[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 40 (Wednesday, March 8, 2017)]
[House]
[Pages H1599-H1600]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         RESIST APPEAL PROPOSAL

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Maryland (Mr. Brown) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. BROWN of Maryland. Madam Speaker, I rise today to speak out 
against the proposal offered by the Republican majority to replace the 
Affordable Care Act.
  After nearly 7 years of repeal votes, House Republicans finally 
released their healthcare proposal on Monday. Simply stated, this 
proposal is bad for seniors, it is bad for the poor, and it is bad for 
the sick. It costs more and offers less. It raises cost on middle class 
Americans while giving huge tax breaks to the wealthy and to special 
interests.
  Madam Speaker, more than 12,000 of my constituents receive financial 
assistance to buy health insurance on the exchange in the commercial 
market. Almost all of them will get less help under the Republican 
proposal.
  Why is that?
  Because the proposed tax credits will vary by age and income, which 
means premiums will be unaffordable for the low- to moderate-income 
families and seniors. As premiums go up with healthcare costs over 
time, these tax credits don't rise, making insurance less affordable 
year after year.
  Regarding the individual mandate, while removing it may be 
politically popular, experts who have studied this expect premiums to 
increase 25 percent when the individual mandate is eliminated. When the 
employer mandate is eliminated under the GOP proposal, fewer employers 
will offer insurance to their employees.
  Furthermore, Madam Speaker, I am opposed to the GOP proposal because 
it will significantly raise healthcare costs on individuals in their 
fifties and sixties.
  And why is that?
  Because the plan will allow insurers to charge them five times more 
than younger policyholders. In fact, if you are 60 years or older and 
making an average income, under the GOP proposal your insurance bill 
will go up by $3,200 each year while you lose $6,000 in tax credits and 
subsidies.
  Madam Speaker, nearly 30,000 men, women, and children in my district 
are currently covered by the Medicaid expansion provisions of the 
Affordable Care Act. Each of them now stands to lose coverage if the 
Republican Congress eliminates Maryland's Medicaid expansion. Even our 
Republican Governor understands that much.
  The GOP plan to so-called modernize Medicaid essentially turns the 
program into a block grant program that shifts the costs to States. 
States simply cannot afford that. As a result, we will eventually see 
massive cuts to this cost-efficient program.
  This plan to turn Medicaid into a block grant program would hurt the 
working poor, children, seniors, and people with disabilities that rely 
on this program. This is wrong and disgraceful.
  And why do Republicans want to cut Medicaid, Madam Speaker?
  I am not sure, but I do know they are also proposing huge tax cuts 
for the wealthy.
  Under Monday's midnight proposal, we now see that the 400 wealthiest 
households in America will receive annual tax cuts of $7 million. The 
proposal also includes a tax break for insurance companies that pay 
their CEOs over half a million dollars a year.
  Madam Speaker, the Republicans kept this proposal under lock and key 
for a reason. They scheduled a committee markup without a single 
hearing or even a CBO score.
  The American people and their Representatives deserve to see the 
numbers. That means every Member of this Congress needs to hear from 
the Congressional Budget Office: How much will it cost taxpayers? How 
will it impact our hospitals and health centers?

[[Page H1600]]

How many people will lose the health coverage they have right now?
  The American public demands and deserves to know.
  Madam Speaker, this is not regular order and this is not why I came 
to Congress. When Democrats introduced the Affordable Care Act, whether 
you supported it or not, we held 79 hearings over 2 years, heard from 
181 witnesses from both sides of the aisle, and posted the bill online 
30 days before markup.
  The Republicans have done none of these things. That is hypocritical 
and shameful. We will resist this dangerous repeal proposal, Madam 
Speaker.

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