re looking out for the 25 million women covered by Medicare nationally — 400,000 in Maryland alone — who can now receive preventive services like mammograms, pelvic exams and Pap tests with no co-payments or deductibles.
Mark Seigel, chairman of the Maryland section of the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, says the Affordable Care Act will help women win battles against deadly cancers by making testing and early detection more available and less costly. He knows that when cancer is detected in the early stages, the patient’s treatment and recovery are much shorter. If the health care law is rolled back, access to these lifesaving screenings would very likely be at risk.
While the new House leaders have made it their highest priority to roll back health reform, the four of us will fight in the Senate any effort to take away the health benefits that American families currently enjoy.
Turning back the clock on health care would give insurance companies a happy new year. But it would be disastrous for middle-class families, seniors and small businesses.
Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) serves on the Senate Finance and Budget Committees. Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) is vice chairman of the Senate Democratic Caucus. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) is on the Appropriations Committee. Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) serves on the Budget Committee and the Health Care Subcommittee of the Finance Committee. |
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